Boozed + Infused

Infusing liqueurs at home with inspiring and seasonal ingredients

Tag Archives: recipe


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Hibiscus Brandy

Want to try something new and different? How about Hibiscus Brandy?

If you have ever had hibiscus tea, you know that Hibiscus flowers are a strong and refreshingly different flavor. Hibiscus tea is supposed to be quite good for your health (blood pressure, cholesterol), although I’m not sure if the alcohol negates that…

Hibiscus Brandy

2 c. brandy

1/3 c. dried hibiscus flowers

simple syrup

Place the dried flowers and brandy in a jar or glass vessel, and place in a dark location. This infuses fairly quickly. As always, I tend to infuse for a long time to see how the flavors change and enhance. I let this infuse for about 2 weeks before straining out the flowers. The color is very deep and vibrant (the photo doesn’t really do it justice).  After removing the flowers, I added about 1/4 c. of a thick simple syrup and let the infusion sit for another 2 weeks.

With only 1/4 of simple syrup, this is very strong. It is probably not something you would want to drink on its own… however, it is winter – citrus season. Hibiscus and citrus go great together. Cocktail recipes for this liqueur will be forthcoming, so go out and get yourself some hibiscus flowers and start infusing!

Can’t find hibiscus flowers? Try the Homebrew Exchange. They sell online, as well as having a storefront in North Portland.

You could also make quite a tasty liqueur with any loose leaf hibiscus tea that you can find at your local store or tea shop.


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Apple Liqueur

If you are interested in trying a simple liqueur and don’t know where to start, apples are a great ingredient. The photo above may appear to be tart green apples, but these are actually a sweet green apple, picked from my parents’ farm.

Ingredients:

Apples, sliced and cored

Brandy

Vodka

Place apple slices in a canning jar or glass vessel with a lid. Use equal parts brandy and vodka, using enough to cover your apples.

Infuse until the liquid reaches your desired taste. I let this infuse for about 4 weeks. The combination of sweet apples and brandy gave a great apple flavor, with no need for any sugars or additional sweeteners.  After infusing, strain and filter the liqueur. Bottle and enjoy!

Apples can really be used with any spirit. Looking to use up a spiced rum? We were… see below.

Related Posts:

Apple Pie Bourbon

Caramel Apple Liqueur

Apple Liqueur on Punk Domestics


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Ginger-Lime Gin

In this liqueur, the flavors of ginger, lime and agave make this spicy, yet refreshing and bright.

Ginger-Lime Gin

2 c. Gin

Zest of 1 lime

2 heaping TB chopped ginger

2 TB Blue Agave Syrup

Combine Gin, lime zest and ginger in a mason jar and let infuse for approximately 3 weeks, shaking the contents every few days. After 3 weeks, add Agave Syrup and let infuse for another week, or until it reaches your desired taste. Strain and filter, then enjoy!

Although I let this infuse for a total of 1 month, it could go much faster if you added more lime and ginger in the beginning.  The agave sweetens this lightly, with a good flavor balance to the ginger and lime.

This will make some tasty cocktails… cheers!

Ginger-Lime Gin on Punk Domestics


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Cherry Bomb!

If you haven’t yet made the Cherry Bourbon, you will want to for this cocktail!

Cherry Bomb Cocktail (makes 2)

3 oz Cherry Bourbon

1 oz Cherry Juice (you can find in the health food/organic section of the grocery store – called Just Black Cherry)

1 oz fresh squeezed Lemon Juice

1 oz Creme de Cacao

Brandied Cherry – for garnish

Combine all but the brandied cherry in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into chilled cocktail glasses. Garnish with brandied cherry.

I really don’t mean to call every cocktail my “new favorite”. But seriously, this is SO good! If you have even remotely considered making the cherry bourbon recipe, I would highly recommend it.

Cheers!

Related Posts:

Cherry Bourbon (with dried cherries)

Fresh Cherry Bourbon


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Cherry Bourbon

I’ve never met an infused bourbon I didn’t like…

I love cherries. You will see cherry brandy, brandied cherries, and perhaps many other varieties of canned/boozy cherries in my cocktail recipes. When we get to cherry season, I no doubt will have many postings for making your own cocktail cherries. We are many months from cherry season in the Pacific Northwest. In the meantime, dried cherries are just the prescription.

Dried fruits tend to infuse fairly quickly, and leave a thicker feel to the liqueur. This infused so quickly that I ended up adding more bourbon, and after a few more days, the same luscious cherry flavor had taken over.

Cherry Bourbon

6 oz dried cherries (we used dried tart cherries that had been sweetened – Mariani brand)

3 c. bourbon

This will taste really good after a few days, even better after a week, and amazing at 2 weeks – if you can wait that long. I haven’t even bothered filtering or straining the cherries out of this. We just started pouring the bourbon off the top.

Cherry bourbon makes amazing cocktails. Recipes will be forthcoming… so go out and get some dried cherries, and make this!

Related Posts:

Fresh Cherry Bourbon

Cherry Bomb Cocktail


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Cranberry Crush! New Favorite Champagne Cocktail

Remember the Cranberry-Orange Cordial we posted a few weeks ago…

We have now tried several cocktails with this elixir and we have a new favorite Champagne Cocktail!

Cranberry Crush

2 oz Cranberry-Orange Cordial (Liqueur)

4 oz champagne

long orange twist

Ok, so maybe you haven’t made that cranberry-orange liqueur? I would suggest substituting 1 oz Fresh Pressed (not from concentrate, 100% pure juice) Cranberry Juice and 1 oz Cointreau instead of the cranberry-orange cordial.

Enjoy!! This is a keeper!


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Walnut Liqueur

Typical walnut liqueur, Nocino, is made with green walnuts. Unfortunately I didn’t have access to green walnuts. It is winter, after all. So I improvised and made a walnut liqueur with standard walnuts.

1 c. chopped walnuts

1 c. brandy

1 c. vodka

1/4 vanilla bean, split

6 whole cloves (or less – these can overpower)

2 tablespoons thick simple syrup (or to taste)

Infuse all of the ingredients (except the simple syrup) for at least 2 weeks, or longer if you wish. We let this infuse for about a month. Strain and filter the liquid well, and add the simple syrup. It was surprising how little sweetener this needed.

It is delicious on its own… and will likely be quite tasty in cocktails… any suggestions?

Enjoy!


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Raspberry Caipirinha

Some years back, a friend introduced me to the Caipirinha. What a lovely and refreshing drink. Sweet, tart, and all the flavors balance so perfectly.

Last summer, I infused a bottle of cachaça with about a pound and a half of fresh raspberries, and a little sugar to heighten the raspberry flavor. I realize that raspberries are not in season right now, but you could infuse cachaça with another fruit or even frozen berries.

When I make this drink, it brings me back to the warmth of summer, despite the cold rain and snow we’ve been getting in the Pacific Northwest this week.

Raspberry Caipirinha (makes one drink)

1 lime, halved and sliced

1 Tablespoon Turbinado Sugar

3 oz Raspberry Infused Cachaça

Club Soda

Crushed Ice

Place the lime and sugar in the bottom of a pint glass or large tumbler and muddle well. Fill the glass to the top with crushed ice. Add raspberry infused cachaça, and top with club soda (just a splash). Serve with a straw so you can stir it and mix the lime and sugar into the drink.

If you don’t have any infused cachaça, substitute plain cachaça. The only thing I’d alter is to add a little more sugar.

You may have noticed that I didn’t bother to strain or filter this liqueur. Simple reason there… I’m greedy. Although I will make this drink for others in my home, it is too good to bottle for gifts. You’ll have to make your own…

Cheers!


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The Choices of Winter

I used to think that summer was the best time of year for making liqueurs. With all of the fruits and berries in the area, it can be daunting to decide what to infuse.

For the winter, we started infusing other items like tea, herbs and spices, nuts, etc. When Eileen and I started thinking about infusing winter fruits, we found a lot more than we thought we would.

Here are a few ideas to take advantage of while it is cold outside. Remember, the sooner you infuse, the sooner you can enjoy!

Cranberries

Persimmon

Pomegranate

Lemons

Oranges

Pears

Apples

Dried Fruits

We could go on forever! Instead, I will share a simple winter infusion to warm your evening…

Holy Tea Infusion on Day 1

Holy Tea Tonic

3 Tablespoons of Herbal Tea (I used a lovely blend from a friend that included Star Anise, Vanilla Bean, Angelica, Basil, Solomon’s Seal, and Saigon Cassia)

2/3 c. Brandy

1 1/3 c. Vodka

3 Tablespoons Honey (or to taste)

I infused the blend for about 2 weeks before adding any honey. At 2 weeks, I added the honey and let it infuse for another 3 days before straining.

Can be enjoyed plain, in a cup of hot water or tea (with a squeeze of lemon) or in a favorite cocktail.