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A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a review of Vlada, a New York bar that specializes in infused vodkas. As I mentioned in my post, my experiences at Vlada had made me nostalgic for the moonshine that I had once enjoyed in Southwest Virginia. Back in the day, I used to buy 'shine by the gallon and infuse it with fruits, herbs, honey, and other ingredients, producing a wide range of aperitifs. While I'm a huge fan of store-bought liqueurs, I have yet to meet the mass-produced tipple that can rival the blueberry-infused moonshine, moonshine-based absinthe, or moonshine krupnikas that I once made.The more I thought about it, the more I decided that the time had come to restart my experiments in fruit infusion. I had a half bottle of Everclear in the liquor cabinet, which I quickly determined was still relatively fresh and potent. A trip down to the farmer's market gave me a couple of pints of fresh blueberries, which I washed, dried, picked over, and packed in mason jars. I covered the fruit in grain alcohol, closed the lids, and set them in the back of one of my kitchen cabinets. Apart from giving them a daily shake, I was content to let time and the 190-proof alcohol do their work.
A week later, the alcohol was stained a deep purple and the berries were gray. A quick taste assured me that the grain was still mighty strong, but was now infused with a nice blueberry flavor. Wanting something a little more intense, I let a second batch of berries steep for a week in the alcohol. Afterward, I had a very alcoholic, very intensely flavored blueberry liquor. I also had a second batch of slightly sour-tasting blueberry alcohol that I got from running the leftover blueberries through my fruit juicer.
Having had some unfortunate experiences with uncut grain alcohol, I would strongly argue against drinking it straight. Years ago, I used to mix fruit infused moonshine with club soda or seltzer. However, following some online suggestions, I cut my recent batch of blueberry liquor with simple syrup, which I made by I combining equal parts boiling water and refined sugar over medium-high heat. I boiled the solution until the sugar was completely dissolved, and allowed the mixture to cool. Most sites suggest mixing the liquor with the syrup at a 1-to-1 ratio, but I found that the resulting liqueur was a little too sweet. I ended up with a 2-to-1 liquor to syrup ratio, and I think that I might go 3-to-1 or even 4-to-1 on future batches. Even so, my 2-to-1 tipple is smooth and intensely flavored, and makes a great base for a summer spritzer, particularly when coupled with Limoncello.
While some sites advocate the use of bourbon, gin, and vodka as a liqueur base, I prefer grain alcohol. It has very little flavor, which allows the full taste of the produce to come through. Luckily, a quick trip to Connecticut has refilled my alcohol stores, and my last visit to the farmer's market yielded some very nice apricots, which I've already got steeping. I've also noticed a few beautiful lemons and I'm considering trying a few savory ingredients, like dill and horseradish. I've found that, while preserves can do a beautiful job of making summer crops last through the year, there's nothing like alcohol preserving to retain the full flavor of fresh produce!
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8-15-2008 @10:56AM Aaron said... yeah! I've got half a jar of strawberry/tequila we're still working on, and a whole jar of peach/vodka sitting at the back of the refrigerator... the liquor has softened to a liqueur, but the strawberries are boozy little fruit shots now. And I second the simple syrup addition...
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8-15-2008 @11:30AM peggy said... i jsut did my first batch of limoncello, with fab results. i'm moving on to lime next i think, or maybe balckberry. i used about 1/4 of light rum in with the everclear (it's what i had) and i think it was fine. cheers!
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8-15-2008 @12:01PM Dean said... I have followed this process for many years, but using vodka instead of pure grain.
** Quick note ** Pure grain alcohol can be lethal - that's not hyperbole. It can kill you. If you use grain to extract the flavors make sure you keep the product and the grain where people won't get into it by mistake. Virginia banned the sale of Everclear because of the number of fatalities from drinking it straight.
Now, having passed on the warning, I have found that the flavors of any reasonable vodka are hidden by the fruit or herbs that I'm infusing. Also, it's why I don't use high price vodka for this process. Just avoid the real cheap stuff and all will be well.
Last, a favorite infusion that I've made is with basil. I steep fresh, high quality basil (not the hydroponic stuff you find in the supermarket) in vodka for 3-5 days. Don't add sugar syrup to it. It's wonderfully refreshing served ice cold along with a fresh tomato salad.
A sweet infusion that's really interesting can be made with tea. The important thing is not to let the tea steep for more than 24 hours or it will turn bitter. After filtering out the tea leaves (about 5 tablespoons per 750ml of vodka) add 1 cup of simple syrup, seal and wait for 1 week for everything to come together.
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8-17-2008 @12:07AM Reva said... First of all I am amazed that someone knows where Southwest Virginia is. I have tried the fruit in the moonshine but believe the best part is the fruit after the moonshine is gone. However, I am now compelled to try these infusions.
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8-16-2008 @12:58AM Liz said... Something I do every summer is infuse watermelon w/vodka. I love it and I don't need the extra sugar. I've also done pineapple. Very nice. I am going to try the blueberry after reading this. I would like to try a few fancier things like lavender. I've heard this is very nice. The basil also sounds good.
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8-16-2008 @12:16AM Bruce Watson said... Dean-
Thanks for the warning. I might have been a little too subtle here--you're absolutely right about the dangers of straight grain.
I'll definitely have to give your recipes a try!
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8-16-2008 @12:18AM Bruce Watson said... Reva-
Nice to see another SW Virginia person on here. Where do you live?
There's a lot to be said for liquor-infused fruit, but nothing beats a little blueberry liqueur drizzled over cheesecake or mixed with some club soda. It's pretty amazing!
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8-17-2008 @12:52AM Reva said... Bruce,
I am from Abingdon, home of Barter Theater, Martha Washington Inn, and many fine restaurants.
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9-05-2008 @1:01PM przepisy kulinarne said... Każdy ma takie momenty w życiu, kiedy kieliszek domowej nalewki jest tym, co człowiekowi jest najbardziej potrzebne. Zziębniętego rozgrzewa, malkontenta pocieszy, byle tylko nie przedawkować - pozytywny skutek murowany. Najlepiej smakuje prawdziwa domowa nalewka zrobiona według dobrego przepisu. Trzeba ją wcześniej przygotować, aby mieć gotowe lekarstwo na przeziębienie, czy chandrę.
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10-06-2008 @5:44PM Bob said... I've done plenty of fruits and berries in grain alcohol, but has anyone ever tried meat? Would it preserve the meat? And if so, when you toss it on the grill, I would figure it would crisp up the outside real quick sealing in the juices. The alcohol would evaporate off pretty quick, and you'd be left with a nice piece of cooked meat. I'm curious how long the meat would last in the alcohol, and if the alcohol would pull out any important flavor. I'd figure you could reuse the alcohol quite a few times before it would be time to use it to light the grill.
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10-06-2008 @3:58PM Bruce Watson said... Bob, on the one hand, the alcohol would probably preserve the meat somewhat. On the other hand, if my infusing efforts are any measure, it would also leach out a lot of the flavor and oils from the meat, yielding a crispy, dry hunk of flesh. Personally, I'd stick with fruits and vegetables!
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