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The Best Pumpkin Cocktails In Orange County

Assouline Publishing Celebrates Its New Book "Craft Cocktails" In The Presence Of Famous Mixologist And Author Brian van Flandern At Pegu Club
(credit: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images)

The autumn season is upon us as bartenders prepare pumpkin flavored drinks for Orange County's residents. The seasonal flavor makes everything taste cozier, and bartenders around O.C. are going beyond a simple pumpkin martini to delight their customers.

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(credit: Paul Gonzales)

El Espantapajaros
Anepalco Restaurant
3737 W Chapman Ave.
Orange, CA 92868
(714) 456-9642
www.anepalco.com

Famous for their unique Mexican Chilaquiles, Anepalco Restaurant is offering special pumpkin cocktails during the holiday season, one of which being El Espantapajaros, The Scarecrow. The special cocktail is made with Los Javis Mezcal and infused with pumpkin spice, Peche de Vigne, Monkey Shoulder scotch, Pumpkin Liquor and smoked with mint tea. The cocktail is then served with a 'scarecrow' made from grape, lime, cloves and thyme.

arc restaurant - verified jarone
(credit: ARC Food & Libations)

In The Mood
ARC Food & Libations
3321 Hyland Ave.
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(949) 500-5561
www.arcrestaurant.com

Available through the holiday season at ARC Food & Libations in Costa Mesa, bar Chef Koire Rogers added In The Mood to the cocktail menu. Getting inspiration from the change in temperatures and atmosphere, colors and smells from the hot days of summer, into the cooler fall season, Rogers focuses on flavors representing the warming spices of fall. In The Mood is pumpkin whiskey with nocino, allspice, Meyer lemon and whole egg.

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(credit: Catalin Ayala, @catalinayala)

The Royal Sunset & Other Cocktails
Central Bar
2493 Park Ave
Tustin, CA 92782
(714) 258-8161
www.facebook.com

The Central Bar is launching a new menu on Monday, November 7th which will feature three distinctly different pumpkin cocktails including the Squashed Scotch, The Good, The Bad & The Ugly along with the sweet, fruity, floral, and refreshing Royal Sunset. The Royal Sunset is made with Square One Bergamot Vodka, Aperol, house-made fresh cranberry syrup, house-made pumpkin-carrot juice, topped with soda water and served in a Collins glass garnished with thyme and cranberries.

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(credit: Fairmont Newport Beach)

Pumpkin Collins
Fairmont Newport Beach
4500 MacArthur Blvd.
Newport Beach, CA 92660
(949) 476-2001
www.fairmont.com

Fairmont Newport Beach, the luxury resort hotel just over a mile from John Wayne Airport, offers two dining options for its guests and visitors. Among the premier Newport Beach restaurants, Citrus offers fresh California cuisine, while AVO Bar + Restaurant which is located adjacent to Citrus, offers dining and cocktails. For the holiday season, they will be serving a Pumpkin Collins, part Jack Daniel's Tennessee whiskey, Monin pumpkin spice syrup fresh grapefruit juice, fresh lime juice, soda water served in a Collins glass with garnish.

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(credit: Farmhouse Café)

Cachaça Calabaza
Farmhouse Café
2301 San Joaquin Hills Rd.
Corona Del Mar, CA 92625
(949) 640-1415
www.farmhouserg.com

Located in the heart of Newport Beach, the Farmhouse Café is nestled on over six acres in a garden-like setting. The Farmhouse offers fresh, locally sourced, seasonal ingredients to create a healthy based cuisine and signature cocktails like the Cachaça Calabaza. The special cocktail is made with Novo Fogo barrel aged cachaça, egg whites, bourbon pumpkin purée, falernum, allspice, simple syrup and garnished with a blue flower.

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(credit: Gratitude)

Pumpkin Spice Fizz
Gratitude
1617 Westcliff Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660
(949) 386-8100
www.cafegratitude.com

Café Gratitude, the plant-based casual eatery, opened a new finer dining restaurant in Newport Beach named simply Gratitude. This is the first location of Gratitude and features a menu from Chef Dreux Ellis as well as a full bar program from Beverage Director Jason Eisner. Throughout the holidays, Eisner has added a new cocktail to the menu, the Pumpkin Spice Fizz, which is made with vanilla bean infused vodka, organic pumpkin puree, home-made apple cider, home-made ginger beer, aromatic bitters, CO2 and whole coffee bean aqua faba.

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(credit: Bartender Megan)

Pumpkin Pie Martini
The Posse Bar
13093 Springdale St.
Westminster, CA 92683
(657) 227-7171
www.possebar.com

The unpretentious middle-class American bar with friendly bartenders and great prices is featuring a special pumpkin martini on their fall cocktail specials list. The Pumpkin Pie Martini, made with Burnett's Vanilla vodka, Bols Pumpkin Smash liqueur and Rumchata, is the perfect cocktail for pumpkin lovers looking for something on the sweet side that still has a kick.

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(credit: The Public House by Evans Brewing Co.)

Hot Buttered Cachaça
The Public House by Evans Brewing Co.
2000 Main St.
Irvine, CA 92614
(714) 708-0082
www.evansbrewco.com

The Public House by Evans Brewing Co. is the perfect place for not only handcrafted brews as they have an on-site distillery, but for fresh food as well as craft cocktails. Inspired by creating a hot cocktail and signatures ingredients of the fall like pumpkin, cinnamon and apple cider, Amanda Platt created the Hot Buttered Cachaça. The cocktail is made with Novo Fogo Silver Cachaça, reduced apple cider and then it is then whisked in the roasted pumpkin puree, salt, butter, brown sugar and cinnamon and honey butter, and topped with cinnamon sticks and star anise.

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(credit: Sapphire Laguna)

Pumpkin & Apple Spiced Martini
Sapphire Laguna
1200 S Coast Hwy #101
Laguna Beach, CA 92651
(949) 715-9888
www.sapphirelaguna.com

For the second year in a row, Sapphire Laguna is offering its Pumpkin & Apple Spiced Martini through November. Getting inspiration from all the fall spices, Chef/Owner Azmin Ghahreman makes his own pumpkin spice mix, using spices you'll find in your holiday pies and warming drinks, for this cocktail and it's equal parts of refreshment and comfort in a glass.

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(credit: SOCIAL Costa Mesa)

Thunder Struck
SOCIAL Costa Mesa
512 W 19th St.
Costa Mesa, CA 92627
(949) 642-2425
www.socialcostamesa.com

SOCIAL Costa Mesa is a chef and ingredient focused restaurant with a unique craft cocktail program. The Thunder Struck cocktail highlights SOCIAL's specialties to put a twist on traditional cocktails and highlight fall themed ingredients such as the butternut squash puree and chai cold brew. Comprised of Novo Fogo Silver, Atlantico Reserve and Thunderking Chai Cold Brew, the cocktail is hand-shaken with smoked butternut squash purée, cinnamon syrup, angostura bitters and an egg white and garnished with fresh cinnamon grate and a fresh sage leaf.

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(credit: Ryan Callahan)

Fezzik Rhymes
Stonehill Tavern
Monarch Beach Resort, 1 Monarch Beach Resort N
Dana Point, CA 92629
(949) 234-3200
www.monarchbeachresort.com

Stonehill Tavern, a Michael Mina Restaurant at Monarch Beach Resort, offers a modern American cuisine that features seasonal ingredients and contemporary twists on classic tavern dishes paired with seasonal cocktails. Designed by lead bartender Jenny Buchhagen, the Fezzik Rhymes is a festive pumpkin cocktail with a Knob Creek Rye mixed with house-made fairy tale pumpkin syrup, orange juice, pineapple, lemon juice half and half and grated cinnamon as a garnish.

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(credit: Three Seventy Common)

The BB
Three Seventy Common Kitchen+Drink
370 Glenneyre St.
Laguna Beach, CA 92651
(949) 494-8686
www.370common.com

Mixologist Tyler Benson at Three Seventy Common Kitchen+Drink created their sweetish seasonal pumpkin drink, The BB. Starting with pumpkin spiced vodka, Benson then adds vanilla beans and cinnamon sticks to the bottle to deliver more flavor. Next lemon juice and house-made Orgeat, sweet almond syrup, are added to the mix, along with egg whites for volume and a fluff factor. The cocktail is shaken and poured over new ice and garnished with freshly shaved nutmeg.

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(credit: Watertable at Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort & Spa)

Flip that Squash
Watertable at Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach & Spa
21500 Pacific Coast Hwy
Huntington Beach, CA 92648
(714) 845-4776
www.hyatt.com

Located in the Hyatt Huntington Beach sits Watertable, the resort's signature restaurant and bar which combines a unique blend of old and new, rustic and refined. For the holiday season Watertable is serving Flip that Squash, an autumnal play on a classic flip. They infuse Dickel 8 Whiskey with house roasted acorn squash for a couple of hours and after it is strained, they add a combination of Pimm's, freshly squeezed lemon juice, maple syrup and farm egg. Shaken first dry and then with ice, the cocktail comes alive as a frothy, creamy cocktail dusted off with nutmeg.

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(credit: Ellis Adams Group)

Not Your Basic PSL
YNK
18000 Von Karman Ave.
Irvine, CA 92612
(949) 553-0100
www.ynk-irvine.com

YNK, a craft cocktail bar nestled in the Irvine Marriott created by Ellis Adams Group, recently added the Not Your Basic PSL to their menu. Along with their ever-changing beverage experience, imbibers can enjoy the tasty drink made with Scotch, Carpano Bianco, Copper & Kings Immature Brandy, Coco Lopez, pumpkin puree, and nutmeg.

Jarone Ashkenazi is a freelance writer who covers: restaurants, bars, dating, relationships, sports and other lifestyle topics. More of his work can be viewed at www.jaroneashkenazi.com. Connect with him on Twitter: @JaroneAsh.
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