How to Make Cinnamon Syrup at Home
Make It Your Own
How to Make Cinnamon Syrup
To make cinnamon syrup, dissolve 100 g sugar in 100 ml water over a gentle heat, add a cinnamon stick, then take it off the heat and leave it covered to infuse for 30–60 minutes before straining. It brings a warm, fragrant note to rum punch, a simple highball or your next alcohol-free drink.
- Three Ingredients
- Easy Small Batch
- Rum, Cocktails & Alcohol-Free Drinks
Why Make Your Own Cocktail Syrups?
Making syrups in-house gives a bar control over sweetness, flavour intensity and consistency, and the freedom to create something distinctive. You can use the same approach at home.
Want a gentle hint of cinnamon behind pineapple? Keep the infusion light. Want the spice to be more noticeable in a rum highball? Leave it a little longer, tasting as you go. Once you find your balance, write down the amounts and infusion time so you can repeat it.
Homemade cinnamon syrup is also easier to mix into a cold drink than a spoonful of sugar and a dusting of ground spice. The sugar is already dissolved, and the cinnamon stick comes out before the syrup goes into your glass.
A Simple Starting Recipe
Homemade Cinnamon Syrup
Ingredients
- 100 gLight brown sugar (our preference), or white granulated sugar
- 100 mlWater
- 1Cinnamon stick
You’ll also need a small saucepan, a spoon, a fine strainer and a clean, heat-safe bottle or jar with a lid.
How to Make It
- Add the sugar and water to a saucepan. Warm gently, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Avoid a prolonged boil, as evaporating water changes the sweetness.
- Add the cinnamon stick, take the pan off the heat and cover. Leave to infuse for 30 minutes.
- Cool a small spoonful before tasting. For more cinnamon flavour, leave the stick in for another 15–30 minutes, then taste again. The stick’s size, freshness and type will affect the result.
- Remove the stick and strain the syrup into your clean, heat-safe container. Allow it to cool, then cover and refrigerate promptly. Label it with the date.
Plan for: a few minutes to dissolve the sugar, 30–60 minutes to infuse, plus cooling. This is a starting method rather than a promise that every cinnamon stick will give the same strength.
Already Have Plain Sugar Syrup?
You can infuse that too. Gently warm around 200 ml of plain sugar syrup with one cinnamon stick, remove from the heat and cover. Start tasting after 30 minutes, then leave it longer if you want a stronger flavour. Remove the stick, strain, cool and refrigerate.
The sweetness will depend on your starting syrup. A rich syrup made with more sugar needs a smaller pour than a lighter one, so don’t assume every homemade or bottled syrup is interchangeable.
What Can You Use Cinnamon Syrup For?
Start with a small amount. It’s easier to add sweetness than to take it away.
Rum Punch
Cinnamon brings a warm, woody note alongside pineapple or orange. Try 5 ml in one serving first, then taste before adding more. If your recipe already has syrup, replace some of it instead of adding another full measure.
Our Wray & Nephew mixing guide explains how to balance the fruit. Cinnamon syrup is an optional variation; it isn’t part of the brand’s official punch recipe.
A Rum Highball
For a starting serve, combine 25 ml of rum, 5 ml cinnamon syrup and 100–150 ml soda water over ice. Stir and finish with a little orange peel. Taste and adjust the mixer or syrup to suit your rum.
Try a Barbados rum such as Mount Gay Eclipse, or explore our full rum selection.
An Alcohol-Free Apple Spritz
Try 75 ml apple juice, 5 ml cinnamon syrup and 75 ml soda over ice. Add a small squeeze of lemon if it needs more sharpness. The apple juice already brings sweetness, so keep the syrup modest.
Small Changes That Affect the Flavour
White or Brown Sugar?
You can use either. White granulated sugar gives a cleaner sweetness that keeps the focus on cinnamon. Light brown sugar adds a richer, molasses-led flavour and a darker colour.
At The Liquor Club, we prefer brown sugar for ours. We like the extra depth it brings, especially alongside rum. Use the same weight whichever you choose, then see which version you enjoy in your drink.
Sticks or Ground Cinnamon?
Use sticks for this recipe. Ground cinnamon can leave a gritty sediment and is harder to strain cleanly. More powder doesn’t necessarily make a better syrup.
For consistency, use the same sugar, cinnamon and measurements each time. Note the infusion time and taste a little of each new batch before mixing drinks with it.
Storing Homemade Cinnamon Syrup
Keep the cooled syrup in a clean, covered container in the fridge. Make a small batch and aim to use it within a week; this is a cautious home-use guideline, not a tested shelf-life guarantee. Use a clean utensil each time and avoid leaving the bottle out while you make drinks.
Discard it if you notice mould, unexpected cloudiness, fizzing or an off smell. Don’t taste suspect syrup to check whether it is safe. This recipe is for refrigerated use, not cupboard storage or home canning.
Homemade Cinnamon Syrup Questions
How long should cinnamon steep in syrup?
Start with 30 minutes off the heat, then taste a cooled spoonful. Give it another 15–30 minutes if needed. Strength varies with the cinnamon, so taste matters more than chasing an exact time.
Can I double the recipe?
Yes. Use 200 g sugar, 200 ml water and two cinnamon sticks. Start with the same infusion time rather than doubling it, then taste. Make only as much as you expect to use while fresh.
How long does homemade cinnamon syrup last?
Keep it covered in the fridge and aim to use it within a week. Discard it if you notice mould, cloudiness, fizzing or an off smell.
Can I use ground cinnamon instead of a stick?
Sticks are better. Ground cinnamon can leave a gritty sediment and is harder to strain cleanly.
Find Your Flavour
Put Your Syrup to Work
For a spiced rum punch, start with a rum from Barbados such as Mount Gay Eclipse. Mount Gay’s own Original Rum Punch is finished with nutmeg, so a warm spice note is right at home. Prefer ready-made? The perfect syrups for bar-quality cocktails at home are in our cocktail syrups and mixers collection.
Taste before you buy at our Brixton Village shop. Made your own? Tag @theliquorclub_ on Instagram and show us what you mixed.
