4 autumn cocktails to sip this season

Fall means pumpkin everything. Try a Drunkin Punkin cocktail at Twisted Tail.
Credit: Twisted Tail

Put down that mango margarita. ’Tis the season for heavier cocktails — think aged bourbon, maple syrup and crisp apples. We scouted around the city for the best autumn drinks and found four to try right now.

Drunk pumpkins

Twisted Tail calls itself a Bourbon House and Juke Joint, so we figured they’d be doing a little something special for National Bourbon Heritage Month. This week Bulleit takes center stage with a $21 flight including Frontier bourbon and rye. Prefer something on the sweeter side? Order a smooth Drunkin Punkin: Catdaddy Moonshine, Kraken rum, pumpkin puree, simple syrup, whiskey barrel-aged bitters and cream.
509 S. 2nd St., 215-558-2471, www.thetwistedtail.com

Mediterranean twist

Barbuzzo’s beverage manager, Terence Lewis, is whetting our appetites this fall with the Normandy. It’s a blend of cinnamon-roasted apples muddled in a glass and mixed with a French apple brandy called Calvados, Cointreau and lemon juice. Your friendly Barbuzzo bartender will shake it, drain it and serve it up in a highball glass with a slice of green apple.
110 S. 13th St., 215-546-9300, www.barbuzzo.com

Tip your hat

If you can wait a couple of weeks, Percy Street Barbecue is debuting a Dad’s Hat Pennsylvania Rye Whiskey cocktail on Oct. 10. The locally made rye is barrel aged with maple syrup, cranberry, Carpano and Fernet Branca and finished with black walnut bitters. Don’t know your rye from your scotch? The distiller will be at Percy Street to chat about the cocktail and host a tasting of other Dad’s Hat drinks for $30.
900 South Street, 215-625-8510, www.percystreet.com

On the wagon

Red Owl Tavern’s new head bartender, Paul Dellevigne, doesn’t think the drinkers should have all the fun. He just added a Temperance section to the menu with virgin options like Them Apples — apple juice shaken with spiced berry pepper syrup and mint — and the L&T, a sparkling blend of lavender syrup, lime juice and tonic water.
422 Chestnut St., 215- 923-2267, www.redowltavern.com