Camp Cocktail No. 001
There are fall cocktails…and then there are drinking-a-caramel-apple-next-to-a-campfire cocktails.
The Campfire Candy Apple is exactly that.
Caramel vodka brings the sweet, buttery candy-apple flavor, apple whiskey gives it a warm little kick, fresh apple cider makes it unmistakably fall, and lemon cuts through the sweetness just enough to keep you coming back for another sip.
It’s simple, ridiculously good, and requires absolutely no fancy campground bartending skills.
Pour. Stir. Garnish. Sip.
Campfire Candy Apple Recipe
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 1 cocktail
Glass: Mason jar or rocks glass
Ingredients
- 1½ oz caramel vodka
- 1 oz apple whiskey
- 3 oz apple cider
- ½ oz fresh lemon juice
- Ice
- Thin apple slices, for garnish
- Cinnamon stick, for garnish
- Caramel sauce, for the rim
How to Make a Campfire Candy Apple
Start with the caramel rim. Add a little caramel sauce to a shallow plate and lightly dip or roll the rim of your glass through it. Don’t worry about making it perfect—the caramel dripping slightly down the glass is part of the fun.
Fill the glass with ice.
Pour in the caramel vodka, apple whiskey, apple cider, and fresh lemon juice.
Stir until everything is well combined and chilled.
Finish with a fan of thin apple slices and a cinnamon stick.
That’s it.
Pour • Stir • Garnish • Sip
Why the Lemon Matters
You might be tempted to skip the lemon.
Don’t.
Caramel vodka and apple cider are both sweet, and that little bit of fresh lemon juice gives the cocktail the acidity it needs. You aren’t really supposed to taste lemon—it’s there to balance the caramel and apple flavors.
The result tastes much more like a boozy caramel apple than a super-sweet dessert drink.
Make It at the Campsite
This is one of those cocktails that’s almost made for camping because there’s nothing complicated about it.
Before you leave home, measure your caramel vodka and apple whiskey into separate travel-safe containers if you don’t want to bring full bottles. Keep the cider and lemon juice cold in the cooler.
You can also slice your apples ahead of time. Toss them with a small amount of lemon juice to help keep them from browning, then store them in a sealed container in the cooler.
At cocktail time, all you have to do is rim, ice, pour, stir, and garnish.
No shaker. No blender. No bullshit.
Camp Batch — 8 Cocktails
Making these for the whole campground crew?
Combine:
- 12 oz caramel vodka
- 8 oz apple whiskey
- 24 oz apple cider
- 4 oz fresh lemon juice
Stir everything together in a pitcher or drink dispenser and keep it chilled.
Pour over ice when you’re ready to serve.
Set out caramel sauce, apple slices, and cinnamon sticks so everyone can garnish their own glass.
What to Serve With a Campfire Candy Apple
Because this cocktail leans sweet and warm, it’s especially good with something salty or smoky.
Think grilled kielbasa, sharp cheddar and crackers, smoked sausage, pulled pork, grilled cheese, pretzels, or a campground charcuterie board.
And if you’re going full fall camping mode? Bring out the cider donuts, apple crisp, cinnamon rolls, or s’mores.
Nobody said camping had to be sensible.
The Perfect Fall Camping Cocktail
The Campfire Candy Apple was made for those campground weekends when the air finally gets chilly, the leaves start changing, somebody has a fire going before dinner, and you’ve officially traded the summer cooler drinks for something that tastes like fall.
You get caramel, apple, cider, warm whiskey, and just enough tartness in one ridiculously easy cocktail.
And since it’s Camp Cocktail No. 001, it seems appropriate that we’re starting this collection with a drink that pretty much sums up Camp Cocktails & Chaos:
A little cozy.
A little boozy.
And probably the beginning of some questionable decisions. 😂
🍎 Camp Chaos Verdict
Basically a caramel apple with a drinking problem.
Save the Campfire Candy Apple for your next fall camping weekend—and come back for Camp Cocktail No. 002.