Fall flavor: Five cocktails to toast autumn in the Northwest

The leaves are turning, the temperature is dropping, the Sunday TV is tuned to football.

It’s fall.

We asked five of our favorite Snohomish and Island county distilleries for a fall cocktail recipe. Some are sweet, some are spicy. All complement the season like pumpkin pie and vanilla ice cream.

BourbonBucha

Made with a berry-infused kombucha from Arlington’s GloryBucha and bourbon from Bad Dog Distillery, also of Arlington, this fizzy, slightly tangy cocktail is perfect for kombucha lovers.

3 to 4 ice cubes

2 ounces Bad Dog Bourbon

1 cup GloryBucha Berry Mix-a-lot

1 sprig thyme

Fill rocks (aka old fashioned) glass with ice, pour in the Bad Dog Bourbon and top with GloryBucha Berry Mix-a-Lot. Gently stir. Garnish with thyme.

Serves 1.

Whiskey Root Beer Float

James Bay Distillers Ltd.’s root beer float, topped with light cream and ice cream, features the distillery’s own Canadian whiskey, available soon. The British Columbia-based James Bay recently opened a distillery near Paine Field. Have this one for dessert.

3 to 4 ice cubes

1 ounce James Bay Galloping Goose Canadian Whisky

6 ounces chilled root beer of your choice

1 to 2 ounces light cream

1 scoop vanilla ice cream

Add the ingredients to a chilled milkshake glass.

Stir gently.

Serves 1.

Blackberry Bunker Old Fashioned

Whidbey Island Distillery’s spin on the classic old fashioned strikes a balance between sweet and tart. The blackberries and blackberry liqueur will have you reminiscing about summer, while the warm notes from the rye whiskey are a shield against the cold weather ahead.

2 to 3 fresh or frozen blackberries

1 orange slice

2 ounces Whidbey Island Distillery Bunker Rye Whiskey

1 ounce Whidbey Island Distillery Blackberry Liqueur

2 dashes Angostura Bitters

Splash soda water

Muddle 2 blackberries, the orange slice and the bitters in a rocks glass. Add the rye whiskey and blackberry liqueur. Fill the glasses with ice, stir and top with a splash of soda water. Skewer a blackberry for garnish.

Serves 1.

The Fremont Troll

Scratch Distillery’s cocktail features WAquavit, the Edmonds distiller’s wheat spin on the traditional Scandinavian spirit, aged in barrels for six or more months and infused with caraway, dill, cardamom and orange peel.

1 ounce Scratch WAquavit

1 ounce Scratch Wheat Vodka

¾ ounces fresh lemon juice

¾ ounces simple syrup

Pour all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and pour into a martini glass. Garnish with a fresh orange slice.

Serves 1.

Winter Revival

Lynnwood’s Temple Distilling’s cocktail might be just the thing if you feel a cold coming on. It features gin aged in whiskey barrels and a blend of cloves, citrus and absinthe.

2 ounces Woodcut Barrel Rested Gin

1 ounce fresh lemon juice

⅔ ounces clove-infused simple syrup (recipe below)

Dash absinthe

Shake the ingredients together for 30 seconds, then strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with a fresh lemon peel skewered with a whole clove.

Serves 1.

Making the clove-infused simple syrup: Heat 1 cup of water with 1 cup of sugar until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is almost boiling. Then add ¼ cup whole cloves, remove from heat and let sit for 1 hour to cool and infuse. Strain syrup into a bottle and refrigerate. It should last several weeks. Remove from heat and allow to steep for at least 30 minutes. Strain syrup through fine mesh. Keep refrigerated.

Washington North Coast Magazine

This article is featured in the fall issue of Washington North Coast Magazine, a supplement of The Daily Herald. Explore Snohomish and Island counties with each quarterly magazine. Each issue is $3.99. Subscribe to receive all four editions for $14 per year. Call 425-339-3200 or go to www.washingtonnorthcoast.com for more information.