Hot apple cider for 16: a gallon of cider simmered with orange, cinnamon, cloves and ginger, then carried to the lot in a preheated thermos. It's a cold-weather tailgate drink that needs no stove at the lot, and anyone who wants spiked apple cider adds bourbon or rum to their own cup.
Serves: 16 (about 8 oz each) · Hands-on: about 10 min · Total: about 45 min
Home gear: a large stockpot, a fine strainer, a 1-gallon vacuum-insulated drink dispenser or two 64-oz thermoses
Pack for the lot
- Thermos or dispenser of hot cider
- Bourbon or rum, sealed, if you're spiking it
- 1½-oz jigger
- 20 insulated 12-oz cups with lids
- Cinnamon sticks for stirring
- Napkins and trash bags
Lot notes
- Alcohol: 21 and over only. Check your lot's open-container rule in your stadium guide first, because some stadiums and states ban open containers in the lots. Line up a sober driver before the first pour. The cider itself has no alcohol, so it's for everyone.
- Fuel: none at the lot. It's all done on the stove at home.
- Holding it hot: a preheated vacuum-insulated jug, filled to the top and kept capped, holds heat far longer than a half-full one. Keep it out of the wind.
- Cleanup: rinse the thermos at home, and let it dry with the lid off. Cups go in the trash bag.
Can you make hot apple cider ahead?
Yes. Simmer and strain it the night before, refrigerate it, then bring it back to a simmer in the morning before it goes into the preheated thermos.
How do you keep cider hot at a tailgate?
Use a vacuum-insulated dispenser or a big thermos. Preheat it with boiling water for 10 minutes, fill it to the top with simmering cider and keep it capped between pours.
How much do you need for 20 people?
At 8 oz a cup, 20 people need about 1¼ gallons, so buy 1½ gallons and use 1½ times the spices. For spiked apple cider, 20 pours of 1½ oz is 30 oz, so 1 bottle (1 liter). You'll need a 2-gallon dispenser or 3 thermoses.
Can you make it without alcohol?
Yes. The batch has no alcohol in it. The bourbon or rum goes into each cup, so kids and drivers drink from the same thermos.
What alcohol goes in spiked apple cider?
Bourbon and dark rum are the usual picks, at about 1½ oz per 8-oz cup. Brandy works the same way.