Because we know Fall is your favorite season…

Written by Amanda Boroughs, Marketing & Events Manager, Tenth Ward Distilling Company

I can’t believe I’m writing a blog about the return of our fall spirits and cocktails. How is it already fall? Anyone else feel cheated out of their 2020? Same. The only solace I feel is that 2020 is almost over and we can have a fresh start in 2021. Fingers crossed.

Anyway. Summer is winding down. The days are getting shorter. The nights are creeping up on us earlier and earlier. There is a slight chill in the air in the morning. Fall. Is. Almost. Here. And you know what that means? Tenth Ward’s Autumn Liqueur is coming back!

What is Autumn Liqueur?

If you’re unfamiliar, Autumn Liqueur is one of our seasonal liqueurs. We release four a year, and like our other three seasonal spirits, it starts out with an apple brandy base. We make ours from McCutcheon’s apple cider, which we source locally here in Frederick, Maryland. After we procure the cider, we ferment it in-house to create a hard cider. From there we distill it and boom: An apple brandy is born. After distillation, each seasonal brandy gets infused with its own signature blend of herbs and botanicals to give it the essence of the season it represents. For autumn we meld the spirit with ginger, plum, lapsang tea, turmeric, allspice, cinchona bark, sage, fennel, saffron, and local honey. This botanical infusion creates tastes of dry champagne, bourbon-like innuendos and whispers of tart apple. Picking my favorite seasonal liqueur is like picking my favorite child (if I had any). I can’t really give you an honest answer. But maybe in a whisper I would say: Autumn Liqueur.

Autumn Liqueur Release Day

Saturday, September 26, Autumn Liqueur returns to Tenth Ward for another season. All day from 12-10 pm we will have tastings, full pours, spirit tasting flights and 375 ml and 750 ml bottles available for purchase. In addition to the new release we’ll be switching over to our fall cocktail menu. Remember all your favorites from last year? Well they’re back and better than ever. Plus a few new ones for you to try…

Are you a Bottle Club member? You can go ahead and reserve your bottles by clicking here. And don’t forget, Bottle Club members get 50% spirit tasting flights for themselves and a guest!

Cocktail Recommendations

Autumn Liqueur is a versatile spirit. At only 65 proof (32.5% alcohol), it’s perfect for sipping over ice or chilled. But it’s damn good in a cocktail as well. Here are some of my favorite simple Autumn Liqueur cocktail recipes to make at home:

Autumn Mule

• 1.5 oz Autumn Liqueur
• Ginger beer
• 3 dashes orange bitters
• Lime wedge

Pour Autumn Liqueur and orange bitters over ice, top with ginger beer, garnish with lime.

Hot Toddy

• 1.5 oz Autumn Liqueur
• 0.5 oz honey simple syrup
• 0.25 oz lemon juice
• 2 whole cloves
• Cinnamon stick
• Hot water

Pour ingredients into a mug. Top with hot water. Garnish with a cinnamon stick.

Old Fashioned Autumn

• 1.5 oz Autumn Liqueur
• 0.5 oz Honeyjack
• 3 oz cider
• 4 dashes aromatic bitters
• Cinnamon stick and apple slice garnish