Traditional flavored liquors

[aircarbonarc]

Does anyone have any recipes, stories or experience making any traditional old fashioned flavored liquors. I'm talking about tonics, aperitifs, liqueurs, gin, bitters and culturally important drinks. I'm looking for inspiration, and I'll share my accidental invention. Thanks!

[Bushman]

If you meant liqueurs the best recipe book I have found is Homemade Liqueurs and Infused Spirits by Andrew Schloss. I have probably made close to a dozen different recipes and haven't found one I dislike yet. The book is broken into 3 parts:
1. The Basics: Homemade Liqueurs and Tasteful Spirits
2. The Recipes
Fruit Liqueurs
Vegetable Liqueurs
Herb & Spice Liqueurs
Nut & Seed Liqueurs
Floral Liqueurs
Coffee, Tea & Chocolate Liqueurs
Creamy Liqueurs
Caramel, Syrup & Butterscotch Liqueurs
Infused Spirits
3. Cocktail Hour
This is recipes for mixed drinks using the above liqueurs.

[NZChris]

If I come across something I have never heard of, or find an unusual bottle at the recyclers, I try to find out as much information about it as I can, then, if it sounds like it might be interesting and I can source or grow the ingredients, I write up a protocol to make my version of it. I've successfully done several, but there is only one that I have repeated and refined and my latest, sixth, run of that is superb.

[Bushman]

If I come across something I have never heard of, or find an unusual bottle at the recyclers, I try to find out as much information about it as I can, then, if it sounds like it might be interesting and I can source or grow the ingredients, I write up a protocol to make my version of it. I've successfully done several, but there is only one that I have repeated and refined and my latest, sixth, run of that is superb.

Good point and with that said I use my own neutral product for the recipes listed in the book I posted above.

[aircarbonarc]

If you meant liqueurs the best recipe book I have found is Homemade Liqueurs and Infused Spirits by Andrew Schloss. I have probably made close to a dozen different recipes and haven't found one I dislike yet. The book is broken into 3 parts:
1. The Basics: Homemade Liqueurs and Tasteful Spirits
2. The Recipes
Fruit Liqueurs
Vegetable Liqueurs
Herb & Spice Liqueurs
Nut & Seed Liqueurs
Floral Liqueurs
Coffee, Tea & Chocolate Liqueurs
Creamy Liqueurs
Caramel, Syrup & Butterscotch Liqueurs
Infused Spirits
3. Cocktail Hour
This is recipes for mixed drinks using the above liqueurs.

Thanks for that! I also remember on the Home Distiller main site there is a list of recipes. I used to make an Anise, orange zest, fennel, cinnamon liquor. It was very much like jagermeister but lighter and not so dark n syrupy. I once made a maple cinnamon liqueur using maple syrup and a cinnamon concentrate. I will dig up some recipes and post them.

[NZChris]

Good point and with that said I use my own neutral product for the recipes listed in the book I posted above.

Not all are based on neutral. I found a bottle that had contained a liqueur made from grappa and chocolate and had a try using my grappa and cocoa powder. I just checked the bottle and it was empty already.

[aircarbonarc]

http://homedistiller.org/flavor" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

There are some great recipes if you click around this page. I did remember there was a French liqueur type thing it was wine and cognac based with some added things. It was damn good!

[NZChris]

I'm yet to taste my version of Jeropiga, fresh grape juice fortified to 18% with year old white dog grappa from the same vines. It's been aging on JD chips for 18 months.

[aircarbonarc]

I'm yet to taste my version of Jeropiga, fresh grape juice fortified to 18% with year old white dog grappa from the same vines. It's been aging on JD chips for 18 months.

Do you guys grow decent grapes down there in the far south? I would think New Zealand has a good climate in for grapes in some parts.

[NZChris]

I wouldn't call where I am, far south. It is a bit warm for grapes here, so most vineyards are further south and they do produce superb wines.
My property came with table grapes that don't make a great wine, but do make ok brandy & grappa. The few wine grapes I have planted haven't done very well and I've only made one vintage from them, a very nice bubbly white.

[MDH]

It's winter. We have wild violets here that grow everywhere until it gets too warm for them. They can be used to make a traditional french Liqueur, Creme de Violette.

Creme de Violette is a difficult one as you can impact the flavors negatively with the wrong treatment, it should be stored at a high alcohol content to prevent oxidation, you cannot have any acids such as lemon or the color will lose, and it should be stored in a dark bottle. The Creme de Violette we have here in North America is doped with food coloring.

We also have a ton of green walnuts. Odin has a thread calling this "Dio Palinka". Over here people only know of it as Nocino, which is from italy. I've made this several times and it is a bit astringent for the first year. It needs a very long time to age, but when it does, it's both brooding and fragrant, very nice.

[NZChris]

My Nocino must need a few years yet. It's fours years old and I still haven't found anyone willing to finish a shot glass of it

[NZChris]

We have violets wild in our garden, so getting enough for a batch of Creme de Violette should be easy. Any hints on a method MDH?

[Bushman]

In my liqueurs book it does not have a recipe for Violet's but does list them as an edible thus can be used in liqueurs. At the beginning of the Floral Liqueurs it does suggest that dried petals are preferred for Tincturing. It states that their perfumes and colors have been stabilized, so they yield more consistent results, and the volatile elements are concentrated, so a little bit goes a long way.
Most of the Floral recipes I have call for 1 oz of the dried blossom. Hope this helps if I new what floral the violet was close to I could give you a recipe for a similar plant.

[sweeps]

We have violets wild in our garden, so getting enough for a batch of Creme de Violette should be easy.

We have an abundance wild of violets too, but unfortunately they are a strain with zero flavor and aroma. They look pretty, though.

Back in the day, commercial crème de violette was most commonly made from orris root. Here is a recipe from Duplais:

https://books.google.com/books?id=li8tA ... &q&f=false" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

I have considered making this recipe and using our local violets to color it, but never gotten around to it. I've made a carnation liqueur a couple of times, with one cup of carnation petals to one liter of neutral, sweetened with one cup of sugar. I'm pretty sure this would work with violets, but you might need to add something to help stabilise the color. It might also need to be a bit sweeter.

[NZChris]

The Duplais recipe isn't much use until you find out the ratio for making his orris-root infusion.

I have colored a gin blue with flowers. It went a very sexy pink when Tonic was added.

[sweeps]

The Duplais recipe isn't much use until you find out the ratio for making his orris-root infusion.

Duplais always delivers:

https://books.google.com/books?id=li8tA ... ge&f=false" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

I have colored a gin blue with flowers. It went a very sexy pink when Tonic was added.

Butterfly pea flowers by any chance? I keep meaning to use them to do a blue absinthe.

[NZChris]

Duplais always delivers:

https://books.google.com/books?id=li8tA ... ge&f=false" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

No wonder I couldn't find it, he called it another name

Tincture of orris-root
100g orris powder per litre of neutral @ 85%.
Infuse for at least fifteen days shaking occasionally.
Filter.

Butterfly pea flowers by any chance? I keep meaning to use them to do a blue absinthe.

No.

[aircarbonarc]

I've made a vanilla liquor before, actually I've been doing that for a few years. I'll just add some chopped up vanilla beans to some of my raw sugar spirit and sit for a few days. It makes a damn good, and potentially dangerous "vanilla soda" when mixed with soda water and simple syrup.

[sweeps]

Duplais always delivers:

https://books.google.com/books?id=li8tA ... ge&f=false" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

No wonder I couldn't find it, he called it another name

Unfortunately, Duplais's translators do not always deliver. In the original, he is consistent - "Infusion d'iris".