In most homes, the stockings have been hung and the strands of lights are twinkling. In our house the focus is on the fragrance of the holidays, wafting through our kitchen. Now it’s time for a little break and what better way to kick back than with a Rosemary and Orange Maple Bourbon Cocktail!
Run your hand across sprigs of fresh Rosemary to release its beautiful aroma and you’re instantly transported to the holidays. Now imagine a maple syrup infused with this earthy herb. We begin this cocktail with a smooth bourbon and its caramel, spicy undertones. Add a touch of citrus from a splash of fresh orange juice to brighten the notes, then finish with that luscious rosemary-infused maple syrup.
I’ve seen a number of versions of this cocktail, most made by muddling the fresh rosemary in the cocktail shaker. Though this definitely adds a touch of this gorgeous herb, I wondered if it was possible to get more depth of this wintery herb into the cocktail. So I decided to infuse the rosemary into the maple syrup.
I love infusing herbs in simple syrup. It’s easy to do and the subtle herbal flavors envelope the syrup through the process. So it seemed logical that the same would work with a maple syrup. A short simmer of the syrup with sprigs of fresh rosemary then letting the syrup chill overnight added the right touch of earthiness I was after.
This cocktail has just enough sweet to balance out the rich, warm bourbon notes and is perfect in front of a roaring fire or your twinkling lights!
Cheers to the holidays!
Rosemary and Orange Maple Bourbon Cocktail
To make the rosemary-infused maple syrup:
4 sprigs fresh rosemary, rinsed and dried
1 cup real maple syrup
Pour the maple syrup into a small saucepan; add the sprigs of fresh rosemary.
Bring the syrup to a simmer over medium-low heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and store in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use.
For two cocktails:
½ cup good bourbon
¼ cup orange juice, preferably fresh
3 tablespoons rosemary-maple syrup
Orange slices and rosemary sprigs for garnish
Pour the bourbon into a cocktail shaker.
Add the orange juice and rosemary-maple syrup.
Fill with ice and shake until well blended and chilled.
Divide between two cocktail glasses filled with ice. Garnish each with an orange slice and a sprig of rosemary.
Makes 2 cocktails.
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Rosemary and Orange Maple Bourbon Cocktail
Equipment
- small saucepan
- cocktail shaker
Ingredients
- To make the rosemary-infused maple syrup:Â
- 4 sprigs fresh rosemary, rinsed and dried
- 1 cup real maple syrup
- For the cocktails:
- ½ cup good bourbon
- ¼ cup orange juice
- 3 tablespoons rosemary-maple syrup
- Ice
- Orange slices and rosemary sprigs for garnish
Instructions
- To make the rosemary-infused maple syrup:
- Pour the maple syrup into a small saucepan; add the sprigs of fresh rosemary.
- Bring the syrup to a simmer over medium-low heat. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat, cool and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- To make the cocktails:
- Pour the bourbon, orange juice and rosemary-maple syrup into a cocktail shaker.
- Fill with ice and shake until well blended and chilled.
- Divide between two cocktail glasses filled with ice. Garnish each with an orange slice and a sprig of rosemary.
