Nothing conjures up salvation like the warm glow of a light emanating from a hunting camp after a long day in the duck blind or deer woods. And there is no better feeling to wrap it all up than with a camp cocktail steeped in tradition and flavor that complements a cold, but memorable day in the woods.
A good camp cocktail is usually smooth and dark — often whiskey-based — with natural accents such as maple syrup, honey or cinnamon to give it a hint of spice, sweetness and warmth. But just as important as the ingredients is the history behind the concoction.
Every camp cocktail has a flavor that suits the occasion and a story that defines its origin. Without further ado, check out this specially curated drink menu for the seasons ahead.
A Chemist’s Deer Camp Cocktail
— Steve Oster
Steve Oster is a retired chemist who put his chemistry background to use when he became a bartender for Whistle Pig Whiskey in Vermont. Using Whistle Pig’s aged rye whiskey, Oster crafted his own cocktails to serve at the bar. One of them, he named Deer Camp, and it was designed to honor the camaraderie that can only be found at camp.
With ingredients common to many cocktails—bourbon, Jägermeister and bitters—Oster recalibrated the drink to capture the social essence of a deer camp. And he intentionally kept it simple.
“Think about when deer camps originated 75 years ago in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, you had a bunch of regular guys, World War II vets, who had jobs in Detroit making Chevys and Fords,” Oster says. “They’re the salt of the earth.”
If they made a cocktail at camp, what would they mix? It would likely be something easy-going and straightforward that sips smoothly during a game of poker around the campfire.
“I intentionally made Deer Camp to harmonize with the guys in a deer camp 75 years ago,” Oster says. “Honest, not fancy.”
The Deer Camp Cocktail Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 ounce Wild Turkey 101 Bourbon Whiskey
- 1 ounce Jägermeister
- 6 - 12 ounces IPA
- 2 dashes Angostura Aromatic Bitters
- 1 lime wedge, squeezed (garnish)
- Ice
Directions
Squeeze the juice of one lime wedge and then drop it into a red Solo cup. Add the Angostura Aromatic Bitters, Wild Turkey 101 and Jägermeister and swirl contents vigorously. Pour a volume of IPA (to taste) so all ingredients mix. Use one or two cubes to keep the dilution to a minimum.
Wise Words From The Deer Camp Chemist
I created Deer Camp with boots-on-the-ground North Country deer camp culture in mind – from Aroostook County, Maine in the east, to New York's Adirondacks in my backyard, and to Michigan's Upper Peninsula in the west.
Consequently, it really comes into its own the proverbial second week, and after the umpteenth dinner of venison chili, when what's needed most is something to cleanse the palate.
The problem so named, of course, naturally calls for an astringent cocktail (hence the IPA and lime), but one that has just enough sweetness (provided by Wild Turkey 101 and Jägermeister) to help the medicine go down. The role of Angostura is simply to round out the profile with a bit of spice.
Now, as cocktails go, Deer Camp packs a big punch, thanks to the presence of Wild Turkey 101 and Jägermeister, coupled with the volume of IPA. In fact, in the words of my maternal grandfather, who was a Methodist minister but who also made a killer whiskey toddy, it's the type that 'puts hair on your chest.'
As such, Deer Camp is best served in a red Solo cup (Toby Keith R.I.P.). After all, you don't want broken glass in camp. Even so, I suppose that, for the guy who not only hasn't grassed his deer by the second week, but who's also actually missed the 'Big One' and is thus questioning his utility in this life, all the while listening to R.E.M.'s “Everybody Hurts,” it's fitting to serve him Deer Camp in a nice double Old Fashioned tumbler with an un-squeezed wedge of lime instead of the used-up variant, just to make him feel special.
The principle of follow-through, of course, applies just as much here as it does when you take a shot at a running deer.
Therefore, if your hunting buddy is feeling that low-slung, and since Deer Camp indeed packs such a big punch, enough to shift his perception, you might as well get him ready for bed dressed in his jammies before serving it.
Then, plunk him on the couch with a box of Kleenex and his favorite stuffed animal and have him watch the film Annie (1982).
For under the influence of Deer Camp, when the troupe breaks out singing “The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow,” your hunting buddy will then warble like a lark, confident his luck will change for the better next morning. Yep, deer camp truly is the best of times! — Steve Oster
Apple Pie Memories
— Lance Lewis of Tagged Out Kitchen
While the purpose of being at camp is to hunt, oftentimes the lasting memories come from the atmosphere inside the cabin walls or the tent. Lance Lewis of Tagged Out Kitchen spends time each fall bowhunting elk in the Colorado Rockies.
The days are spent with long climbs at treeline chasing bulls, which leaves hunters tired when darkness falls.
That’s when Lewis and his hunting partners gather around the fire to talk about the day, plan for tomorrow and relive the memories of past hunts.
They do it, incidentally, while passing around a Mason jar of Horner Brothers Apple Pie Cocktail. First, the apple hits, Lewis says, then the spice, followed by the slow burn of moonshine, such as Everclear grain alcohol.
Mixed with the smell of pine and campfire smoke, Apple Pie has long been a part of the hunt for Lewis.
“No other drink I know carries the same weight of memory,” he says. “One sip, and I’m right back in elk camp.
“When the bulls go quiet and the season winds down, it’s not just the meat in the freezer that stays with me. It’s the friendships, the firelight and that jar passed around, warming us as much as the flames. Apple Pie isn’t just a drink … it’s part of the story.”
Horner Brothers Apple Pie Cocktail Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 gallon apple cider
- 2 quarts apple juice
- 5-6 cinnamon sticks
- 3 cups sugar
- 2/3 liter Everclear or moonshine
Directions
In a large pot, combine cider, juice, cinnamon sticks and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar is fully dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
Stir in Everclear or moonshine and pour into jars or bottles. Quick tip: Don’t be afraid to customize with other spices, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, Allspice, ginger, cardamom or cloves to create a variety of tastes.
Duck Camp Honeysuckle
— Barry And Aliceson Bales
But not every camp cocktail is enjoyed when the sun goes down. For some, the hunts end at midday, and the cocktail serves as the means to wind down in the afternoon.
Barry Bales, the longtime bass player for Alison Krauss and Union Station, spends much of his time away from the stage in a duck blind in Arkansas. For years, Bales has enjoyed a duck camp cocktail that is a much-anticipated part of the overall hunting experience.
Bales and his group hunt ducks in the morning, leave the flooded timber around 11 a.m. and mix up a Honeysuckle Duck Camp Cocktail. They then take a well-earned nap.
Unlike the dark-colored, spice-infused cocktails that warm a hunter at a winter deer camp, the Honeysuckle is a lighter drink perfect for mid-day. Bales shared the recipe with his wife, Aliceson, and it’s now become not only a duck camp tradition, but a perfect cocktail to kick off the weekend at their farm in Tennessee.
“Having a Honeysuckle after duck hunting in the morning has been the popular thing to do for years,” she says.
Although the cocktail is simple—a prerequisite for a camp drink—there are a few nuances in the mixing process that must be considered to get it just right.
Aliceson only uses Cathead Honeysuckle Vodka from the Cathead Distillery in Mississippi. Honeysuckle gives the cocktail a light, easy-drinking body that works well with a citrus or rosemary garnish. To finish it off, she adds a touch of St. Germaine elderflower liqueur.
“Don’t add too much or you’re going to end up tasting soap,” Aliceson says. “But when you get it just right, it’s like effortless luxury.”
Honeysuckle Duck Camp Vodka
Ingredients:
- Healthy splash of Cathead Honeysuckle Vodka
- A quick pour of St. Germaine
- Grapefruit juice
Directions
In a tall glass, add the vodka and St. Germaine, then fill to the top with grapefruit juice. Stir and garnish with lime, grapefruit, lemon or rosemary. Serve with ice.
Bloody Good Cabin Drink
Camp traditions — deer, duck or elk — have spawned some unique cocktail concoctions that embody the experience of the hunt. But for some, the camp cocktail is simply a spin on a common mixed drink.
In the hills of northeastern Pennsylvania, where deer camps define communities, Gary Gronkowski turns to the Bloody Mary as the universal “cabin drink.”
The Bloody Mary is perfect at camp because it’s socially acceptable to drink it in the morning, he says. That means when someone bags a buck, they can enjoy a Bloody Mary inside a warm camp while the rest of the hunters venture back out to a cold deer stand to fill their tag.
Gronkowski uses the basic ingredients — tomato juice, vodka, and Worcestershire sauce — to begin his Bloody Mary cocktail. But after that, all bets are off.
Sometimes a chunk of garlic is added, or it could be horseradish sauce, celery salt, pickled asparagus, shrimp garnish, lobster meat, you name it. One of Gronkowski’s personal favorites is a snow crab leg used as a stirrer.
“The thing with a Bloody Mary is you can start with the base ingredients, then throw the kitchen sink at it,” Gronkowski says. “Whatever you have at camp, it all works.”
Cabin Bloody Mary Drink
Ingredients:
- 1.5 ounces preferred vodka
- 4 ounces tomato juice
- 1 teaspoons horseradish
- 2-3 dashes Worcestershire
- 3-6 dashes hot sauce
- Celery salt
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
In a large glass, mix all ingredients. Shake or stir vigorously, add ice, and garnish to your heart’s content—nothing is off limits!
Manhattan Gold
— Northern Latitudes Distillery
Ingredients:
- 1 - 1.5 ounces Gold Rum
- 3/4 ounces Bernie’s Brandy
- 3/4 ounces Sweet Vermouth
- 2 slugs Angostura bitters
- 1 bar spook Bada Bing Cherry juice
- Ice
Directions
Mix all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Pour over ice ball in a square rocks glass. Garnish with a Bada Bing Cherry. Substitute as needed.
Moscow Mule
— Northern Latitudes Distillery
Ingredients:
- 2 ounces vodka
- 1/2 ounces fresh lime juice
- 4 ounces ginger beer
- Lime wedge or mint sprig to garnish
Directions
Fill a copper mug with ice, add vodka and fresh lime juice. Top the glass with ginger beer, stir gently and garnish. For more, check out Northern Latitudes Distillery.
Straight Up Remington Reserve “Open Season” Bourbon
Remington Ammunition and Log Still Distillery recently partnered to launch Remington Reserve Bourbon, aptly named “Open Season.”
This new Remington-branded product launch kicked off during several special events at Log Still Distillery in August, September and October 2025.
Located in Gethsemane, Kentucky—within the heart of Bourbon country—Log Still Distillery is a family-owned operation rooted in bourbon-making tradition. Remington Reserve “Open Season” is a premium, proprietary blend of 86-proof Kentucky and Tennessee bourbons.
It is crafted for those who rise before the sun, wait patiently in the woods and celebrate a day well spent with a good story and a better pour. From the campfire to the tailgate to the hunting lodge, this bourbon was built for sharing stories and toasting traditions. — Mark Chesnut
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