The first liqueur I ever made was Raspberry. I guess I should say the first four liqueurs I made were all Raspberry!
A few years ago, I went to my parents’ farm to pick some raspberries for jam. I came home with a LOT of berries. I made a few batches of jam, and it seemed like I had not even made a dent in the volume of raspberries. So I started going through my liquor cabinet, selecting anything that seemed like it would taste good with the berries.
I ended up with Raspberry Vodka, Raspberry Brandy, Raspberry Cachaça and Raspberry-Mint Gin. I left all of the infusions in the back of our coat closet for three months. And by the time we filtered them, they were heavenly. (Follow recipe for Simple Raspberry Liqueur below) Each year, the volume of Raspberry Liqueur in my pantry seems to grow.
As I started to infuse a wider variety of ingredients, the Raspberry liqueurs have remained some of my favorites.
I spent a good part of the day yesterday picking raspberries with my mother. (And I’ve got the scratches all over my arms to prove it!)
I ended up with about four pounds of amazing, sweet, delicious raspberries. If you have never infused raspberries before, you are really missing out. These wonderful liqueurs really are a little splash of heaven.
Simple Raspberry Liqueur
750 ml bottle of 80 proof booze (vodka, gin, rum, brandy, or cachaça)
3 1/2 c. raspberries
1/4 to 1/2 c. sugar (or more depending on your preference)
Combine all ingredients in a large glass jar. Shake or stir every few days, allowing to infuse for up to 3 months, or until it reaches your desired taste. Add more sugar if desired. Strain and filter well. The straining process can take a while with raspberries, but the jelly bag (or lots of cheesecloth) and coffee filters will produce a clear result.
Raspberry-Mint Gin (adapted from Get Fresh)
750 ml bottle of Gin
1 1/3 lb Raspberries
1/2 c. tightly packed mint leaves
1/2 c. sugar
Follow directions above, same as Simple Raspberry Liqueur.
This is a favorite of ours, and tastes amazing in a gin and tonic.
This year I decided to try out some new variations and flavors. I don’t quite know how they will turn out yet… I guess we’ll have to wait a while before we know. I hope these inspire you to get creative with your raspberry infusions as well.
Raspberry-Lemon Vodka
2 c. Raspberries
Zest of 2 lemons
2 c. Vodka
1/4 c. Sugar
Follow directions above, same as Simple Raspberry Liqueur.
ROB Rum (Raspberry-Orange-Blueberry)
1 c. Frozen Blueberries (cut in half or roughly chopped)
1 1/4 c. Raspberries
Zest of one orange
2 c. Rum
2 TB Sugar
Follow directions above, same as Simple Raspberry Liqueur.
After these have infused for a while, we may alter them with more sugar or simple syrup. We also may add more zest if necessary.
And finally, one last treat…
Chocolate-Raspberry Liqueur
1 1/2 c. Raspberries
1/4 c. cocoa nibs
1/4 c. sugar
2 c. vodka
Follow directions above, same as Simple Raspberry Liqueur.
We will let you know how these new flavors turn out… but it may be a while before they are ready. We will try tasting them before the three months are up to see if they infuse quicker than we think. But I think they will need at least a month.
Do you have any raspberry infusion flavor ideas? What are your favorites?
Cheers!
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Update 7/12/12 Happy National Can It Forward Day! Visit great canning ideas at The Domestically Impaired Guide to Retro Kitchen Arts.
July 1, 2012 at 8:53 am
I’m going to have to try this. It sounds wonderful.
July 1, 2012 at 8:57 am
I hope you do Maralee! The raspberry flavor is so strong and delicious, and if you make enough of it you can enjoy it the rest of the year when raspberries are not in season.
July 1, 2012 at 10:03 am
It looks so darn good! Especially the raspberry lemon….yum, yum, yum!
July 1, 2012 at 10:05 am
Thanks Kelli! I’m excited about the raspberry-lemon too. The zest smelled so good with the raspberry…
October 24, 2012 at 6:16 pm
Ha! I even commented! It’s my crappy memory!
October 28, 2012 at 11:37 am
I don’t expect you to remember everything I post! Happy (almost) Halloween!
October 28, 2012 at 2:58 pm
Back at cha’!
July 1, 2012 at 12:41 pm
OH MAN. Those look spectacular. I used to pick raspberries at camp and at the park when we lived in the midwest, but raspberry bushes are few and far between in CA. I really need to buy all the raspberries I can carry home from next week’s farmer’s market. In the meantime, I’m super jealous of your backyard haul, and the fabulous results!
July 2, 2012 at 7:20 am
Thanks Eileen! I know you’ve got lots of other boozy concoctions, but raspberry really does infuse so well. The flavor is really good and fruity. We infused so mch raspberry liqueur last year that we had lots to give away, and are still enjoying it now! (which is good since we have to wait for the new infusions to be ready)
July 3, 2012 at 4:27 pm
Thank you for the inspiration, I have made tonnes of raspberry vodka before and have a fabulous crop of the juicy fruits this year. I am going to start new interesting varieties this weekend, can’t wait. Roll on three months.
July 4, 2012 at 12:51 pm
Oh my – if I don’t have enough berries on my own brambles I am going to raid my local farm stand – these sound fabulous! What a great way to enjoy the tastes of summer in the dead of winter!
July 8, 2012 at 12:07 pm
They sure are! We made so many raspberry infusions last year that we can still enjoy them now while the new ones are infusing. You won’t be sorry! Let me know how they turn out. ( I have already sampled our raspberry-chocolate vodka and it is amazing)
July 6, 2012 at 4:06 pm
We love infusing our vodka with fresh fruits. Definitely want to try it with rum, now!
July 7, 2012 at 12:17 am
Great! Rum works great for infusions, but so does gin, brandy, bourbon… and much more
Do you have a favorite fruit-infused vodka?
July 12, 2012 at 7:19 am
Great post, great recipes … great Scott! I think need a drink and it’s only 10 am!
July 12, 2012 at 7:08 pm
Hi there, thank you! I am glad you liked the post and hope that you will find some inspiration for your own infusions. I saw on your blog that you have started some infusing as well!
July 12, 2012 at 11:58 am
What brand of vodka do you suggest for making liqueurs?
July 12, 2012 at 7:05 pm
Hi Rachel, great question. Many people like to use their favorite vodka, whatever brand that may be. And while many will tell you that your drink is only as good as the worst ingredient, I believe that a “middle of the road” spirit is best. You don’t need to buy the most expensive, but usually don’t want the cheapest either. They will all infuse well, so it partly depends on how much you want to spend and what you normally enjoy.
In places where alcohol is very inexpensive, I would say go ahead and use your favorite. But if you live in a place with lots of taxes on alcohol and don’t want to spend that much, you would be fine going with a lower grade. I think Stoli and Smirnoff are just fine for most infusions.
Hope that helps!
August 17, 2012 at 7:41 pm
Hi Alicia.
I’m from the UK I got your details from ” The Cocktail Lovers” online magazine
I think you make some awesome infusions , I’m currently making a Strawberry & Sweet Red Chilli, I would like to clarify something , in your recipe you say 1c, do I take it you mean 1 cup,???
Regards MIKE
August 17, 2012 at 8:18 pm
Hi Mike, Yes! 1 c = 1 cup
Glad you got our info from Cocktail Lovers. Please let me know if anything else needs clarification.
Happy infusing!
August 17, 2012 at 8:31 pm
Oh and Mike, the strawberry and sweet red pepper sounds really interesting! Good inspiration there!
August 17, 2012 at 8:40 pm
Hi Alicia,
Thanks for your answer , Gary & Sandra are friends of mine in London , we meet up quite often as I am A Cocktail Judge for the UKBG . yes I know it’s
04.30 in the UK but I do my best researching at this time of the night.
Regards Mike
August 19, 2012 at 8:06 am
Hope your infusions turn out great! Cheers!
August 23, 2012 at 11:29 pm
These look AH-MAZING!!!!!
August 25, 2012 at 9:36 am
Thanks Sweet Heat! They really are amazing! These are still infusing in our pantry, but the raspberry chocolate is really something special. All the raspberry infusions are great, but that one really stands out. The ROB rum is coming along quite nicely as well.
October 11, 2012 at 10:28 am
Hi, What variety of mint did you use with the raspberries? Think I might have to try this one!
October 11, 2012 at 9:13 pm
Hi Valerie, I used spearmint. And don’t be afraid to go heavy on the mint. You will love it! It makes an amazing gin and tonic
October 12, 2012 at 10:29 am
Thanks! On my way to the garden…. I have lots of spearmint and I do prefer the flavour of spearmint over ordinary mint. I have so many raspberries this year I am running out of ideas
October 14, 2012 at 8:08 pm
For your ROB Rum, what kind of rum did you use. Looks like you used a light, but what brand if you don’t mind me asking?
October 14, 2012 at 9:30 pm
Hi there, yes, I did use a light rum. It was nothing special, I think it was Bacardi. I usually use about that level of spirits in most of my infusions. I keep the good stuff for simpler cocktails or using on their own.
October 15, 2012 at 4:47 am
Hi. Not that there’s anything wrong with Bacardi (what rum snobs hate to enjoy), it’s one of the most versatile rums. I use the Cruzan just as much. Yet I agree with you about finer rums. Thanks for sharing.
January 6, 2013 at 12:02 pm
All looks good. I made raspberry and almond gin a couple of years ago, I have not bottled it yet. Any ideas what to do with the raspberrys after the gin has been bottled.