Powdered vs. cracked spices

[kmmuellr]

I had my daughter's friend stop by the spice store for me to get some things, and she brought back powdered spices vs. the whole seed. (caraway, coriander, orange peel, etc. I do have whole Juniper.) This will be my first gin and akavit, so I'm unsure! Plan on doing OEG, and Odins Akavit as a start.

1. is it OK to use this powdered vs. getting the seed and cracking?
2. what adjustments in quantity? I assume that being finely ground will affect the amount of flavor contribution during a maceration.

Thanks!
Kevin

[howie]

try and get the coriander seeds.
for the sake of science, i just opened a new packet of ground coriander to test and there is a big difference in taste.
those ground spices don't have a long shelf life either, although it depends how and where you keep them.
i grind the coriander seeds pretty hard in a mortar & pestle and the smell is a lot stronger, and quite different to the smell and taste of ground IMHO.
the best coriander seeds are usually from your local indian store.
i just weigh the seeds to the correct amount, then grind them.
i hope they didn't get you a big jar...but there's always curries

[Demy]

My advice is whole spices, barely ground before using them. A minced spice is generally more exposed to the air so its aroma could be lower ... Naturally this is true if it has not been kept well, if for example it has been ground and immediately put vacuum, probably the difference is minimal.

[8Ball]

I recently started dipping my toe into the gin bath. Have built up a collection of just about every possible botanical for gins. None of them are powdered. A good mortar and pestle works great on crushing and coarse grinding them. The whole roots I either grate or shave. Using whole ingredients and processing them yourself just results in the freshest and best quality spirit IMHO. YMMV.

[kmmuellr]

Dang. You guys are saying what I was afraid of!

Its "fresh" stuff, but ground to a fine powder, and in a bag w/ a twist tie. When I open it, there's basically no aroma.

K

[jonnys_spirit]

Start with what you have. Small batch so you can reiterate and modify. I think fresh is almost always better but you could also come up with a blend of anything that’s the best for you in a moment and spend your while life chasing the memory.

Spaghetti Parm 1999 - upstate Buffalo, NY, red and white checkered table cloth - still chasing her!

Cheers,
Jonny

[NZChris]

It is quite difficult to make bad gin.

As long as you haven't used ingredients that clash with each other, you should be ok. There is no need to steep it for days, or weeks, if that's what you've read somewhere. Chuck them in the pot and run it, keeping good records to refer to for your next batch.

[tchib]

It is quite difficult to make bad gin.

Shhh! You'll let everyone know our secret!
You're supposed to say it's a mythical magical process that takes years of dedicated learning and a unique tasting palette to craft forth that holy liquid from the belly of copper and fire!

[Hellfire burner]

Actually if your throwing a spice in a mash it's best to get the seeds and break them down your self

[cob]

I recently started dipping my toe into the gin bath. Have built up a collection of just about every possible botanical for gins. None of them are powdered. A good mortar and pestle works great on crushing and coarse grinding them. The whole roots I either grate or shave. Using whole ingredients and processing them yourself just results in the freshest and best quality spirit IMHO. YMMV.

+1 on whole spices

A word about mortars and pestles, Pharmaceutical grade porcelain ones, and granite kitchen style

are quite slick. the mexican volcanic mortars have enough tooth but are hard to clean. the japanese

suribachi/surikogi set have tooth and you can use a dedicated bamboo brush to get everything out at

time of use and are ideal for grinding/cracking spices, including those that are not entirely dry.

[Wozza]

I had my daughter's friend stop by the spice store for me to get some things, and she brought back powdered spices vs. the whole seed. (caraway, coriander, orange peel, etc. I do have whole Juniper.) This will be my first gin and akavit, so I'm unsure! Plan on doing OEG, and Odins Akavit as a start.

1. is it OK to use this powdered vs. getting the seed and cracking?
2. what adjustments in quantity? I assume that being finely ground will affect the amount of flavor contribution during a maceration.

Thanks!
Kevin

I don't even buy powdered spices for cooking. There's a huuuge difference in flavour. Give the powder away and buy everything whole and get a decent mortar and pestle. Your cooking will taste better as well as your gin.