Gunner’s Libation: Apple Cider Mule
MAKE IT
Serves 2
4 ounces vodka
Ginger beer
Sparkling cider
Sliced apple, for garnish
Cinnamon sticks, for garnish
Fill two copper mugs with ice. Pour 2 ounces vodka into each cup. Fill 2⁄3 full with sparkling cider, then top with ginger beer. Garnish with an apple slice and cinnamon stick. Serve.
One of my favorite summertime drinks is a mule. I love the cold copper mug and the refershing taste of ginger beer — and vodka — served over ice with a squeeze of fresh lime. It’s the perfect way, in my opinion, to spend a sunny afternoon on an outdoor patio. But as summer turns to autumn, my tastebuds get a bit twisted. I crave something warmer … but, at the same time, it’s still bluebird skies and outdoor seating season. This past weekend, I was introduced to the perfect early-fall libation: an Apple Cider Mule. In this creative take on a classic, the sparkling apple cider and autumnal garnish turns a standard mule into richer, more seasonal cocktail. It’s the perfect transition from summer patio drinks to hot toddies by the fire; I hope an Indian summer will have us drinking these for weeks.
WineInk: The 2023 vintage
“2023 predicted to be the Vintage of a Lifetime in Napa Valley,” proclaimed the headline this week in a press release sent out by the Napa Valley Vintners, the trade organization that represents the growers and producers in America’s most famed wine region. If there is anyone more optimistic than winemakers, it is the group that represents them.
