Once considered one of the world’s most valuable commodities, cinnamon was, for centuries, a prized treasure. The pursuit of this warm spice was among the factors that led to the Age of Discovery in the 14th through 17th centuries, the creation of global trade routes, and colonization of populations throughout the Far East who had long guarded the secret of its production. For centuries, Arab traders carried cinnamon to the Greek and Roman empires closely guarding their sources until Venetian, Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, and English traders eventually made their way to Sri Lanka and India where cinnamon is grown.
The species Cinnamomum verum, native to these countries, is the original source of this spice. The bark of the trees was removed and dried, rolling into what we know as cinnamon sticks. Sri Lanka still produces about 80 percent of the world’s supply. The cinnamon found in most American kitchens, however, is from a closely related species, Cassia (Cinnamomum burmannii) grown across Southeast Asia. Both species owe their flavor to cinnamaldehyde, the compound that makes up roughly 65 to 80 percent of the bark’s aromatic compounds.
Cinnamon has a long tradition in beverages around the world. In medieval Europe, hippocras, a spiced and sweetened drink strained through a cloth bag called a Hippocratic sleeve, was served at the end of a meal to aid digestion. One fifteenth-century recipe added to the French household manual Le Ménagier de Paris calls for “long cinnamon in sticks.” In Sweden, spiced glögg became a Christmas fixture in the 1890s, featuring cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and vanilla.
In the sixteenth century, the Spanish brought cinnamon to Mexico, along with rice and sugarcane, and eventually horchata, a sweet, spiced, rice-based beverage, was born.
Across the Caribbean, sorrel, a ruby drink of hibiscus steeped with cinnamon, cloves, and ginger, is a Christmas staple.
When mixing cinnamon-spiced beverages at home, we recommend making a cinnamon simple syrup, which will impart its cinnamon-y flavor better than ground cinnamon, which does not dissolve in liquid. See our simple syrup recipe and two other spiced favorites for fall below.
Cinnamon Simple Syrup
For instant cinnamon flavor, add this syrup to coffee, tea, cider, or your favorite fall mocktails.
Makes 2 cups
Ingredients
4 cinnamon sticks
2 cups water
1½ cups white sugar (can substitute brown sugar for deeper flavor)
Simmer the cinnamon sticks in water for 10 minutes.
Remove the sticks, stir in the sugar until dissolved.
Let cool.
Keep refrigerated for up to two weeks.
Spiced Sorrel Spritz
Serves 1
2 ounces Joy’s Island Spice Sorrel Hibiscus Elixir
½ ounce cinnamon syrup, see recipe above
½ ounce fresh lime juice
3 ounces sparkling water
Cinnamon stick and lime wheel, for garnish
Add the Joy’s Island Spice, cinnamon syrup, and lime juice to a wine glass filled with ice.
Stir briefly, top with sparkling water.
Garnish with a cinnamon stick and lime wheel.
Warm Cinnamon Cider
Serves 1
1½ ounce Spiritless Kentucky 74 Spiced
4 ounces unfiltered apple cider
¼ ounce cinnamon syrup, recipe above
¼ ounce fresh lemon juice
Cinnamon stick, for garnish
Warm the apple cider in a saucepan until steaming.
Pour into a mug.
Stir in Kentucky 74, cinnamon syrup, and lemon juice.
Garnish with a cinnamon stick.
The Flavor Edit
Four products to try at home to raise your cinnamon quotient.
HP Juniper Spiced Cane
A spiced cane spirit from Québec with notes of vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
NON 3 Cinnamon & Yuzu
A wine alternative with verjus, oranges, yuzu, and cinnamon. Bright and tart, with a savory undertone.
Spiritless Kentucky 74 Spiced
A distilled nonalcoholic spirit with deep, woody cinnamon notes and real bite.
Joy’s Island Spice Sorrel Hibiscus Elixir
Red roselle, clove, cinnamon, and ginger in the Caribbean sorrel tradition. One of our favorites from this year’s Drinks With Benefits festival.
