Sure, you could toast Thanksgiving with a glass of wine, but given the recent cocktail craze—which has spurred a resurgence of old fashioned drinks and handcrafted liqueurs—we think it a shame not to clink glasses with a round of spirits. Especially, those of Leopold Bros. The tiny, Denver-based distillery, operated by brothers Todd and Scott Leopold, makes a New York sour apple, alpine herbal, and New England cranberry liqueur—the last of which won two gold medals at the San Francisco 2009 World Spirits Competition (a first-time honor for a U.S. product). You can find cocktail recipes for all Leopold Bros. autumnally flavored spirits—available at Liquormart (Boulder) and Argonaut (Denver)—on the Leopold Brothers website. But here are a couple of our favorites:
The Pilgrim
(via Tasting Table)
Makes 1 drink
1 ½ ounces gin
¾ ounces Leopold Bros. Cranberry Liqueur
½ ounce fresh lemon juice
¼ ounce fresh orange juice or two dashes orange bitters
1 sugared cranberry*
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the gin, liqueur, lemon juice, and orange juice (or orange bitters) and shake vigorously. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a sugared cranberry.
*To make sugared cranberries, blanch fresh cranberries in boiling water for one minute, then roll them in granulated sugar.
Colorado Cider
Makes 1 drink
1 ounce Three Pins Alpine Herbal Liqueur
4 ounces fresh apple cider
Pour Alpine herbal liqueur into an ice-filled, lo-ball glass and top with cider.
(via Tasting Table)
Makes 1 drink
1 ½ ounces gin
¾ ounces Leopold Bros. Cranberry Liqueur
½ ounce fresh lemon juice
¼ ounce fresh orange juice or two dashes orange bitters
1 sugared cranberry*
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the gin, liqueur, lemon juice, and orange juice (or orange bitters) and shake vigorously. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a sugared cranberry.
*To make sugared cranberries, blanch fresh cranberries in boiling water for one minute, then roll them in granulated sugar.
Colorado Cider
Makes 1 drink
1 ounce Three Pins Alpine Herbal Liqueur
4 ounces fresh apple cider
Pour Alpine herbal liqueur into an ice-filled, lo-ball glass and top with cider.