298026 Tue Aug 03 17:58:11 -0700 2004 3 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1646566 Hello all, I'm starting the new and FUN hobby of infusing vodka with various fruits and spices! Yesterday, I cut up a few Granny Smith apples and mixed it with a liter of vodka. Today, all the apples are brown! So, my questions... 1. Outside of the discoloring, is the brown color bad for the overall final product? 2. Is there anything I can do to the apples to prevent them from browning in the vodka? I know about the lemon juice trick, but I didn't know if it would affect the taste and if the lemon juice would just wash off when it's in the vodka. Any help and advice would be appreciated! Tue Aug 03 17:58:11 -0700 2004 0 Mike 1 5164744 I have made apple vodka in the fall for the last few years and even if I have included some lemon slices, the apples still discolor somewhat, after a point. I don't think you can really put in the amount of lemon needed to acidify the mixture and not change the taste of the final product, as you say. As far I know, having consumed the vodka for a few years now, there is no problem with the color. Once I strain out the apples (I also use cinnamon sticks and some cloves), it has the coloring of apple juice which seems pretty natural. Sun Nov 08 06:29:17 -0800 2009 1646566 1113685 elkaynyc 1 5164809 This is an interesting conundrum. Now, I'm no food scientist. What I do know from training and experience is that apples contain a particularly pesky substance (is it a starch?) that turns brown when exposed to the oxygen. The same stuff's in potatoes and artichokes -- they turn brown if you don't keep 'em wet or acidulate (add lemon juice or other acid) the water they're kept in. I'm very surprised that the vodka does *nothing* to abate the browning of the apple pieces. I don't think that adding a bit of lemon juice to prevent gross discoloration would be a problem. But then again, I'm thinking of the trend nowadays for any apple-flavored drink to tend to be tart or sour (Apple Jack, a good old-fashioned quaff, is not tart nor sour, however). The citric acid in the lemon juice will definitely overpower/diminish the flavor from the apples. I *love* elkaynyc's idea for using cinnamon sticks and cloves in the apple vodka. I'm certain that stuff's just delicious! We *love* having mulled cider around in the fall (in fact there's a big crock pot of it at our restaurant ready to go -- we mix brandy and Tuaca (orange/vanilla) Italian liqueur into it and it's a hot, boozy treat!) Sun Nov 08 07:16:17 -0800 2009 1646566 270888 shaogo 1 5166262 Try rinsing the apples in "Fruit Fresh". Don't know how it'll work for vodka but it works great to prevent browning in apples and peaches for canning. It contains dextrose, citric acid and silicon dioxide. Might stop the browning with out the lemon taste. Sun Nov 08 21:41:54 -0800 2009 1646566 160677 morwen