The Washington Apple Cocktail Is The Drink Appletini Fans Should Try

The Washington apple cocktail is the kind of drink you can sip on all year round. It is tart enough to be refreshing in warm weather but has a flavor profile that fits comfortably in the cooler seasons of the year. It's sweet but surprisingly well-balanced, and it could not be simpler to make.

The Washington apple combines equal parts Canadian whisky, sour apple schnapps, and sweetened cranberry juice. Just shake everything together in a cocktail shaker (or jar with a tight-fitting lid) and strain it into a chilled martini glass. The result is a sweet-tart concoction that goes down easy but does not taste cloying on account of the sharp whisky and tartness of the other two ingredients.

If it does lean too sweet for you, add in a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, or opt for cranberry juice with less sugar. Too tart? Swap the sour apple schnapps for another apple liqueur, such as brandy-based Calvados, or incorporate a touch of simple syrup. No matter how you shake it up, be sure to garnish with a thin slice of fresh apple. For the best results, select one of the apple varieties that are slow to brown, and give them a spritz of lemon juice to both delay any discoloration and reinforce the tart apple flavor profile.

As the saying goes, when life gives you lemons — make lemonade. Or, when the apple crop is devastated by an invasive pest, salvage what you can and make apple alcohol, which is exactly what Christof Guycoogan did in the 1980s. He took those metaphorical lemons and fermented and distilled them into an apple booze that made the perfect addition to his go-to drink — Canadian whisky and cranberry juice. The story that his inspiration struck when he tripped into a pile of rotten apples, sending the juice flying into his favorite beverage, might be a bit of a stretch, but regardless of the exact origin, the Washington apple cocktail stuck around.

Since Guycoogan preferred Canadian whisky, Crown Royal Deluxe is a classic choice, though you can choose whichever whisky (or whiskey) you like. Just avoid very spicy bottles or something a little more luxurious that would be better sipped on its own — since it is paired with cranberry juice and schnapps, there is no need to pour the most expensive whisky in the world. You can even go in a sweeter direction with an apple, caramel, or vanilla whisky.

In addition to serving the beverage in a martini glass, it can also be stirred and strained over a large ice cube for more of an Old-Fashioned vibe, which seems to be closer to how Guycoogan preferred the drink. Another fun take is a miniature version for a round of shots, made with the exact same ratio.