388406 Wed Apr 04 15:06:51 -0700 2007 7 36 Spirits 0 2451236 What are your best tips for making vodka infusions? I made lots of limoncello last summer, and it took a few weeks for each batch. From some comments, I'm led to believe that infusions don't need to take that long. I'd like to try strawberry, cranberry and others. Thanks in advance for your guidance. Wed Apr 04 15:06:51 -0700 2007 24075 onefineleo 1 2451251 I've made a beautiful raspberry vodka. 1 cup raspberries (you can use frozen) 1 750ml bottle vodka Make a martini or two. Add raspberries. Refrigerate one week. Strain through several layers cheesecloth. Enjoy! I store it in the fridge but am probably being overly cautious... Wed Apr 04 15:11:36 -0700 2007 2451236 79189 DropD 1 2458800 The length of time for any particular infusion depends on the ingredient. Strong ones such as ginger and chiles take no more than a couple of days. Limoncello gets its flavor from the oils in the lemon peel, and those take quite a bit longer to extract than juicier fruits do. Also, limoncello is in the infusion category of liqueurs and cordials; the vast majority of these do much better after resting in a cool dark place for a couple of months. I need to get through my head that infused vodkas are pretty free-wheeling. DropD has the right idea- take a cup or two of the fruit of your choice (small fruits like berries and cherries should be crushed to break the skin if they weren't frozen, which breaks the skin for you; large fruits should be cut into 1-inch chunks; herbs and spices should be just 1 sprig or a couple of teaspoons), add to spirit of choice, let it sit, tasting every day or so until it's the strength you want. If it stops getting stronger tasting before you think it should, add more fruit and keep going. Then strain through dampened cheesecloth (getting the cheesecloth wet keeps the cloth from soaking up your precious end product) And yes, DropD, you are being overly cautious. The alcohol content is high enough that you don't need to refrigerate it even while the fruits are steeping. Sat Apr 07 06:26:49 -0700 2007 2451236 10996 JK Grence the Cosmic Jester 1 2459314 I have infused a lot of vodkas. Last year I did about 6L of kumquat vodka. It was very simple, I just halved fruit, put into the bottles and poured the vodka back in (probably a 1½ cups of fruit). This year I have done several others. My Key Lime tree is very productive as is a lot of other citrus in Louisiana so I have had a lot to choose from. So, the Key Lime and Orange I did basically the same way. I zested the fruits to produce about ¼ cup of zest and soaked that with about ½ cup of lime juice or 1½ cups of orange juice, respectively, in 5L plastic containers then strained the infusion multiple times and added simple syrup to taste (½ to ¾ of a cup). I had some concern about secondary fermentation or bacteria, but I have stored this concoction at room temperature for months. No problems so far. The above mention point about the strength of the flavors effecting infusion time is right on. I did a case of Strawberry vodka a month or two ago (right when they started to come in) and used much the same prep as described above except the measurement was about one flat of Strawberries to one case of vodka. I had pureed the Strawberries which I would never do again; it was just too much work to strain the puree out. So, I am doing another batch tomorrow (I own a bar and sell the vodkas there, I cant take down this much booze myself) but will be chopping the berries roughly rather than pureeing. Lastly, I did start a bottle of Rosemary infused vodka yesterday (you can see a picture of it on my website www.chemicalcapital.com or follow the link in my Chowhound profile). I read someone on here talk about Rosemary vodka and so I decided to give it a shot. I’ll let you know. If anyone is counting, the addition of simple syrup makes these less straight infused vodkas and more in them Limoncello style, or so I have been to believe. Sat Apr 07 12:31:51 -0700 2007 2451236 19291 frankiii 2 2464859 For straining, you might try one of those cloth coffee strainers (you can get them at most Latin American grocery stores--colador de tela)--It gets even the finest particles of debris out. It looks like this: http://www.cubanfoodmarket.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=COL40401&Store_Code=CFM&search=colador&offset=0&filter_cat=&PowerSearch_Begin_Only=&sort=&range_low=&range_high= Mon Apr 09 16:06:53 -0700 2007 2459314 10661 butterfly 1 2460676 My favorites have been pineapple and blackberry. Neither requires more than a week or two. Sun Apr 08 06:17:28 -0700 2007 2451236 11577 Pei 1 2464933 http://www.chowhound.com/search?item_type=Topic&board_id=36&query=infused&x=19&y=10 Mon Apr 09 16:32:43 -0700 2007 2451236 10732 JMF 1 2464989 I made and infused bodka last weekend for bloody mary's from Lucy Brennan's cocktail book- Hip Sips. 1 liter potato vodka 1/4 red pepper 1/4 orange pepper 1/4 yellow pepper 1 wedge of lime 1/2 jalepeno pepper 1 clove garlic 6 basil leaves Finely slice or chop, put in larger glass container, let "steep" 2 days in fridge. Strain and use in your own bloody mary recipe. Mon Apr 09 16:53:08 -0700 2007 2451236 64751 queen artoeat