Food

Smashing Pumpkins

Behold: The City’s Best Pumpkin Cocktails

Pumpkins. You can do a lot of things with them. Fill up pies. Accessorize headless horsemen. Mention them in bands fronted by Billy Corgan. Oh, also: sip them. Here are five noteworthy cocktails that involve pumpkins. Because you know the old saying: when in October, drink pumpkins...

PUMPKIN LEVEL 1

The Pumpkin Ginger Cooler

Where: Top of the Hub.
Made with: Pumpkin spice vodka. Canton ginger liqueur. Lemon. Cane sugar. Sprite. Served on the rocks, which is how you typically order your pumpkin.
Pairs well with: An evening perusing pumpkin patches, if it can be arranged.

PUMPKIN LEVEL 2

The Pumpkin Margarita

Where: Papagãyo on West Street.
Made with: Pumpkin puree. Tequila. Agave nectar. It’s what would happen if Jimmy Buffett wrote songs about New Hampshire.
Pairs well with: A hearty discussion of the role of jack-o’-lanterns in English folklore.

PUMPKIN LEVEL 3

The Pumpkin Hot Toddy

Where: Stephi’s in Southie.
Made with: Pumpkin spice vodka. Honey. Lemon juice. Apple cider. Served piping-hot with a cinnamon stick. Which is a great way to receive anything.
Pairs well with: Attending an all-night vigil for the Great Pumpkin.

PUMPKIN LEVEL 4

The Pumpkin Old-Fashioned

Where: Finch at the Boxer Hotel.
Made with: Pumpkin puree. Bourbon. Maple syrup. Grand Marnier. Shaken and strained into a mason jar.
Pairs well with: Halloween candy. Because why not.

PUMPKIN LEVEL 5

The Pumpkin Pie Martini

Where: Blue Inc.
Made with: Pumpkin spice vodka. Baileys. Honey. Simple syrup. Ginger liqueur. Rimmed with a graham cracker crust and topped with whipped cream.
Pairs well with: Lunch, if you’re Roger Sterling in a holiday mood.