Thanksgiving in Georgia runs on its own clock. The turkey gets roasted in the oven or dropped in a fryer out in the driveway, the cornbread dressing is non-negotiable, and somebody’s pecan pie is cooling on the counter hours before kickoff. This year, two of Crown Royal’s most dessert-worthy flavors deserve a seat at the table. Crown Royal Salted Caramel and Crown Royal Chocolate both start with the same smooth Canadian whiskey Crown Royal has been blending since 1939. Both mix into easy cocktails you can pour between carving the bird and cutting the pie.
We pulled together six Crown Royal Thanksgiving cocktails for the holiday, from a cold Salted Caramel Cola to a Chocolate Old Fashioned that pulls double duty as dessert. Most recipes take only two or three ingredients, so the bar never slows down the kitchen.
Why Crown Royal Belongs at the Holiday Table
Crown Royal was created in 1939 as a gift fit for royalty, blended to honor King George VI and Queen Elizabeth on their tour of Canada. That real origin is where the name, the crown-topped bottle, and the iconic purple bag come from, and it’s also why a bottle of Crown still feels like an occasion when it shows up at a family gathering.
The whiskey itself comes from Gimli, Manitoba, a small village on the western shore of Lake Winnipeg. It’s a long way from Lake Lanier, but the idea translates: a lake town that takes its craft seriously. Crown’s master blenders combine fifty different whiskies to get the brand’s signature smoothness, and that smooth base is exactly why the flavor series works so well. The salted caramel or chocolate leads, but there’s real whiskey holding it all together.
Crown Royal Salted Caramel Recipes
Salted Caramel Cola
This is the easiest pour of the holiday and maybe the most fitting for Georgia, a state with deep cola roots. The cola brings vanilla and spice, the whiskey brings creamy caramel, and a squeeze of lime brightens the whole glass.
Ingredients
- 45 ml (1.5 oz) Crown Royal Salted Caramel
- Cola, to top
- Squeeze of lime
How to make it:
Fill a highball glass with ice. Add Crown Royal Salted Caramel, top with cola and finish with a squeeze of fresh lime. Give it one gentle stir and drop a lime wedge on the rim.
Best enjoyed: Tall and ice-cold during the afternoon football game, or handed to guests the minute they walk in the door.
Salted Caramel Cider
By late November, the apple houses up in Ellijay, Georgia, have had a full season of cider pressing. Warm some up and let Crown Royal Salted Caramel turn it into a caramel apple in a mug.
Ingredients
- 45 ml (1.5 oz) Crown Royal Salted Caramel
- 180 ml (6 oz) hot apple cider
- Garnish: cinnamon stick and an apple slice
How to make it:
Heat the apple cider on the stove or in the microwave. Pour Crown Royal Salted Caramel into a mug, top with the hot cider and garnish with a cinnamon stick and apple slice.
Best enjoyed: Out on the porch after the dishes are done, when the evening finally turns cool.
What to Pair with Crown Royal Salted Caramel
Salted caramel loves the sweet-and-savory side of a southern Thanksgiving. Pour it alongside sweet potato soufflé with a pecan crumble on top, a honey-glazed ham, or a fried turkey with a crispy, salty skin. For dessert, set a Salted Caramel Cider next to pecan pie. Georgia grows some of the best pecans in the country, and the caramel notes in the whiskey echo the gooey filling.
Crown Royal Chocolate Recipes
Crown Royal Chocolate Old Fashioned
In Georgia, Thanksgiving weekend usually means one more tradition: UGA vs. Georgia Tech rivalry game (better known as Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate). Whichever side of the state you cheer for, a Chocolate Old Fashioned is a fitting pour for the occasion. Chocolate bitters deepen the cocoa, and an orange peel adds a bright finish.
Ingredients
- 45 ml (1.5 oz) Crown Royal Chocolate
- 1 bar spoon (about 5 ml) simple syrup
- 2 to 3 dashes chocolate bitters
- Garnish: orange peel
How to make it:
Add Crown Royal Chocolate, simple syrup and chocolate bitters to a mixing glass with ice. Stir until well chilled, then strain over a large ice cube in a rocks glass. Express an orange peel over the top and drop it in.
Best enjoyed: Slowly, after dinner, while the family argues about who's taking home the last slice of pie.
Crown Royal Chocolate & Cocoa
This one is basically dessert with a grown-up twist, and it takes about thirty seconds to make.
Ingredients
- 45 ml (1.5 oz) Crown Royal Chocolate
- 90 to 120 ml (3 to 4 oz) hot cocoa
- Garnish: chocolate shavings
How to make it:
Add Crown Royal Chocolate and hot cocoa to a mug, stir and top with chocolate shavings. A dollop of whipped cream never hurts.
Best enjoyed: Around the fire pit on a chilly North Georgia night, or curled up for the first holiday movie of the season.
What to Pair with Crown Royal Chocolate
Chocolate and pecans are a Southern match made in heaven, so try a Chocolate Old Fashioned with a slice of chocolate pecan pie. Crown Royal Chocolate & Cocoa is also a natural next to pumpkin pie, warm bread pudding, or a plate of pecan pralines from your favorite Savannah candy shop. On the savory side, a Chocolate Old Fashioned has enough depth to stand up to smoked turkey or a peppery, coffee-rubbed ham.
Raise a Glass This Thanksgiving
From a fizzy Salted Caramel Cola at kickoff to a Chocolate Old Fashioned with the last slice of pie, Crown Royal makes it easy to add a little something special to the Georgia Thanksgiving table. Both Crown Royal Salted Caramel and Crown Royal Chocolate are limited-edition flavors, so pick them up at your favorite Georgia retailer or ask for them at your neighborhood bar.
