The Smoked Cherry – A Bourbon and Brandy Cocktail

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Last Updated on June 8, 2023 by Leah Hall

Check out our Smoked Cherry cocktail, using our fun smoking gun! A great combination of bourbon and brandy in this smoked cocktail!

This past Christmas, we got a new toy to add to our arsenal of kitchen tools, a smoking gun! We have been wanting to play with a smoking gun to make cocktails for a while. This was after seeing one used at our favorite bar to make a smoked cocktail. This smoked cocktail is one that we and many of our friends always order, the cocktail full of a rich smokey flavor and an awesome presentation.

Smoked Cocktail

When we got our own smoking gun at home, we couldn’t wait to smoke a cocktail of our own!

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Cloche / Ice Ball Mold

Smoking cocktails is a big trend in mixology these days! It’s a great way to add a ton of savory flavor to a cocktail. Like cured meats where smoking makes the end product better, smoking a cocktail can take a drink that is good and make it a star!

We started out on the Smoked Cherry by choosing a spirit that works really well with smoke like bourbon or a rye. Either already has a hint of natural smoke from the charred barrels used to age the spirits. The warm spicy notes of the bourbon and its natural sweetness are enhanced by the smoke, plus it gives us a big boozy base for the cocktail!

What about Brandy?

Honey and smoke are two unlikely bedfellows. But then, when you think about how honey is gathered, smoke is big part of that process! We decided to add in a little honey brandy which brings some honey flavor while not adding to much sweetness. The brandy also adds a bit more strength to the drink and helps keep the drink in balance.

Normally brandy is served warmed in a brandy snifter. neat. But brandy is also great in a cocktail, as we did in this one.

Will brandy go bad?

If it is open too long the flavor and quality can go down a bit. Once you open it you may want to start drinking it regularly.

Rocks Glasses

We wanted a little herbal aspect to the drink, so we mixed in some vermouth blanc. It’s a sweeter vermouth made from a fortified French white wine (we recommend La Quintinye Vermouth Royal Blanc). This was great in cocktails or by itself. The addition of the vermouth adds a sweet floral hint which really works well with bourbon.

The vermouth has just enough of a tartness like you get from a white wine. This brightens up the cocktail, especially when combined with a splash of fresh squeezed lemon juice.

What Ingredients are Needed for the Smoked Cherry Cocktail?

• Campari
• Cherry Bitters
• Bourbon
• Lemon Juice
• Sage Simple Syrup
• Honey Brandy
• Vermouth Blanco
• Cherry Wood

Tasting the cocktail at this point, we felt it was a little flat. It was a little spirit forward and needed some sweet to bring it into balance. We chose one of our favorite infused syrups, sage simple syrup. We used it because has a nice hint of evergreen and herb. This really works well with the smoke flavors, the feeling reminiscent of a camp fire in an evergreen forest.

A splash of Campari adds a complex bitter citrus note that added a crisp refreshing bite and tied the drink together.

Garnish Picks / Luxardo Cherries /Mixing Glass

But what about the cherry you ask? After all we called this the Smoked Cherry! Well the first thing we added was a couple of dashes of cherry bitters which brings a tart cherry tang to the drink. But the main cherry flavor we added to this drink was in the smoke. We used some cherry wood as the source of the smoke. If you are lucky enough to have a smoking gun, this is the point to bust it out and smoke that cocktail!

If You Are Looking for More Bourbon Cocktails, Try These!

• Maple Old Fashioned
• Honey Bourbon and Pear Cider
• Roast and Toast
• Apricot Sour
• Earl of Orange
• Salted Bourbon Butterscotch Eggnog

If you don’t have a smoking gun, check out our Bourbon Barrel cocktail where we have a different technique for smoking a glass! We finished up by adding in one of our brandied cherries as a garnish, and to totally make the cherry pop!

Cheers!

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Like this recipe? Try these below, too!

Grapefruit Smoked Salt London Mule

The Cherry Blossom – A Sake Cocktail

Other Cherry and Whiskey Cocktails

• Cherry Whiskey Smash – Cake N Knife
• Cherry Whiskey Smash – Cooking with Curls
• Black Cherry Bourbon Cola Smash – Super Golden Bakes
• Tart Cherry Old Fashioned – Jelly Toast

Other Brandy Cocktails

• Sparkling Apple Brandy Cocktail – My Modern Cookery
• The Perfect Pear – Blossom to Stem

Continue to Content

Yield: 1

The Smoked Cherry - A Bourbon and Brandy Cocktail

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

A sweet cherry cocktail with bourbon and honey brandy that we have smoked with cherry wood.

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Ingredients

For the Cocktail

• 1.50 ounces bourbon
• .50 ounce honey brandy
• .50 ounce vermouth blanco
• 1 bar spoon or Tbsp Campari
• .25 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
• .50 ounce sage simple syrup
• 4 dashes cherry bitters
• cherry wood for smoking

Instructions

Add all ingredients into a mixing glass with ice.

Stir until chilled.

Place a large ice cube into a rocks glass.

Strain liquids into the glass.

Place glass in a container for smoking.

Smoke the cocktail with the cherrywood.

Cheers!

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• 
  A Bar Above Hawthorne Strainer for Cocktails
• 
  Hiware LZS13B 12 Inches Stainless Steel Mixing Spoon, Spiral Pattern Bar Cocktail Shaker Spoon
• 
  Hiware Mixing Glass 24oz/700ml Thick Bottom Cocktail Glass Preferred by Pros and Amateurs Alike, Make Your Own Specialty Cocktails
• 
  Fee Brothers Cherry Bitters 5oz
• 
  Weber-Stephen Products 17140 Cherry Wood Chips, 192 cu. in. (0.003 cubic meter)
• 
  Crystal-Clear Ice Ball Maker, 2-Cavity Mold, Jumbo Ice Balls, Better Kitchen Products
• 
  Breville BSM600BSS the Smoking Gun Wood Smoke Infuser, Silver
• 
  Libbey Heavy Base 12-piece Rocks Glass Set
• 
  Glass Cloche Bell Jar Display Dome with Bamboo Base - 9" x 6"

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

1

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 200Total Fat: 0.1gSaturated Fat: 0.1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 2mgCarbohydrates: 9.9gFiber: 0gSugar: 7.2gProtein: 0.1g

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