Gingerbread Syrup Recipes
real ginger heat, cinnamon, allspice, clove, and deep demerara, the holidays in a bottle, but it plays in July too
A quick note on pouring: our syrups are rich, more like a bartender's 2:1 syrup than thin simple syrup, so a little goes a long way. If a favorite recipe calls for 3/4 oz simple syrup, start with 1/2 oz of ours and adjust to taste.
TONIGHT · YEAR-ROUND
Spiced Mule
spicy & bright · effortless · fizzy · serves 1
The Moscow Mule already wants ginger; this one gets a whole spice rack. A quarter-ounce of Gingerbread Syrup turns a good mule into the one your friends ask about. Ice-cold in August, just as good by the fire.
Ingredients
- 2 oz vodka (or bourbon, for a Kentucky Mule)
- 1/4 oz Gingerbread Syrup
- 1/2 oz fresh lime juice
- 4 oz chilled ginger beer
- lime wedge and a thin slice of fresh ginger, for garnish
Method: built in the glass
Glass: copper mug or highball, over ice
Instructions
- Fill a mug or highball glass with ice.
- Add the vodka, Gingerbread Syrup, and lime juice.
- Top with the ginger beer and give it one gentle stir.
- Garnish with a lime wedge and a slice of ginger.
No-Sweat Swap: No ginger beer? Use 4 oz soda water and bump the syrup to 1/2 oz, drier, spicier, still a mule.
TONIGHT · WARM WEATHER
Gingerbread Shandy
crisp & spiced · low-proof · beer-based · serves 1
The beer in your fridge is one lemon away from a backyard hero. Gingerbread Syrup and lemon turn a plain lager into a spiced, sunny shandy, the same trick Belgian brewers use when they add spice to wheat beer.
Ingredients
- 1/2 oz Gingerbread Syrup
- 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
- 10 oz cold light lager or wheat beer
- lemon wheel, for garnish
Method: built in the glass
Glass: chilled pint glass
Instructions
- Add the Gingerbread Syrup and lemon juice to a chilled pint glass.
- Tilt the glass and slowly pour in the beer.
- Stir once from the bottom and garnish with a lemon wheel.
No-Sweat Swap: Pouring for a crowd? A 12-pack, 1 cup lemon juice, and 3/4 cup syrup in a pitcher, pour to order.
TONIGHT · ZERO-PROOF · WARM WEATHER
Porch Tea
tea-house spice · zero-proof · refreshing · serves 1
Southern sweet tea, but with a little ginger kick and a lot more personality. Brew it strong, chill it hard, and make a pitcher, it disappears.
Ingredients
- 6 oz strong black tea, chilled (unsweetened)
- 3/4 oz Gingerbread Syrup
- 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
- lemon wheel and mint sprig, for garnish
Method: built in the glass
Glass: highball or mason jar, over ice
Instructions
- Fill a tall glass with ice.
- Add the tea, Gingerbread Syrup, and lemon juice; stir well.
- Garnish with a lemon wheel and mint.
No-Sweat Swap: Pitcher: 6 cups tea, 3/4 cup syrup, 1/2 cup lemon juice. Want it spiked? 1 1/2 oz bourbon per glass.
THIS WEEKEND · WARM WEATHER
Island Gingerbread
tropical & spiced · shaken · sweet-heat rim · serves 1
Ginger and pineapple are old friends in the Caribbean. Aged rum brings the depth, fresh pineapple brings the sunshine, and a chili-lime salt rim lights up every sip. Tropical, a little savory, and dangerously easy.
Ingredients
- 2 oz aged rum
- 1 oz pineapple juice (fresh if you can)
- 3/4 oz fresh lime juice
- 1/2 oz Gingerbread Syrup
- chili-lime seasoning (like Tajín) and a lime wedge, for the rim
- pineapple wedge, for garnish
Method: shaken
Glass: rocks glass, rimmed, over ice
Instructions
- Run a lime wedge around half the rim of a rocks glass and dip it in chili-lime seasoning. Fill with ice.
- Add the rum, pineapple, lime, and Gingerbread Syrup to a shaker with ice. Shake hard until ice-cold (15 seconds).
- Strain into the glass and garnish with a pineapple wedge.
No-Sweat Swap: No chili-lime seasoning? Mix a pinch of chili powder into flaky salt. Or skip the rim, it's still a knockout.
THIS WEEKEND · YEAR-ROUND
Gingerbread Penicillin
smoky & spiced · shaken · modern classic · serves 1
The Penicillin is one of the great modern classics, scotch, lemon, honey, and fresh ginger under a smoky float. Gingerbread Syrup already carries the ginger and then some, so the spec gets simpler and the drink gets deeper.
Ingredients
- 2 oz blended scotch
- 3/4 oz fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 oz Gingerbread Syrup
- 1/4 oz peated (smoky) Islay scotch, for floating
- candied ginger on a pick, for garnish
Method: shaken, then floated
Glass: rocks glass, over a large ice cube
Instructions
- Add the blended scotch, lemon juice, and Gingerbread Syrup to a shaker with ice. Shake until ice-cold (15 seconds).
- Strain into a rocks glass over a large cube.
- Pour the Islay scotch slowly over the back of a spoon so it floats on top.
- Garnish with candied ginger.
No-Sweat Swap: No Islay scotch? Skip the float and it's a Gingerbread Gold Rush, use bourbon in place of the blended scotch.
SHOW-OFF · WARM WEATHER
Ginger Volcano
tiki · crushed ice · flaming garnish · serves 1
Pure tiki theater. A rum punch loaded with pineapple, lime, and Gingerbread Syrup, crowned with a floating lime-shell 'volcano' that burns blue, and a pinch of cinnamon tossed over the flame throws off sparkles. Lights down for this one.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 oz aged rum (Jamaican if you have it)
- 1/2 oz overproof rum (or more aged rum)
- 1 oz pineapple juice
- 3/4 oz fresh lime juice (save one spent lime half)
- 1/2 oz fresh orange juice
- 1/2 oz Gingerbread Syrup
- 2 dashes aromatic bitters
- for the volcano: 1 spent lime half, 1 sugar cube or small crouton, 1/2 tsp lemon extract, a pinch of ground cinnamon
- mint sprig, for garnish
Method: shaken
Glass: tiki mug or large rocks glass, crushed ice
Instructions
- Add everything except the volcano and garnish to a shaker with ice. Shake hard (15 seconds) and strain into a tiki mug packed with crushed ice.
- Float the spent lime half, cut side up, on top of the ice. Set the sugar cube inside and soak it with the lemon extract. Put the extract bottle away.
- Light the sugar cube with a long lighter. Hold a pinch of cinnamon about 6 inches above and sprinkle it over the flame for sparkles.
- Let the flame burn out on its own (or smother it with an upside-down glass), then remove the shell and add mint and a straw.
Safety: Tie back hair and sleeves, clear the area of paper and towels, and work on a heat-proof surface. Never pour from a bottle toward a flame. Keep a lid or saucer nearby to smother flames. Let everything cool and make sure all flames are out before anyone takes a sip.
No-Sweat Swap: No lemon extract? A 1/4 oz splash of overproof rum in the shell works too, measure it into a jigger first, well away from any flame.
SHOW-OFF · COLD WEATHER
Brûlée Flip
rich & velvety · whole-egg flip · torched sugar crust · serves 1
Eggnog's more sophisticated cousin. A whole egg shaken with brandy and Gingerbread Syrup turns silky and custard-like; a dusting of sugar on top gets torched into a glassy crème-brûlée crust you crack with a spoon.
Ingredients
- 2 oz brandy or aged rum
- 1/2 oz Gingerbread Syrup
- 1/2 oz heavy cream
- 1 whole egg
- pinch of salt
- 1 tsp demerara or white sugar, for the crust
- freshly grated nutmeg, for garnish
Method: dry shaken, then shaken
Glass: small coupe or heat-proof glass
Instructions
- Add the brandy, Gingerbread Syrup, cream, egg, and salt to a shaker without ice. Shake hard for 15 seconds.
- Add ice and shake again until ice-cold (15 seconds). Strain into a chilled coupe and let the foam settle for 30 seconds.
- Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the foam. Sweep a kitchen torch across it until it melts and turns amber (5–10 seconds).
- Let it set for a minute, grate nutmeg on top, and crack the crust with a spoon at the table.
Safety: Tie back hair and sleeves, clear the area of paper and towels, and work on a heat-proof surface. Never pour from a bottle toward a flame. Keep a lid or saucer nearby to smother flames. Let everything cool and make sure all flames are out before anyone takes a sip. Raw egg: use fresh, clean eggs (pasteurized if serving anyone pregnant, elderly, or immunocompromised), or aquafaba.
No-Sweat Swap: No torch? Skip the crust and grate nutmeg on top, it's a classic Flip, and still gorgeous.