Mulled Apple Cider Mule

I was about to make a really fancy pumpkin pie cocktail for this post, but I realized the world already has way too much pumpkin spice going on right now. Like, really, we get it, it’s November and you know how to make everything out of pumpkin spice! I also realized that in all the chaos of the holiday, a nice simple cocktail would be the key to, you know, actually enjoying it.

Thus, we have the mulled apple cider mule – elegant, delicious, great for groups, and liable to make you exclaim with delight when you first taste it…if that is not too bold to claim.

I did say that this COCKTAIL was easy to make, which in all honesty is true. I can whip out a batch of 20 in about 4 minutes (excluding rimming the glasses of course). What is my secret to this speed? Well, the cocktail includes 3 ingredients… and the main ingredient I stole from Emily after she made it. The essential oil hot mulled apple cider!

When I was going through all the various options for fall cocktails I realized that we already had an amazing apple cider recipe and when you have something delicious you can just roll with it rather than reinvent the wheel. I had her whip up a batch and voila! I was ready for cocktailing with it.

It’s like everyone famous always says…when you see someone doing something great, stand on their coattails and modify their idea into something flashy, that way you are standing holding a flashy new idea and they’ve crouched awkwardly near the ground.

Though, I guess if you give them credit for the idea then it isn’t as much “idea theft” as it is good ole’ fashioned collaboration.

It isn’t very often that we get to field test our recipes before they go live. I mean, we drink them every time – I’ve stressed how many mess-ups I’ve had to consume sometime before it seems right. We also have our families test them…but it is free alcohol so who knows if they are biased just to keep getting the invite back.

This time, we were scheduled to do a pop-up at WeWork (a co-working space) here in Seattle for the employees to have a happy hour. We did it in coordination with our good friends at Party on the Rocks (mobile bartending and event staff service) to present them with a really fun happy hour. In addition to making these cocktails for them, they also got to make up our cinnamon + sage dry rub and take it home with them. The event was such a hit, which was very exciting!

It was very complimentary because everyone was raving about the quality of both aspects of the event. Many touted that, “this was the best cocktail any of their happy hour events had ever had.”

The budget for this cocktail was higher than their normal happy hour options because we provided the mulled apple cider, but unfair advantage aside, it was really exciting to have people so in love with our cocktail. I can safely say that if you make this drink you will enjoy it!

This blend of clove, ginger, cinnamon, orange, and cassia essential oils really scream fall. I feel like at the end of a long day, or one that feels long even when it is 9 am, you can warm up a cup of this cider and just relax into the fact that it is fall. Adding the vodka just makes that relaxation effect a little deeper. I know that this is something I will enjoy on many fall and winter days.

Ok, let’s talk about rim jobs. (Couldn’t help myself.)

I chose a sugar rim for this cocktail to accent the cider, but it would have also been really fun to do something with a little kick. I toyed with doing some chili powder or cayenne in it as well, but you know, having to appeal to the masses and all, I kept it simple.

The cinnamon sugar blend that I made was more sugar than I usually do but that was because in applying it to the rim I didn’t want it to be too cinnamon-forward and take away from the cocktail.

One of the biggest lessons I have learned in applying rim seasoning is that using a sponge to apply the liquid is so much better for getting a consistent rim. It makes it so that you don’t have your salt or sugar running down the outside of your glass. Just get a common sponge slightly wet, hold it still, and place the glass firmly into it, dip it into the rim sugar, and away you go! (Just don’t go using the sponge you just used to clean 20 crusty dishes with.)

Feel free as always to ad-lib on the rim and let me know what you have done so I can try it too!