It’s Thanksgiving, which means it’s time to drink, eat, listen to your Aunt Myrtle tell the same story for the umpteenth time, drink, eat, dodge family feud over politics, drink and eat some more, rinse, repeat.
To avoid an eleventh-hour, desperate lunge at the vodka, mixed with kid’s table Martinelli’s, come prepared with these 5 Thanksgiving-themed cocktail recipes from go-to industry mixologist Cocktail Academy and Downtown LA dining destination LOAM.
COCKTAIL ACADEMY’S PIMMS PITCHER
In 1800s London, James Pimm created Pimm’s No. 1—a gin-based digestif that later became the key ingredient for the Pimm’s Cup. Cocktail Academy’s twist on the Pimm’s Cup maintains its refreshing quality, while the lemon and ginger add an immune-friendly boost, making it a perfect after dinner drink.
MAKES 8
Ingredients
- 8 oz Pimms No. 1 liqueur
- 4 oz cognac
- 6 oz Cynar
- 6 oz lemon
- 2 oz simple syrup
- 2 oz ginger syrup
- Soda water
- Garnish: cucumber wheels & rosemary sprigs
Method
- Combine ingredients into a pitcher.
- Add ice & top with chilled soda water.
- Garnish with cucumber wheels & rosemary sprigs.
COCKTAIL ACADEMY’S CRANBERRY COBBLER
This wine-based cocktail subs as the adult version of your grandma’s side of cranberry sauce and will add a sweet yet bitter twist to your Thanksgiving meal.
MAKES 1
Ingredients
- 2 dash Angostura bitters
- 2 dash cranberry bitters
- .75 oz lemon
- .5 oz pineapple juice
- .75 oz cranberry jam
- 1.5 oz Amontillado sherry
- 1.5 oz Oloroso sherry
- Garnish: cranberries, rosemary, & grated cinnamon
Method
- Combine ingredients into a shaker.
- Short shake & strain into a stemmed glass.
- Add crushed ice.
- Garnish with cranberries, rosemary, & grated cinnamon.
COCKTAIL ACADEMY’S ORCHARD OLD FASHIONED
Sweet but spicy, the Orchard Old Fashioned is a boozy cocktail with a complex flavor profile including: apple, honey, ginger, citrus, cinnamon, and even a touch of black licorice and menthol.
MAKES 1
Ingredients
- 1 oz apple brandy
- .75 oz Pedro Ximénez
- .75 oz Benedictine liqueur
- .5 oz Becherovka liqueur
- 3 dsh Krupnik bitters
Method
- Combine ingredients into a mixing glass.
- Add ice & stir.
- Strain into a rocks glass & serve on a large cube.
LOAM’S BEET IT
The two different kinds of sherry give this drink a nutty aroma with the beet shrub introducing an earthy yet savory flavor profile. The tarragon sprig, grapefruit slice, and egg white makes for a great looking presentation.
MAKES 1
Ingredients
- 1 egg white*
- 1 sprig tarragon
- 1 grapefruit slice
- 0.75 oz beet shrub
- 2.0 oz Mulholland vodka
- 1.5 oz Amontillado sherry
- 1.5 oz Oloroso sherry
- Garnish: tarragon sprig
Method
- Add ingredients.
- Dry shake.
- Add ice & hard shake.
- Open and close shakers then hard shake again.
- Double strain into glass.
- Garnish with tarragon sprig.
*Can be made without egg white
LOAM’S TOO MUCH TO DREAM
This rum-based cocktail is oaky and sweet with the Campari and cinnamon syrup giving it a spice reminiscent of the holiday season. The citrus, a common ingredient in rum cocktails, balances out the intense flavors of oak and spice making for a boozy yet easy to drink cocktail.
MAKES 1
Ingredients
- 0.5 oz lime
- 1.0 oz fresh pineapple juice
- 0.5 oz cinnamon syrup
- 0.75 oz Campari
- 0.75 oz Appleton signature rum
- 0.75 oz BACARDÍ Reserva Ocho
- Garnish: mint sprigs
Method
- Add ingredients & hard shake.
- Strain into glass & add ice.
- Garnish with mint sprigs.
