Autumn’s harvest fruits bring us some magical flavours to try in our cocktails. Aromatic, soft spice and pear come together in this simple recipe for a delicious taste of the season's finest flavours. Plus, you’ll end up with some super tasty leftover spiced pear syrup to pour over your desserts, ice cream and other cocktails throughout the festive season.

We recommend using Mad Owl Special Edition Gin, Craft Gin Club’s November 2021 Gin of the Month for this cocktail. Its delightfully complex mix of citrus notes compliment the spiced pear tones wonderfully, and they work so incredibly well with thyme and cinnamon, which are used to garnish this fantastic serve. Delicious!

Try this cocktail with a slice of warm spiced pear, gin and ginger upside down cake for a truly scrumptious autumnal treat!

Spiced Pear Gin Cocktail

30ml Mad Owl Special Edition Gin
20ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
20ml Spiced Pear Sugar Syrup*
50ml pear juice
Soda water, to top up
Sprig of thyme, cinnamon stick or star anise to garnish

*For the Spiced Pear Sugar Syrup:
235ml water
200g caster sugar
1 pear, cored and cut into pieces
3 star anise
2 cardamom pods

* If you want to make your own spiced pear syrup, it’s really easy. Simply add the water, sugar, pear, star anise and cardamom pods to a small saucepan, bring to a simmer over medium heat and gently stir for about five minutes or until the sugar and pears have dissolved and you have a syrup.

Strain the liquid into a jar and allow to cool completely before using. You can store leftover syrup in the refrigerator for use with other cocktails or poured over desserts!

To prepare your cocktail, fill a shaker with ice. Add your gin, lemon juice, pear juice** and spiced pear syrup. Replace the lid and shake for 15 seconds or until shaker becomes frosty. Strain into your cocktail glass. Top up with soda water. Garnish with a sprig of thyme and/or a star anise, and serve.

**If you don’t have pear juice at home, you can make some by blitzing a few fresh pears with half a cup of water and straining. You could also use apple and pear juice, which is readily available in UK supermarkets.