Ikea Find

[Pyewacket]

Ok, I despise this store. The wife loves it.

I like it a bit more after finding these. My wife has been looking for a sipping brandy that has a bit of sweetness but not too sweet. I have been focusing mainly on producing a high quality neutral as of late....with the occasional SF whiskey thrown in for good measure.

I have yet to delve into panty droppers recipe concepts; though I plan to when certain berries are in season.

Using these concentrates I have been able to produce a very nice sipping faux brandy that is enjoyable. The basic recipe is one of the below mixed with your very best neutral. It make approx 3 litters of a 38pct from a single concentrate jar. The three are Elderflower, Blueberry, Lingonberry. They are priced b/w $3.99 and $4.99 per jar; cheap for producing 3litters of product.

The Elderflower produces a brandy that I could describe as a french style; I am not sophisticated in my brandies...just what my crude palette tells me. I would rate this as a 9/10. A very nice sweet - but no too sweet sipping drink...

The Blueberry produces a mild blueberry flavor. A more fruity mixed drink than a brandy. I have placed a bunch of this on oak...just for kicks. 8/10 for flavor.

The Lingonberry has a tart flavor. Sharp, that resembles a cranberry drink. This is my least favorite...yet enjoyable at 7/10.

If you have an Ikea, I would recommend giving these a try. They appear to be a higher quality product...and resemble the panty dropper method if you are a bit lazy like me.

[NcHooch]

....sorta like instant blueberry pie

[beelah]

How about posting your recipe....I have some neutral waiting to be made into apple pie shine, but maybe I will wait until I see how you make yours.

[Pyewacket]

Essentially, I start with 95ABV and use the main site's calculator to mix it down to 38pct: 1.8Liters of water/concentrate mix (as a total..dump the entire amount of concentrate and add enough water to bring it to 1.8liters total) ...Combine with 1.2Liters of 95ABV...For a total of 3 liters of drink. I will say this, the blueberry mixture on JD oak chips is coming along nicely; It is bringing the blueberry back a bit. Nevertheless, the verdict is still out on this.

[beelah]

Thanks Pyewacket..I will give it a try....by the way, did you get your handle from that old movie with Jimmy Stewart, Kim Novack and Jack Lemon?...Spell, Book and Candle? My wife is a big fan of the old movies and watches TCM all the time, and I recall that Pyewacket was Kim Novak's familiar...a black cat.

[Pyewacket]

Yes, sure did on the name; family favorite here as well. The name also has a sinister beginning. Pyewacket (an imp) was reported as one of the familiars of a woman that was persecuted by a witch-finder during the 16th century in England . It is my understanding that they tortured the woman and deprived her of sleep...until she named the familiars and confessed to being a witch.

As a side note, on the blueberry, I am going to dilute it out a bit further next time (use the 500ml concentrate to make a full gallon)...and toss in a tablespoon of high quality vanilla...put it on oak at 40%; it is a touch too fruity and sweet for me, we'll see how that goes. I do love those JD smoking chips...thanks Mash rookie for turning me on to these.