Pumpkin Spice Old Fashioned

• October 5, 2023
• Cocktails

Sugar and spice and everything nice.

By Erin Henderson 

Canadian Thanksgiving is only days away. The October long weekend always signals the true start of fall (Back to School is a false start as it's usually still blazing hot in Toronto, where we are.)

And, of course, as the cool weather sets in, our collective minds drift from thirst-quenching cocktails to soul-warming ones.  

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The Old Fashioned – a simple blend of whisky, bitters, and sugar – truly lives up to its moniker having been created in the mid 1700’s with the invention of bitters. At that time, it was simply known as a whisky cocktail.

By the late 1800’s bartenders, itching to put their own stamp on the classic whisky cocktail, started mixing other things into the straight-forward blend – absinthe, curaçao, maraschino, and the like. Imbibers of a certain age were disgruntled by these new-fangled recipes aimed at bettering an already good thing. To let their thoughts be known, these unamused bar flies began ordering their whisky cocktails, “the old-fashioned way.” Hence, the Old Fashioned, as we know it today, was born.

I like a proper Old Fashioned, I really do. But I also find a certain humour in drink purists. I mean, cocktail hardliners – is that not the very antithesis of a good time?

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Long ago, I abandoned muddling my sugar cube with bitters into a fine paste. It’s the classic way to make an Old Fashioned, and it really gets the frustrations out, but the lengthy process of beating the cube into liquid submission cuts into precious drinking time. By the time I’m done that callous-inducing exercise, I could be already onto my second round.

Simple syrup cuts to the chase and the drink doesn’t suffer. (I can hear the bearded, sleeve-garter-wearing bar chefs scratching at their tattoos in aggravation as I write this.)

Now for my latest cocktail heresy: adapting the pumpkin spice craze into my tipple du jour. Years ago I started making my own pumpkin spice syrup. It's easy and tastes fresh and clean – not like the artificial bottled stuff that lasts forever. Using it to an Old Fashioned, French 75, or any other cold-weather cocktail requiring a splash of sugar takes the drink in a seasonal new route. It's fun, festive, and most importantly, really delicious. 

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But before you freak right out, consider this: the spices used (at least the ones in my pumpkin spice) compliment the whisky beautifully: cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, clove… these are simply echoing what’s already in the spirit, giving an added layer of flavour. Doubling down, if you will. Even the staunchest of mixologists can't argue that point. 

Try it – I bet you can’t drink just one.