Liqueur Facts,
Production Methods and
HOMEMADE LIQUEUR RECIPES
You may wonder what is a liqueur? What makes it different from just any old liquor*? Merriam-Webster defines liqueur as: "a sweetened alcoholic liquor (such as brandy, whiskey, vodka, etc) flavored with fruit, spices, nuts, herbs, or seeds". You can also add cream or milk products to produce a cream liqueur such as Irish Cream. There is a subset of liqueurs called cordials and these would be the liqueurs made with fruits and/or fruit juices.
There are four different methods of producing a Liqueur:
- Distillation - where the flavoring elements and the spirit are blended together and then distilled**.
- Maceration - where the flavoring ingredients are mixed with the alcohol and allowed to infuse together.
- Infusion - where the flavoring elements are "infused" with hot water to release their natural flavors then mixed with the alcohol.
- Percolation - where the alcohol is pushed through the flavoring agents to absorb their flavors.
Some examples of liqueurs you can purchase would be:
- Grand Marnier - a combination of cognac and orange.
- Cointreau - a combination of brandy and oranges.
- Drambuie - a combination of Scotch whisky with heather honey and herbs.
- Triple Sec - an orange flavored liqueur made from the dried peels of bitter and sweet orange.
- Irish Cream - a combination of whiskey, cream and flavorings (usually chocolate and coffee).
- Chambord - a blend of black raspberries, cognac, berry and fruit extracts and proprietary spices.
- Southern Comfort - a blend of bourbon, orange and peaches.
- Kahlua - a sugar cane (rum) and coffee liqueur.
How To Make Your Own Liqueurs:
You can make a ton of your own liqueurs. Some are extremely easy and take only a little patience, time and work. To make your own liqueurs you simply combine a base liquor with a flavoring ingredient to which you may add a sweetening ingredient.
Homemade Liqueurs made excellent gifts too!
Make up a large batch, pour into some pretty bottles and add a custom label!! I have a ton of fun
Cocktail Themed Labels you can customize and personalize for all your Liqueur Gifts
I've not only made homemade liqueurs, I've created many infused spirits, what I call my little "moonshinin' hobby":
MOONSHINE MADNESS
*Definition of Liquor: a usually distilled rather than fermented alcoholic beverage
**Distillation:
the process of separating, concentrating, or purifying liquid by boiling it and then condensing the resulting vapor.
October 16th is
NATIONAL LIQUEUR DAY.
Updated October 2017
