Brief (I promise) Intro:

Years ago, staying at a friend’s home in the mountains of Colorado (where I grew up), I met some people from New Hampshire. They made a shot they called The Lumberjack. It was basically maple syrup and whiskey, and it was delicious. I later lived in New England and began experimenting with the concept. This year for Thanksgiving, my husband is taking the wheel with an interpretation of The Lumberjack and serving it for our first Thanksgiving as Pacific Northwest residents. I’ll post his recipe and pics on Instagram (@mdelishnoutique). In the meantime, here’s what I came up with:

The Lumberjack.

Ingredients

• real maple syrup
• whiskey
• coffee liqueur
• ice

Fill your cocktail shaker with ice. Add syrup, whiskey and liqueur. Shake for ten to fifteen seconds. Pour over ice. Garnish with something manly (bacon, elk) and serve atop a saw blade or tool bench.

Variations

Flap Jack — add 1 tablespoon chocolate syrup to mimic chocolate chip pancakes.

Camp Breakfast — garnish with 1/3 slice bacon

Hand Warmer — Add a shot of the lumberjack cocktail to your coffee or hot chocolate.

Gift Idea: Make a large batch of The Lumberjack, sans ice, and bottle it to give away during the holidays, or bring to holiday parties. Use it as a signature cocktail for your holiday party! Use a maple leaf syrup bottle as a flask, of course.