Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup Recipes
cardamom, cinnamon, clove, and a pop of pink peppercorn, the Old Fashioned's secret handshake
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
The House Old Fashioned
classic · stirred · spirit-forward · serves 1
Three ingredients and a big cube. Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup replaces the sugar cube and brings its own cardamom and pink-pepper spark, so the whiskey tastes like a better version of itself.
Ingredients
- 2 oz bourbon or rye whiskey
- 1/4 oz Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup
- 2 dashes aromatic bitters
- orange peel, for garnish
Method: stirred
Glass: rocks glass, over a large ice cube
Instructions
- Add the whiskey, Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup, and bitters to a mixing glass with ice.
- Stir until well chilled (20–30 seconds).
- Strain over a large cube, express the orange peel over the top, and drop it in.
No-Sweat Swap: No mixing glass? Build it right in the rocks glass over the cube and stir. A little richer? Go to 1/3 oz syrup.
TONIGHT · WARM WEATHER
Spice Highball
crisp & aromatic · built tall · low-sugar · serves 1
Japan's signature way to drink whisky: ice-cold, tall, and fizzy. A quarter-ounce of Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup doesn't sweeten it so much as perfume it. The most refreshing whiskey drink you'll have all summer.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 oz whisky (Japanese, bourbon, or blended scotch)
- 1/4 oz Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup
- 5 oz very cold soda water
- lemon peel, for garnish
Method: built in the glass
Glass: chilled highball, packed with ice
Instructions
- Pack a chilled highball glass with ice. Add the whisky and Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup and stir 10 times.
- Top up the ice, then pour the soda slowly down the side of the glass (it keeps the bubbles).
- Give it one gentle lift with a spoon and express a lemon peel over the top.
TONIGHT · ZERO-PROOF · YEAR-ROUND
Five-Minute Dirty Chai
warm-spiced · zero-proof · hot or iced · serves 1
Cardamom, cinnamon, and clove are chai's core spices, which means this syrup is a chai latte waiting to happen. Black tea, milk, and a shot of coffee make it 'dirty.' Hot in January, iced in July.
Ingredients
- 4 oz strong black tea, hot (or chilled for iced)
- 4 oz milk, steamed or warm (or cold for iced; oat milk works)
- 3/4 oz Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup (add more to taste)
- 1 oz espresso or strong coffee (optional, that's the 'dirty')
- pinch of cinnamon, for garnish
Method: built in the mug
Glass: mug (or tall glass over ice)
Instructions
- Stir the Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup into the hot tea until dissolved.
- Add the espresso, if using.
- Top with the warm milk (or pour everything over ice and top with cold milk). Dust with cinnamon.
THIS WEEKEND · WARM WEATHER
Spiced Paloma
tart & salty · shaken, then topped · Mexico's favorite highball · serves 1
Mexico's most-loved tequila drink, made the fresh way. Grapefruit and lime keep it bright, a pinch of salt makes everything pop, and Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup slips in cardamom and pink peppercorn, which, it turns out, love grapefruit.
Ingredients
- 2 oz blanco tequila (or mezcal, for smoke)
- 2 oz fresh grapefruit juice
- 1/2 oz fresh lime juice
- 1/2 oz Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup
- pinch of salt
- 2 oz chilled soda water
- salt for a half rim and a grapefruit wedge, for garnish
Method: shaken, then topped
Glass: highball, half salt rim, over ice
Instructions
- Salt half the rim of a highball glass and fill it with ice.
- Shake the tequila, grapefruit, lime, Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup, and pinch of salt with ice for 10 seconds.
- Strain into the glass, top with the soda, and garnish with a grapefruit wedge.
No-Sweat Swap: Short on time? Skip the shaker: build it in the glass and use grapefruit soda instead of juice plus soda, then cut the syrup to 1/4 oz.
THIS WEEKEND · WARM WEATHER
Cardamom Mai Tai
tiki classic · shaken · crushed ice · serves 1
The 1944 Trader Vic original called for a rich 'rock candy' syrup. Swap in Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup and the Mai Tai picks up cardamom and clove that sit beautifully against the almond orgeat and lime. Pure island, with a spice-market accent.
Ingredients
- 2 oz aged rum (a mix of Jamaican and aged rum is ideal)
- 1 oz fresh lime juice (save one spent lime half)
- 1/2 oz orange liqueur
- 1/4 oz orgeat (almond syrup)
- 1/4 oz Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup
- mint bouquet, for garnish
Method: shaken
Glass: double rocks glass, crushed ice
Instructions
- Add everything except the mint to a shaker with ice. Shake hard (15 seconds).
- Pour into a double rocks glass packed with crushed ice.
- Tuck in the spent lime half and a big bouquet of mint; serve with a straw.
No-Sweat Swap: No orgeat? Use 1/2 oz Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup total and add one drop of almond extract.
SHOW-OFF · YEAR-ROUND
Campfire Old Fashioned
smoked glass · stirred · spirit-forward · serves 1
Smoke the glass with the same spices that are in the syrup, a torched cinnamon stick and a few cardamom pods, and the aroma hits before the first sip. Lift the glass at the table and let the smoke roll out.
Ingredients
- 2 oz rye whiskey (or bourbon)
- 1/4 oz Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup
- 2 dashes aromatic bitters
- 1 dash orange bitters
- for the smoke: 1 cinnamon stick and 3 cracked cardamom pods
- orange peel, for garnish
Method: smoked glass, stirred
Glass: rocks glass, over a large ice cube
Instructions
- Set the cinnamon stick and cardamom on a heat-proof plate or cutting board. Torch the tip of the cinnamon until it smolders, then blow out any flame.
- Immediately turn a rocks glass upside down over the smoldering spices to trap the smoke. Let it sit 1–2 minutes while you mix.
- Stir the whiskey, Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup, and both bitters with ice for 20–30 seconds.
- Lift the glass (let the smoke roll out at the table), add a large cube, strain the drink in, and express an orange peel over the top.
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 torch? A long lighter or a match works on a cinnamon stick. Or rinse the glass with 1 tsp smoky mezcal or Islay scotch for smoke without fire.
SHOW-OFF · YEAR-ROUND
Pink Pepper Gin Sour
bright & botanical · silky foam · torched rosemary · serves 1
Gin makers love pink peppercorn and cardamom, and so does this sour. An egg-white foam makes it silky, a few cracked pink peppercorns dot the top, and a sprig of rosemary kissed with flame perfumes every sip.
Ingredients
- 2 oz London dry gin
- 3/4 oz fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 oz Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup
- 1 egg white (or 3/4 oz aquafaba)
- 3 pink peppercorns, lightly crushed, for garnish
- 1 rosemary sprig, for garnish
Method: dry shaken, then shaken
Glass: chilled coupe
Instructions
- Add the gin, lemon, Spiced Old Fashioned Syrup, and egg white to a shaker without ice. Shake hard for 15 seconds.
- Add ice and shake again until ice-cold (15 seconds). Double-strain into a chilled coupe.
- Scatter the crushed pink peppercorns over the foam.
- Briefly pass a flame along the rosemary until it smokes and smells piney (2–3 seconds), blow out any flame, and lay it across the glass.
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.