The seasons pass quickly. No sooner were we enjoying all things pumpkin than it’s time to move on to more festive tastes.

To flavor a holiday-themed cocktail you can, of course, buy Gingerbread flavored syrup or even a liqueur, but what’s the fun in that? Instead, I set out to create a gingerbread flavor that would be worthy of a new cocktail. I wanted to create something that would be seasonal, but not cloyingly sweet.

When we think of gingerbread we tend to think of cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and perhaps allspice. Spice cakes with these ingredients have a role in the history of gingerbread making, particular in France (pain d’epices) and in Italy (panforte, which also includes dried nuts and fruits).

Today, however, the main flavoring components of gingerbread are ginger and molasses, the latter being introduced around the mid-seventeenth century as an alternative to what was initially honey and then later, sugar.

Unlike the pumpkin syrup of my last recipe, the liquid base for this one is beer, so it’s less applicable as an ice cream topping and not at all useful in a mocktail. Beer (and particularly the stout used here) is, however, a good choice for providing the necessary liquidity with some hearty additional flavors and a bit of a bitter bite. Any stout will do, but I prefer Guinness. Also, be sure to have a fresh bottle of powdered ginger for this recipe. Spices lose their potency quickly. A good idea is to write the date you opened a spice right on the jar. If it’s older than 90 days (or you can’t remember when you opened it), it’s time for a new one.

It’s Rum Again

Like the Rumpkin, the spirit for this cocktail is rum. It just makes sense to pair the molasses in our gingerbread syrup with rum, which oftentimes starts as molasses, too. As I’ve noted previously, rum is a remarkably popular spirit with a long history in American life. During the time of the War for Independence, nascent America was home to several hundred rum distilleries (60 of them just in Boston) converting more than seven million gallons of molasses into rum each year.¹

But history aside, there’s just something warm and festive about rum. It brings a spiciness you just don’t get with some other spirits.

For this drink you’ll want a dark rum, like the Puerto Rican Don Q Gran Anejo Rum that I used in the Rumpkin. This time I turned to Kirk & Sweeney’s 18-year-old rum from the Dominican Republic, a beautifully spicy alternative.

To add body and some foaminess to the finished drink I added a fresh egg white to the recipe, so you’ll need to do a vigorous “dry shake” (without the ice) before you shake a second time with ice. All the information about working with raw eggs (and some warnings, too) are included with the Rumpkin recipe, so be sure to brush up there if you have any concerns.

I like to dot the froth at the top of the glass with a few drops of chocolate bitters. My favorite are the Fee Brothers Aztec Chocolate Cocktail Bitters.

Image Credits: Robert DelRossi.

1. Prial, Frank J. “Rum For All Seasons.” New York Times, October 21, 1984.