My Go-To Holiday Cocktail Is the Apple Cider Old-Fashioned

A fragrant, simmering pot of apple cider is how this Old-Fashioned recipe from Deb Perelman’s Smitten Kitchen Keepers begins, as you transform the cider into a sweet concentrate. Then you add bourbon, bitters, and ice for the perfect come-on-in-and-make-yourself-at-home cocktail that will disappear as quickly as the gigantic cheese ball. (Meaning, very!)

Why this recipe is a keeper for me:
* It serves 6 but can easily be doubled to make a big batch
* You can make it up to one! month! ahead!
* It tastes like a visit to a cider mill in peak fall
* The cider concentrate can also make mocktails for kiddos and nondrinkers (just add seltzer)
* Everyone I’ve served it to has swooned with happiness

For serving, I highly recommend acquiring garage sale vintage holiday glassware, which makes everything taste better.

If I’m using underwhelming grocery store cider, I might also add cinnamon sticks, star anise, or orange peel to oomph up the flavor — or the new pumpkin pie spice 2.0 from Burlap and Barrel that I’m obsessed with.

As for the alcohol, I love bourbon because it’s made of at least 51% corn and corn is sweet. That, plus the aging in oak, gives it warm dessert notes that play well with the cider. Rye has a sharper, stronger flavor from rye berries, so use that if you prefer a more booze-forward drink. Or use some peat-y scotch and put some much-needed hair on your chest! Keep ya warm in the winter.

Fun fact: Smitten Kitchen Keepers just came out as an audiobook. You can listen to Deb’s warm voice narrate the stories behind each recipe — or just follow the instructions below with your eyeballs:

Apple-Cider Old-Fashioned

1 quart (4 cups, or 950 grams) regular or spiced apple cider
½ teaspoon pumpkin or apple pie spice (if the cider isn’t spiced)
12 shakes orange or Angostura bitter (don’t skip! This rounds everything out and keeps it from tasting like booze and juice)
2 cups (475 grams) rye or bourbon whiskey (or more, if needed)
Ice
Apple slices, for garnish (or those dried orange wheels from Trader Joe’s)

Make the cider concentrate: Boil the apple cider and spice, if using, in a 3-to-4-quart saucepan over high heat until it is a shade darker and syrupy, reduced to about ⅔ cup in volume. This takes about 25-30 minutes on my stove. Stir occasionally, especially near the end, when you want to make sure it doesn’t cook off too far. (If it does, it won’t ruin the drink, but the texture can be thicker and harder to keep mixed.)

Mix with whiskey: Let it cool to room temperature; then whisk in the bitters. In a thin stream, slowly whisk in the whiskey until it’s evenly combined. Taste, and add more whiskey, up to ½ cup, if desired. Transfer the mixture to a lidded carafe, and chill thoroughly until you’re ready to serve.

To serve: Place one large or a few smaller ice cubes in an Old-Fashioned glass (6 ounces). If the apple cider has settled in the carafe, give it another stir, and pour it over the ice. Garnish with an apple slice, if using, and toast to the new season.

Thoughts? What drinks to you enjoy over the holidays? Hot chocolate? Icy wine?

P.S. 5 fun things I noticed at a drinks party, and how to host a cookie swap.

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen Keepers: New Classics for Your Forever Files by Deb Perelman. Copyright © 2022 by Deb Perelman. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.