Berry fruit liqueur/infusion question

[stillanoob]

Hi All,

I am making some blackberry liqueur, AKA panty dropper. My question is, do you squeeze or press the berries a bit when done? I didn't when I made some raspberry but there was still quite a bit of color in the berries. My concern was squeezing would make it cloudy, the raspberry came out clear as a bell. While I would like it clear I hate to leave flavor behind, especially if it won't cloud the product.

[Deplorable]

I dont squeeze. The sugar will pull plenty of flavor out after the alcohol has done its job.

[Bushman]

I have a book on making Homemade Liqueurs and Infused Spirits and all the recipes in the book say to not squeeze. My technique is straining yes, squeezing no.

[Deplorable]

Even shaking too aggressively can cause a lot of what I think is pectins(?) to release that then have to be racked off to keep the end product clear.

[jonnys_spirit]

Plus the left over berries might be good on (or in) ice cream!

Cheers,
j

[Deplorable]

Plus the left over berries might be good on (or in) ice cream!

Cheers,
j

Haha. My son thought so. Once. The flavor is pretty spent and they just taste like alcohol. The remaing syrup not used to back sweeten the infusion is really good on ice cream though.

[stillanoob]

Thanks folks! I will strain only. That is what seemed right but it is really good to know from those that have done it. I have been shaking it a bit but I will knock that off.

[Deplorable]

You'll need to shake it to dissolve the sugar. Just don't do it so hard it pulverizes the fruits.

[stillanoob]

I did the sugar using simple syrup after I strained it last time.

[contrahead]

Spare yourself the chore of filtering. Just strain and save the berries; later mash them up and toss em into the next run.

[Tummydoc]

If you freeze the berries first, you wont need to squeeze. Bushman posted his blackberry version of Chambord in one of the topics and it is awesome!! Better than panty dropper, more complex.

His recipe is under "blackberry liquor" in the shared recipes section.

[NZChris]

Spare yourself the chore of filtering. Just strain and save the berries; later mash them up and toss em into the next run.

I've always tossed mine into ice cream, but that is a great idea if you have a small enough still for making the next batch of spirit, (which I do have). Thanks for the 'heads up'.

[Bushman]

If you freeze the berries first, you wont need to squeeze. Bushman posted his blackberry version of Chambord in one of the topics and it is awesome!! Better than panty dropper, more complex.

His recipe is under "blackberry liquor" in the shared recipes section.

One of my favorites and blackberries in my area are all over the place.

[stillanoob]

The berries were frozen, they were picked from my patch last year. I took a look at Bushman's recipe and it looks great! I am a little too far along for this batch but will try something along those lines next time. It did give me the idea to use honey instead of simple syrup. I have a couple of gallons of home grown honey in a bucket here, I had a hive collapse this winter and I harvested all the honey out of there.

[NormandieStill]

When making sloe gin the first time we dissected the berries and mixed them into melted chocolate to make gifts. While it was delicious the work load / pay off ratio was more than a little off!

I then found a suggestion for making "port". You pour on some red wine (about the same liquid to berry ratio as for your liquor) and a little extra sugar (I'll try and dig out the recipe for quantities). Leave for a few weeks, strain, and fortify with brandy. It goes down very well indeed.

[Timothy_W]

The berries were frozen, they were picked from my patch last year. I took a look at Bushman's recipe and it looks great! I am a little too far along for this batch but will try something along those lines next time. It did give me the idea to use honey instead of simple syrup. I have a couple of gallons of home grown honey in a bucket here, I had a hive collapse this winter and I harvested all the honey out of there.

What if you add a little lemon or orange zest to the liquor? Just to spice it up. Only the main thing is to remove the topmost layer, the most fragrant. The white part of the peel is bitter after all. The most convenient way to remove the zest is using special kitchen tools. They are different, at different prices, here I found a dozen suitable options at once. I find it interesting to add a light orange aroma to the berry liqueur.

[stillanoob]

I strained and ran it through a coffee filter. It came out nice and clear. I proofed down to about 30% and I added 40mL of simple syrup. It is really tasty. While some zest might be good I have to say that the blackberry seems like pretty much perfection on its own.

The home made port sounds tasty. But the next experiment will be with huckleberries.

[8Ball]

I just strained off some neutral that I soaked a bunch of mulberries in for a month. Did not squeeze. Put the berries back in the jar and topped off with raw sugar to make a syrup with.