Cocktails for Bourbon Heritage Month
Want to share your love of bourbon with friends and family who have yet to embrace the beauty of America’s native spirit? Cocktails serve as an enticing gateway for non-bourbon drinkers to discover the remarkable depth of bourbon’s flavors. By cleverly blending bourbon with a variety of ingredients, such as zesty citrus, aromatic bitters, and just the right amount of sweetness, these cocktails create a harmonious experience that showcases the spirit’s complexity while tempering its boldness.
Classics such as the Old Fashioned, Bourbon Sour, or the invigorating Mint Julep might come to mind first. My advice is to stick to popular and trending cocktails that your non-whiskey-drinking cocktail lovers already enjoy. This inviting approach not only makes bourbon more accessible but also encourages exploration and appreciation of this iconic whiskey, allowing newcomers to gradually build their confidence and palate as they savor its unique character.
Need inspiration? Here are four hot cocktails to jump-start your next bourbon cocktail night.
Trend Setting
The espresso martini’s popularity shows no signs of stopping; it remains a captivating cocktail for enthusiasts around the world. This popular cocktail, typically featuring vodka, freshly brewed espresso, coffee liqueur, and a touch of simple syrup, offers the perfect pick-me-up for both daytime and nighttime occasions. With a quick swap of Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon instead of vodka, you’ve got yourself a winning combination of earthy and sweet, caramel, chocolate, and maple flavors that knock it out of the park!
Bourbon Espresso Martini
1.5 oz Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon
.5 oz coffee liqueur
1 oz espresso
.5 oz simple syrup
2-3 espresso beans for garnish – optional
Add all liquid ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice and shake well. Double strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with espresso beans.
Coffee and Bourbon, at It Again
The bourbon sour is a favorite amongst bourbon lovers, and for good reason, similar to the iconic margarita. Both cocktails create a harmonious balance of sweet and sour, and with the addition of bourbon, you bring more depth of flavor. Add a dollop of marmalade and a touch of salinity, and you’re in umami heaven. Made with Bib & Tucker’s small batch coffee bean-infused bourbon, the complexity of the robust, earthy flavors pairs perfectly with the citrus and sweet marmalade. Try this cocktail, and you’ll surely win over your guests to the bourbon side.
The Tennessee Stroll
2 oz Bib & Tucker Gold Roast Bourbon
5 oz lemon juice
1 rounded teaspoon orange marmalade
Soda water to top
One orange slice for garnish
Add all ingredients, except the soda water, to a shaker tin with cubed ice. Shake well and double-strain into a goblet glass filled with fresh ice.
Tropical Inspiration
Escape to the tropics with another wildly popular cocktail that takes on a new life with the addition of bourbon. The original Mai Tai features a balanced blend of light and dark rums, fresh lime juice, orange liqueur, and orgeat syrup (almond syrup), creating a sweet, tart, and subtly nutty flavor. Famed bartender and the man who claimed to have invented the Mai Tai, Trader Vic, included a play on the classic Mai Tai in his 1972 cocktail book, Vic’s Bartender’s Guide. For all of your tropical drink-loving friends, with the addition of a Kentucky staple like Evan Williams black label, you’ve got it covered with this tropical cocktail. The name Honi Honi means kiss kiss.
Honi Honi
1 2/3 oz Evan Williams Bourbon
1/3 oz Cointreau triple sec liqueur
1/2 oz fresh lime juice
1/3 oz orgeat syrup
1/6 oz simple syrup
1 pineapple wedge, 1 cherry, and a sprig of mint for garnish
Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice and shake well. Double strain into a chilled rocks glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish and enjoy.
The Suffering Ends Here
Unite gin and bourbon lovers with a cocktail that brings a touch of spice to the party. This play on the classic Suffering Bastard, initially created in 1942 by Joe Scialom at Shepheard’s Hotel in Cairo, Egypt, with gin and cognac, unexpectedly marries flavors by introducing ginger beer to the mix. Swapping the cognac for Hoot + Howl’s seven-year bourbon, aged in Armagnac casks, brings a bouquet of candied fruit and spices that shine with the addition of lime juice and the zing of ginger beer. Raise a glass to Bourbon Heritage Month and suffer your non-bourbon-loving friends no more!
Suffering Bastard
1 oz London Dry Gin
1 oz Hoot + Howl Bourbon
.5 oz fresh lime juice
.5 oz rich simple syrup
Chilled ginger beer
Aromatic bitters for garnish
Add all ingredients except the ginger beer to a rocks glass over crushed or pebbled ice. Top with chilled ginger beer and top with a dash of aromatic bitters.
So, grab your favorite ingredients, shake up some of these delicious cocktails, and let the good times roll. Cheers to bourbon, great friends, and making some unforgettable memories together this Bourbon Heritage Month! Enjoy!
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