Hot Pumpkin Spiced Sake

Pumpkin Spiced Sake - Tastes Like Fall in a Mug

I was strolling through The Fresh Market a few weeks ago, trying desperately not to get caught up in the displays of holiday cuteness made to throw me off budget. Why do I even keep trying? I get “got” every time. This particular time it was a bottle of limited edition Pumpkin Spiced Cider. Cute bottle, super cute label…why not? I thought the nieces and nephews might enjoy a few swigs for Halloween.

The longer the bottle sat on my counter, the more curious I became. And a couple of days ago I opened it..and tasted a little….and added a little hot sake to it…..and added a more generous amount of hot sake to it….and added a little splash of honey liqueur…then decided that it was pretty darn good with a shaving of fresh nutmeg.

Usually, I stick with premium chilled sake. But if you’re looking for something festive for Halloween, give this a try. And for my nieces and nephews? Aunt Marisa is making some festive zombie cake pops – the pumpkin spiked spiced cider is mine.

If you can’t find the Pumpkin Spiced Cider, substitute apple cider. Or try this recipe for Homemade Pumpkin Spiced Cider. (Just omit the whiskey – or not!- and proceed with the sake.)

Hot Pumpkin Spiced Sake

You’ll need:

Sake

Honey Liqueur

Pumpkin Spiced Cider

Garnishes Ideas (pick one): freshly ground nutmeg, a cinnamon stick, orange slice, honey spoon or rock candy stirrer

To heat the sake, fill a pot with water and bring it to a boil. Remove from the heat. Pour your desired amount  of sake into a tokkuri (cute little ceramic sake bottle) and place the tokkuri in the hot water. Allow the heat from the hot water to warm the bottle for about 3 minutes. The sake will begin to fill warm. (You can of course have”hot” hot sake by filling a mug and heating it in the microwave.)

For each serving, fill a mug half full of hot sake. Add a splash, shot or whatever tickles your fancy of honey liqueur, then add enough pumpkin spiced cider to fill the mug. Give it a stir and top with your desired garnish.