Cranberry Whiskey Sour – Camping Cocktails For Fall

My brother-in-law has reached a new phase of life – the semi-retirement phase and this Cranberry Whiskey Sour fits in perfectly!! Sweeeeeet!

And what do you do when you have extra time on your hands? You go camping more, of course! You also pick up a hobby (well, you should pick up a hobby if you don’t want your wife to go nuts with all your new-found time at home…)

So I’m thinkin’ my brother-in-law’s new hobby should be…. making cocktails!! And with my current interest in learning to like whiskey (you can read about that in my Bourbon Old Fashioned post), I’d like to suggest he start with this Cranberry Whiskey Sour!

As always, I’m trying to come up with food and drinks to keep your camping palate fresh, interesting, and exciting. But it’s gotta be easy to pull together at the campsite.

It’s super easy to fall into the beer and wine routine (a routine I happen to really like, btw!). So it’s time to break out into something new (and easy!) That’s where whiskey comes in – a classic camping spirit. (But if you’re more of a beer kind of person, then check out this super cool Black and Tan Beer! Easier to make than you think!)

I still haven’t quite managed to get to the “whiskey neat” stage, so I’ve gotta jazz it up a bit. We love the tangy, refreshing, bright taste of cranberry juice, so we often bring a bottle with us when we head out camping. So… I’m jazzing up my whiskey and making this Cranberry Whiskey Sour!

Does Cranberry Go With Whiskey?

Cranberry and whiskey are one of the best combinations in the cocktail world! The colors and flavors complement each other perfectly. So when reaching for the whiskey, grab a bit of cranberry to go with it.

The puckering punch of the lemon and the tang of the cranberry juice are just what my camping cocktail palate needs! Now, you don’t really need to bring along the fresh rosemary for garnish, but it really does add to the whole experience, don’t you think? The real question is to shake or not to shake.

Here’s the real answer to the shaking question – cocktail shakers are awesome and this Cranberry Whiskey Sour definitely tastes better straight out of a cocktail shaker. Vigorous shaking allows the ice to break down a bit a crystalize in the drink, which makes it amazingly cold (and delicious)!

But I certainly recognized that space is precious when out camping so the shaker might be something you choose to leave behind. I get that! We bring along this small cocktail shaker, but feel free to leave the shaker behind. Do make sure to stir very well, though, when making it directly in your glass or cup. The more stirring the better!

How to make this fab Cranberry Whiskey Sour

Fill cocktail shaker 2/3 full with ice. Put the lemon juice, whiskey, cranberry juice, and a big pinch of sugar into the shaker and shake vigorously for 30 seconds. Place one large mini ice block (read about those here) in your glass and pour liquid from shaker into glass. Garnish with fresh rosemary. Drink up! (No driving home after this one…)

Tips for Making a Great Cocktail

• Use high-quality ingredients
• Shake in a cocktail shaker for at least 30 seconds to develop ice crystals
• Serve in a chilled glass if possible
• Don’t forget the garnish!

So what do you think? Is cocktail making a great semi-retirement hobby for my brother-in-law? I’m going with yes!!

And this Cranberry Whiskey Sour is a great place for him to start since we’ll be out camping with them, of course! (I’m not thinking selfishly at all on this one…. am I?)

Here are a few more awesome Camping Cocktails!

Hot White Russian

Spiked Hot Chocolate

Bourbon Old Fashioned