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Thirsty Thursday

Festive fall cocktail tastes like pumpkin pie in a glass

Frankie Prijatel | Senior Staff Photographer

Traditional white russians are made with Kahlua, vodka and heavy cream, but this one uses Bailey's instead.

The crisp fall breeze is rustling the trees outside, signaling it’s prime time to enjoy everyone’s favorite fall treat. Pumpkin spice is in the air and it’s not just restricted to lattes and pies.

For this week, I whipped up a pumpkin spice cocktail, perfect for all fall festivities. All you need is a couple different types of fall-flavored alcohol. Better yet, it takes less than three minutes to make.

This cocktail is based off a classic White Russian, which is made with heavy cream, Kahlua, and vodka. But while the two drinks are similar, the difference lies in the flavor.  While the White Russian has coffee undertones, this cocktail is full of pumpkin flavors.

I started by pouring a shot of plain vodka, a shot of Baileys Irish Creme Pumpkin Spice Liqueur, and a shot of Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie Cream Liqueur into a cocktail shaker with a cup of ice. If you don’t have a cocktail shaker, you can use two cups and put them together.

After I poured the thick liquid over a few ice cubes, I sprinkled some cinnamon and nutmeg on the top, and gave the glass a little stir. In these two basic steps, you have a super easy fall cocktail.



From the shaker to the glass, the liquid poured a light tan color with a slight orange tint.  It’s thick and heavy, similar to the consistency of heavy whipping cream, but gets progressively thinner as the ice cubes melt.

Of course, like anything pumpkin spice flavored, the aroma is the first thing you notice. Strong smells of cinnamon and nutmeg waft from the glass followed by a sweet whiff one could easily mistake for a piece of pumpkin pie.

On the lips, the first thing I noticed was the overwhelming sweetness. If you were to take a piece of pumpkin pie and blend it together with some heavy cream and vodka, this drink is exactly what you’d get.

Strong flavors of pumpkin spice and cinnamon spices jump out of the glass followed by a short and underwhelming twinge of vodka flavor. Think of it as a cool blended pumpkin pie, with a slight bitter twist at the end.

The finish is long and sweet, leaving the hints of pumpkin spices on the tongue long after the drink is gone.

I used plain New Amsterdam vodka for my third type of liquor, but vanilla-flavored liquor would also have tied the drink together nicely.

I highly recommend enjoying this drink after a meal, as the sweet flavors make it the perfect dessert.





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