This refreshing bourbon smash recipe is citrusy, minty, and naturally sweetened with maple syrup! It’s an easy, crowd-pleasing cocktail for any season.
This maple bourbon smash is a refreshing spin on the whiskey sour: perfectly tart and just sweet enough, with a hint of bourbon and herbaceous mint on the finish. As a home cocktail expert, I find that the smash is one of the most crowd-pleasing bourbon drinks there is (and one of my personal favorites).
I recently served it as a cocktail recipe when my sister came to visit and everyone loved it: even the non-bourbon lovers! My favorite is making it naturally sweetened with maple syrup, which adds nuanced sweet notes.
Why You’ll Love This Cocktail
A smash is an icy cocktail that often highlights seasonal fruit or herbs, and this one tastes like a citrus spin on the classic Mint Julep. Here’s what I love about this drink:
- Ready in 5 minutes: It comes together quickly and simply!
- Customizable: The base recipe is delicious, but it’s also great with fresh fruit like blackberry or peach.
- Naturally sweetened: Maple syrup is a natural sweetener that creates flavor depth (or you can also use straight simple syrup!).
- Crowd-pleaser: Everyone always loves this one: even people who don’t love strong bourbon drinks.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here’s what you’ll need for a bourbon smash:
- Bourbon: I like mid-range bourbons like Four Roses or Maker’s Mark. You don’t need anything super premium here.
- Fresh lemon: Fresh lemon juice is essential for that citrusy punch. Avoid bottled lemon juice: it won’t give you the same flavor.
- Fresh mint leaves: This is what makes a smash a smash! The mint gets muddled to release its oils.
- Maple syrup or simple syrup: Pure maple syrup is a natural sweetener that adds nuanced vanilla flavor notes; simple syrup has more of a pure sweetness.
- Soda water: If you want to lighten up the drink slightly, a splash of sparkling water.
- Crushed ice: Traditional for smash cocktails and keeps the drink extra cold.
Tools & Tips for Mixing
Having the right tools makes this bourbon smash recipe simple to mix up. Here’s what you’ll need and how to use each one:
- Cocktail Shaker: A cocktail shaker quickly chills cocktails by shaking them against ice, then has a strainer so you can pour out the cocktail without pouring out the ice as well. What can you use instead? Use a glass mason jar. Place the cocktail in the jar and fill it with ice. Screw on the top and shake away.
- Cocktail Muddler: A cocktail muddler is used to mash fruits and herbs in a glass or cocktail shaker to release their flavor. What can you use instead? Use a wooden spoon to gently mash the berries, lime wedges, and mint leaves.
- Jigger or mixing glass: For consistent results, measure your ingredients with a jigger or I use a small mixing glass with ounces.
How to Make a Bourbon Smash
Here are the basic steps for how to make a bourbon smash (for quantities, jump to the full recipe below):
- Muddle the lemon and mint: Place the lemon wedges and mint leaves in the bottom of a cocktail shaker and gently muddle them together 4 to 5 times.
- Add bourbon and maple syrup: Pour in the bourbon and sweetener.
- Shake with ice: Fill your shaker with ice and shake vigorously for about 15 seconds until the shaker feels cold on the outside.
- Strain and serve: Strain the mixture into a rocks glass filled with crushed ice. If you’d like, add a splash of soda water.
- Garnish: Add a mint sprig and a lemon wheel as garnish. Give the mint a gentle slap between your hands first to release its aroma.
Variations & Seasonal Twists
There are so many ways to mix up this drink! I personally love it with berries. Here are some of my favorite variations:
- Blackberry Bourbon Smash: This is one of my favorite variations! Muddle 3 to 4 fresh blackberries along with the lemon and mint. Go to my blackberry bourbon smash recipe.
- Peach Bourbon Smash: In peak peach season, muddle a few slices of ripe peach with your lemon and mint. Try my peach bourbon cocktail for a similar vibe.
- Fall Bourbon Smash: Try adding a dash of apple cider in place of some of the lemon juice. It transforms this into a perfect fall bourbon cocktail.
- Berry Smash: Muddle a mix of raspberries, blueberries, or strawberries for a berry-packed version. Try my berry vodka smash.
- Herbal Twist: Experiment with other herbs like basil, thyme, or even lavender alongside (or instead of) the mint.
Perfect Pairings
This bourbon smash is great for summer cookouts, cocktail, hours, and anytime you need a light bourbon drink. I love serving it alongside grilled chicken, baked chicken thighs, or sauteed shrimp.
For appetizers, it’s great with cheese boards, crostini, stuffed dates, or an antipasto platter. It also works well with light summer salads.
It’s also fun serve alongside other bourbon cocktails like a bourbon milk punch, bourbon lemonade, or the simple Kentucky mule.
Frequently Asked Questions
A whiskey sour is a classic three-ingredient cocktail made with whiskey, lemon juice, and simple syrup. A bourbon smash includes muddled fresh mint (and sometimes other herbs or fresh fruit). Smashes are also always served over crushed ice in a rocks glass, while whiskey sours can be served up or on the rocks.
You can partially prep this ahead, but it’s best made fresh. For a pitcher, muddle your lemon wedges and mint leaves in the pitcher, then add bourbon and maple syrup (multiply the recipe by the number of servings you need). You can mix this up to 2 hours ahead and keep it refrigerated, but wait to add ice until just before serving.
Mid-range bourbon in the $25 to 40 range works perfectly for this cocktail recipe. I love Four Roses Small Batch, Maker’s Mark, Buffalo Trace, or Wild Turkey 101. You don’t need to use top-shelf bourbon. If you prefer a spicier drink, try using rye whiskey instead of bourbon.
Dietary Notes
This bourbon smash recipe is vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, refined sugar free, and naturally sweet.
Bourbon Smash
Pin Recipe
Print RecipeThis bourbon smash is a refreshing whiskey cocktail with bright lemon and fresh mint. It’s balanced and tangy, and ideal for bourbon lovers looking for a lighter, herbaceous drink!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 drink
- Category: Drink
- Method: Shaken
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 ounces bourbon
- 1/4 lemon, sliced into 2 wedges
- 5 large mint leaves
- 1 ounce maple syrup or simple syrup
- Soda water, for serving
- Crushed ice, for serving
Instructions
- Place the lemon wedges and mint leaves in a cocktail shaker. Muddle 4 to 5 times to extract flavor. (Here’s more on How to Muddle Mint.)
- Add the bourbon and maple syrup and fill the shaker with ice. If desired, add a splash of soda water. Shake until cold and strain into a glass. Serve with crushed ice.
Notes
- On maple syrup: Pure maple syrup works as a natural sweetener and doesn’t add a maple flavor: just nuanced flavor notes! You can substitute simple syrup if you prefer.
- On muddling: Press gently but firmly 4-5 times. Shredding the mint can release bitter compounds. See my guide on how to muddle mint for more tips.
- On crushed ice: Traditional smash cocktails use crushed ice. Learn how to crush ice at home, or use regular ice cubes if that’s what you have.
- Make it a whiskey smash: Use rye whiskey instead of bourbon for a spicier version.
- Bourbon selection: Mid-range bourbon like Four Roses, Maker’s Mark, or Buffalo Trace work well.
from A Couple Cooks https://ift.tt/7tcVX8N
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