It's not officially fall until September 23, but with Labor Day Weekend in the rearview mirror, fall flavors and cocktails are already taking over menus—and have been for a while!
SpotOn, a leading restaurant software and payments provider, reports independent restaurants in its point-of-sale system have already added more than 602 pumpkin menu items. SpotOn has seen a 2200% increase in pumpkin menu items added since July 1st, and 65% of these items are beverages (27% beer, wine, 20% cocktail, 13% coffee, and 4% tea)—think Pumpkin Spice White Russians, Pumpkin Spice Mudslides, and Pumpkin Pie Shooters for cool versions of the warming fall flavors.
In addition to pumpkin, SpotOn is seeing other autumnal flavors trending as well with restaurants adding items featuring these three top flavors:
- 401 Maple items added
- 419 Pecan items added
- 684 Pear items added
If you haven't added fall flavors to your cocktail menus yet, or you're looking for a few new fall cocktail recipes, we've got you covered!
Slane Cold Brew
Ingredients:
1 part Slane Irish Whiskey
⅔ part Maple Syrup
Top with Cold Brew Coffee
3 Coffee Beans (garnish)
Directions:
Build all ingredients over ice and stir. Ganish with three coffee beans.
Photo: Deyson Rodriguez
Ichilada
Ingredients:
.5 oz hot sauce
.5 oz soy sauce
.5 oz lime juice
1 Kirin Ichiban Beer
Shichimi Togarashi (rim)
1 lime (garnish)
Directions:
Combine all ingredients into a cocktail shaker over ice and stir. Using a lime, rim a pint glass with Shichimi Togarashi. Strain cocktail mixture into pint glass and serve over fresh ice. Garnish with a lime wheel.
Alabama Sour
Ingredients:
2 oz Clyde May’s Alabama Style Whiskey
5 oz Sweet and Sour Mix
½ oz Raspberry Vodka
Garnish: Cherries, mint, and a lemon wheel
Directions:
Add all ingredients to a shaker and shake vigorously. Serve over ice.
Fresh Orchard Apple Manarita
Ingredients:
2 oz Teremana Reposado
0.75 oz Fresh Lime Juice
1 oz Fresh Apple Juice
0.5 oz Agave Nectar
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a cinnamon stick.
Peanut Butter Pumpkin Martini
Ingredients:
1 ¼ oz. Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey
¾ oz. coffee liqueur
½ oz. pumpkin syrup
2 oz. espresso
Dash of pumpkin spice
Directions:
Combine 1 ¼ oz. Skrewball, ¾ oz. coffee liqueur, ½ oz. pumpkin syrup, 2 oz. espresso & a dash of pumpkin spice into a shaker with ice. Shake vigorously. Strain into coupe glass. Sprinkle with pumpkin spice & drizzle with chocolate.
Negroni Upgrade
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Aviation American Gin
0.75 oz Bitter Aperitivo Liqueur
0.75 oz Sweet Vermouth
Orange Twist
Directions:
Combine all ingredients into mixing glass with Ice. Stir, then strain into Rocks glass with Ice. Garnish with Orange Twist.
Pumpkin Paradise
Ingredients:
1 ½ oz. Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey
¾ oz. Zaya Gran Reserva Rum
½ oz. orange juice
½ oz. pineapple juice
½ oz. pumpkin cream of coconut mix*
3 pineapple top leaves
Pumpkin spice
Pumpkin Cream of Coconut Mix
15 oz. can pumpkin puree
15 oz. can cream of coconut
2 dashes vanilla extract
1 tsp. cinnamon
¾ tsp. nutmeg
3 tbsp. sugar
Directions:
For the pumpkin cream of coconut, blend all ingredients to taste. To make the cocktail, shake all ingredients together in a shaker with ice and pour into cocktail glass. Garnish with three pineapple leaves and powdered pumpkin spice.
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