The Crabby Captain
I absolutely LOVE crabapple season in Alaska—the fruits have such an amazing flavor. They are tart, sweet, and tannic and can be used for anything. My favorite drink to make with them is mulled cider....
I absolutely LOVE crabapple season in Alaska—the fruits have such an amazing flavor. They are tart, sweet, and tannic and can be used for anything. My favorite drink to make with them is mulled cider. It is the perfect fall treat. I use the mulled cider in cocktails as well, and the results have been amazing. I often make cider-based tiki drinks, playing on the rum in the cider, but in The Crabby Captain, below, I use bourbon. I created this cocktail for a dinner at Whale’s Tail Bar and Bistro in The Hotel Captain Cook, hosted by Brown Jug, and the guests loved it. I hope everyone gets to make this. Cheers!
Ingredients
SERVINGS: 4 Cup(s)
- 2 cups fresh crabapple juice (I use a juicer and juice the whole fruit. Blending the fruit in a high-powered blender like a Vitamix and straining out the big chunks would also work)
- 6 ounces Two Seasons Meadery’s Spring Dreams Meadow Foam Honey Mead
- 2 ounces Grand Marnier
- 2 ounces Plantation Dark Rum
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 vanilla bean, split
- 1 teaspoon allspice berries
- 2 star anise pods
- 3 crushed cardamom pods
Preparation
Place all ingredients into a sous vide machine at 158° degrees F for 1 hour. Let it cool and then strain into bottles. If you do not have a sous vide, just put all the ingredients into a Crockpot or other slow cooker and cook on low for 6 hours. The mulled cider keeps up to 1 month in the fridge, and it freezes well for longer storage.
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