Who says you have to sip wine with Thanksgiving dinner? We asked four San Francisco bartenders to create the perfect cocktail to celebrate the holiday; Now all you have to do is try out the recipes. 

The Cocktail: Home Slice 

The Bartender: Roz Holm, The Chapel

"Every year for Thanksgiving my mom made cranberry-orange bread and would serve it alongside cheese, crackers, and fruit before the feast as people were gathering. In honor of that memory, I wanted to keep the cocktail nice and light, an aperitif-style drink with enough complexity to balance out the tartness of the bread, but also give an alternative to the typically heavy themes of fall."  

Recipe: 

2 oz light rum

1 oz Cocchi Americano

.5 oz apricot liqueur 

.5 oz Gran Classico

1. Stir all the ingredients well with ice.

2. Pour into a coupe and garnish with an orange peel. 

3. Serve to your guests with a slice of cranberry bread.

The Cocktail: Laddie Lassi

The Bartender: Caitlin Laman, Trick Dog 

“I like the idea of pairing Laddie Lassi with yellow curry with vegetables and rice. The spice and floral notes of the yellow curry are paired wonderfully with the rich but acidic notes of the Oloroso. Coffee and curry are natural best friends and the scotch makes sure our drink has enough booze in it to live up to its name.”

Recipe: 

2 oz Sangre y Trabajadero Oloroso

.25 oz St. George NOLA Coffee Liqueur

.5 oz Glenmorangie Lasanta

Barspoon rich simple syrup (2:1)

2 slices Cara Cara Oranges

1. Add ingredients in a fancy glass; muddle oranges in glass

2. Add crushed ice and swizzle

3. Garnish with seasonal fruit 

The Cocktail: Yakuza 6.0

The Bartender: Carlo Splendorini, Michael Mina

"I would pair this cockatil with a roasted turkey with Laphroig Glaze and plum sauce on the side." Perfection. 

Recipe: 

2 oz Hakushu 12-year

1 oz Raspberry Roobois tea

.75 oz Laphroig / plum reduction*

1. Combine ingredients into a mixing glass, stir for 10 seconds

2. Strain into a Bordeaux glass or rock glass with ice.

3. Garnish with a kaffir lime zest for aroma 

Recipe for the plum reduction: 

3 oz Laphroig 

3 oz Sugar

1 pinch of salt

1/2 oz of Fee brothers plum bitter

1. Combine the ingredients into a sauce pan, let it simmer for 10 min until reduced in half.

2. Let it cool down and store.

The Cocktail: Applebum

The Bartender: Erik Reichborn-Kjennerud, ABV

“This delicious drink would be a great aperitif for before the big meal, or a delightful digestif after with apple pie or pecan pie.” 

Recipe: 

1.5 oz Clear Creek Apple Brandy 

0.75 oz Cappalletti Aperitivo 

0.5 oz Nux Alpina Nocino 

1. Stir ingredients together and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

2. Garnish with an orange twist.