A Maple & Hazelnut Old Fashioned: A Fall Recipe for the Harvest Season

In need of an easy, yet enticing cocktail for a bewitching party this fall? Celebrate the autumn flavors with this smooth, subtly sweet maple and hazelnut old fashioned drink recipe. With a touch of kitchen witchery, this concoction is inspired by the grounding, wise, and abundant folkloric magic of the season. With a dash of hazelnut liqueur, walnut bitters, and sweetened with the woodsy aroma of maple syrup, this fall old fashioned is packed with those earthy seasonal flavors and is sure to be one of your autumn bourbon cocktail go-to’s.

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A Fall Old Fashioned

With fall here and winter around the corner, now is the perfect time to relish in those woodsy, nutty aromas to celebrate and focus our intention on the season. With maple for abundance and longevity, walnut bitters for health, wishes, and protection, and hazelnut for creativity and wisdom, this maple old fashioned drink recipe is perfect for those cold & cozy gatherings inside. Whether looking for a fall drink recipe to enjoy some journaling by the fire, or a quick mix for an autumn party, this autumn bourbon cocktail recipe is sure to entice!

Before diving into the magical recipe, learn more about the ingredients I use in this concoction, and their magical properties below. Or, go ahead skip ahead to the recipe further down below.

Ingredients and Tools for the Hazelnut & Maple Old Fashioned

When it comes to mixing a magically delicious drink, the story and inspiration behind it, and the flavors and the magic they bring is key. And it can certainly help inspire reflection, or provide fodder for entertaining guests! Here are the ingredients you will need for this fall old fashioned, a bit about their flavor and inspiration, as well as a little on the folklore and magic these elements bring.

• Maple Syrup

While few would think of cocktails and mixed drinks when it comes to maple syrup, it is certainly a worthwhile and innovative use of this ingredient! Flavor-wise, maple helps add that grounding woodsy aroma with which to balance and ground the nutty, sweet flavors of this drink. Besides coming with a myriad of health benefits (check out this article on the benefits of maple syrup by WytchWood), it helps add energies of longevity, love, and abundance – enhancing the harvest abundance flavors of this drink as we make it though the fall harvests.

I personally used WytchWood maple syrup, as they are a small couple-owned shop, that also botanically infuses their maple syrup with other ingredients (which crafts some supremely delicious syrups!). Maple syrup can vary from brand to brand, so if using another maple syrup, be sure to start with less in your maple cocktail and add more, if needed.

Interest in some more maple syrup cocktails? Check out this Maple Gin Hot Toddy, or Fig & Maple Sour recipes.

• Walnut Bitters

While these bitters may sound unfamiliar, I can assure you – they are worth the purchase and absolutely delicious! Adding in soothing, almost chocolate-y nut aroma to this drink, walnut also adds in the energy of mental powers and clarity, health, and helps to grant wishes (great magnifier to that abundance energy of this drink!). I personally used Fee Brothers Walnut bitters – these are simply DELICIOUS.

• Hazelnut Liqueur

A perfect fall favorite, hazelnut helps add the flavor of the season, and a hint of nutty aroma to this concoction. Associated with the Sun and the planet Mercury, hazelnut helps bring wisdom, enhance communication, inspire creativity, as well as has folkloric and magical uses for protection, divination, and magical enhancement.

Frangelico is most commonly associated with this, but you can also try this one for a less expensive version. I personally used Vita Devine Hazelnut liqueur, which is another affordable option I was able to find at Total Wine. 

• Bourbon

Bourbon is an essential for any old fashioned, and this autumn bourbon cocktail is no exception! The base spirit of this maple old fashioned, bourbon adds in the magic of the harvest season with its corn and grain base, as well as being aged in oak.

As a financially observant choice, I personally used Evan Williams bourbon, but Buffalo Trace is a great higher quality option as well!

• Cocktail Cherries or Maraschino Cherry

As garnish, and to bring all the flavors together with a bite of sweetness, we have a cocktail cherry (although you can use maraschino cherries in a pinch, if looking to budget). An ingredient many associate with old fashioneds, cherry energetically inspires abundance, divinatory enhancement, happiness, and love. 

• Tools

Luckily, an old-fashioned doesn’t require many tools! You will need something with which to measure your ingredients, such as a jigger (you can also convert ounces to tablespoons and use a tablespoon measurer), something to stir with such as a bar spoon or normal spoon, and an old fashioned glass. If you are in a fall mood, these old fashioned glasses from etsy are absolutely bewitching!

I also suggest using single large square or circular cubes. I personally have this ice mold duo at home, and it works perfectly!

Now that you have all your tools and ingredients, let’s dive into this concoction!

Hazelnut & Maple Old Fashioned Cocktail Recipe

Energetic Inspiration: Abundance, Communication, Creativity, Longevity, Protection, Grounding, Wisdom

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Works Cited

Interested in learning more about the folklore and magic of different herbs and ingredients? Here are some kitchen witchery books I use to help guide my us of ingredients!

This post contains Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• Cunningham, Scott. Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Wicca in the Kitchen. Llewellyn Publications, 1990.

• Cunningham, Scott. Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs. Llewellyn Publications, 1985.