Luxardo Maraschino cherries not at all worth the price

[nickls]

I knew homemade cocktail cherries would undoubtedly be better, but I figured I would give Luxardo Maraschino cherries a try due to the convenience factor. I must say, I feel quite the fool for dishing out $20 for a jar of these.

I found the taste only marginally different from the average jar of neon red maraschinos. For me, the two main advantages are the more natural dark red color, and the slightly meatier texture. Apparently I should have heeded my doubts upon seeing from the label that these are simply cherries in sugar syrup.

My advice is give all maraschino cherries, including the more genuine and highly priced Luxardo ones, a pass. Next time, I will try making my own cocktail cherries, perhaps soaking some bing cherries in brandy.

If you disagree, or have found some worthwhile jarred cherries, feel free to reply.

[culinaryspy]

I don't usually do this, but yesterday I sent a drink back at a sushi rest. Nothing wrong with doing it, the waitress took care of it. Happily, my husband watch me giving my arguments to the waitress who carried my concerns to the bartender back and forth.
Husband asked: Over a cherry??. I reply: not any kind of cherry, they described the drink as garnished with a Luxardo Cherry, and the one I got was "muddle" with a common Maraschino Cherry. If you look at the price of the cherries, you would find it unfair to charge what they charged for that drink. Culinary Spy

[AnneInMpls]

Good for you, culinaryspy! If a cocktail is supposed to have a Luxardo cherry, it had danged well better have a Luxardo cherry instead of the day-glo nastiness of a common maraschino cherry.

And here's my 2 cents to add to the wealth of home-made cherry recipes: If cherries aren't in season, I buy bottled sour cherries (in a jar) - I find Zergut brand Bulgarian cherries at my local Persian deli - then replace the sugar syrup with alcohol, and let them steep in the fridge for a few weeks/months (they last forever). I use Luxardo Maraschino, but anything would do. Yeah, fresh cherries would be better, but it's January in Minnesota...

[StriperGuy]

Good suggestion. Heck even some of the killer cherries from the Penguin Brand cherry jam I love would do the trick.

[JMF]

By the way, the new Filthy Black Cocktail Cherries by Filthy Foods are excellent. Just hitting the shelves now.

[pivulis]

It is sour cherry season. Stop and Shop carries them, they come from an orchard in the finger lakes of ny. Some ethnic groceries also get them, armenian for example. About 5.00 for a pint basket. Any time now. Better for preserving than bings. By the way, not sour at all, excellent raw.

[CCKQN]

This was an awesome thread...
Do you think that this recipe would work for cherries that need to be used in a Black Forest cake?

[StriperGuy]

sure

[foodeye]

I *need* a slice of that cake....pretty please, with a cherry on top!

[The Big Crunch]

Great thread. Cherry Season around DC starts in early June. There's a few "pick your own" places around here and now I look forward to taking home a bunch and trying SG's recipe.

In the meantime... I'll buy another bottle of Luxardo cherries, because they are definitely better than the neon red things. The reason I have to buy another bottle is because I finally had to throw out my other jar, which was still about a third full, and only about four months old. I'd kept it in the fridge and it had turned into a solid blob of nearly solid gelatinous cherry goop. I was wondering about this and thanks to this thread, I learned that it would probably be better to store these things in a cabinet. So...yeah...double dose of good info in this thread.

[Klunco]

After almost six months of mellowing, I have started plowing through my cherries from this recipe. Mine definitely took a while to mellow and taste good especially because I used a leftover bourbon that I didn't care for to begin with. It seems obvious enough but I guess I thought that with all the spices and sugar it wouldn't make that big a difference.

Luckily, now they have turned into a delicious cherries that adorn my old-fashioneds, but next time I will definitely be more selective with my booze. Aging definitely helps though. Great recipe!

[AlizaEss]

If anyone is curious to see a photo of the color of cherries without going through the soaking or boiling step, I simply steeped cherries in luxardo liquor and sugar, then canned the cherries in the liquid with a few bits of cloves, cinnamon, and black pepper. The cherries and liquid have maintained a nice, deep red color (it's not bright red like hibiscus but is still pretty). Here's a photo of the cherries along with a link to a blog post I did on the project: http://www.baltimorediy.org/2011/08/h....

The lightly spiced cherries were fabulous over the holidays and made for a very elegant cocktail. I dropped them into white wine made into a spritzer with smashed clementine orange and soda water and they were fabulous! Although once I have a few whiskey and cherries in me I usually just start eating the cherries right out of the jar....

[dsweedler]

The salt water boiling trick is really important to set the color of the cherries and also displace the calcium and magnesium associated with the fruit acids (citric, malic and fumaric acids associated with various fruits also bind to calcium and magnesium ions and boiling with sodium will displace those salts and make the product more stable. The heavily salted water also draws moisture out of the fruit and this is the process that must occur during the sugar displacement of fruit liquids during storage. Sodium tastes salty while the other ions can taste bitter and promote color changes during storage. A little sodium in sugary foods helps us taste sweet things better. The boiling stops enzymatic reactions and kills surface yeasts that can ferment the fruit. Another trick is to use hard cherries and not ripe soft ones for pickling and canning. The hard fruit will withstand the sugar water exchange without changes in shape or color loss better than softer ripe fruit.

[scubadoo97]

How long do you recommend boiling and do can you specify a salinity that you feel is best?

[EvergreenDan]

Since this thread has turned into the repository of cherry know-how, here's a great blog post by Darcy O'Neil on the topic:

http://www.artofdrink.com/blog/maraschino-cocktail-cherries/

--
www.kindredcocktails.com | Craft + Collect + Concoct + Categorize + Community

[StriperGuy]

Wow, that's some awesome info. Might have to score some malic acid or some acid phosphate for my next batch.

Not even sure I mentioned it in my recipes above, but I did actually smash lots of cherry pits and throw them into some of my batches (from cherries I ate as I did not bother to pit the cocktail cherries.) I assume it added to the flavor.

[JMF]

Damn Darcy does some great stuff. We hang out every year at Tales and have the darnedest conversations, but not one about cocktail cherries.

[AlizaEss]

Awesome thread! Just made a batch of cherries last night and wished I had seen this column first! I'm soaking a two quart size mason jars of pitted cherries in Luxardo and a cup of sugar per jar, and the other two quart jars with cherries, a cup of sugar, and Grand Marnier. I never thought about brining the cherries first. I dropped a cherry into my glass of GM and soda (needed to relax while pitting all those cherries!) and the cherry swelled up and got gross looking and textured. Uh oh! Hopefully the soda water was what made that happen really bad and not the liquor, I don't want to have gross looking cherries.

Do you think it would make sense to drain the cherries tonight, soak them in salt for a bit, and then put them back in the liquor? Or is it too late?

Also thinking of soaking peach and nectarine slices in GM, I'll try the brine with that too.

[StriperGuy]

I think you might as well just wait to see how they turn out. Brining now would probably just make a mess out of 'em. I was sceptical on the brine myself, but it really does work. Also Maraschino and Gran Marnier or fine, but you don't really get CHERRY flavor then. You get cherries that taste like the aforementioned booze.

Something like Cherry Heering or even some Cherry Kirschwasser would be better if you are going for a straight cherry boozed thing.

Also with the fruit slices, do a sample run first. My gut is they will just turn to much and not stand up to brine very well. Or at least google a good recipe on how to make boozy peaches, nectarines etc cause there has to be some issue on preserving the texture. I'm thinking simmer in a sugar syrup first or something...

[AlizaEss]

Thanks for the advice! Yup, I'll leave them alone and see what happens. I'm thinking I'll let the cherry macerate in sugar and liquor for a week, then simmer them in some sugar syrup and spices before canning. I'd use cherry juice or cherry liquor, but then I sort of feel like I'm cheating a little bit and not really highlighting the local cherries I got (I'm hoping to have these cherries available at a local foodie event in the fall). Does sound splendid though and I'll keep that in mind for the future.

Yep, I'm thinking I don't want the peaches to totally taste like straight up booze so I think I'll do a cinnamon scented syrup and add just a touch of Gran Marnier.

Damn I love this website!

[StriperGuy]

If you are adding a decent amount of booze and sugar no need to actually can them. The booze and sugar do the preserving for ya. If you are going light on either though, obviously safer to heat/can. And excuse the typos above, meant to say "Mush" regarding the peaches.

[AlizaEss]

Well I ended up canning them just to be absolutely sure they were shelf-stable. I'm sure it destroyed the alcohol content which kind of sucks but at least I have genuine maraschino flavored cherries. I can always add more alcohol to the cocktails. I did reserve one quart size jar of Grand Marnier soaked cherries in the fridge to drink as is. All I did was add one cup of natural cane sugar to a quart size jar, filled with pitted cherries, then filled the jar with liquor. Let steep in the fridge for about a week, and stir gently to dissolve the sugar after the first day or so. Yum. Texture of the cherries was fine after a week, we'll see if they get too soft if they stay in the liquor.

[StriperGuy]

Just FYI you can't destroy the alcohol. The only issue with cooking and alcohol is that it has a low boiling point 172F so boils off more easily than water. Also why distillation of alcohol is possible.

As long as your jars were sealed when you heated them, the alcohol is trapped and none was destroyed or evaporated away.

Also, as long as you use a decent amount of alcohol (I think 20% should do it) ain't nothing going to grow there.

Relevant article from NY Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/22/din...

[AlizaEss]

Hmmm, I used a water bath canning method so the water was boiling at 212... and the canning lids only seal completely once they are cooled down, not when they are still in the water bath. So I guess we will find out come winter when we drink the contents of the jars if the alcohol evaporated or not!

I did consider that the alcohol would keep the fruit shelf stable but since I'll be storing the fruit until winter and hopefully selling it at a fundraiser cocktail party I wanted to be absolutely sure that they were food-safe.

Thanks for the great NY Times article link. Hope you don't mind if I use it and our conversations here in a blog post about my homemade maraschino cherry project: http://www.baltimorediy.org/2011/08/h...

[StriperGuy]

Knock yourself out. I certainly understand that in canning the jar is not sealed until the heating is done. But I am fairly sure that most of the alcohol is still in there.

Also, in your blog, you state that Marasa cherries are from Croatia. That appears to be from a Wikipedia entry which is a bit suspect. Particularly because you go on to discuss Luxardo Maraschino which is DEFINITELY from Italy. Luxardo is also the best known brand in the U.S. but there are MANY brands in Europe.

Hope the cherries are good.

[AlizaEss]

Thanks for all the advice, and I'm happy to hear that about the alcohol, I was a little disappointed once the thought occurred to me that the heat could affect the alchol content. I'll bet you're right and I'll let you know once I try some :) The pre-canned cherries were quite good, I'll let you know later how the canned ones turn out!

[EvergreenDan]

Does this not depend upon the vapor pressure of alcohol at 212*F versus the clamp force of the Mason jar? The lids have a lot of area, so it would take a huge amount of clamp force to keep even a few psi in. I'm guessing that if you heat it long enough, you'll boil off most of the alcohol if the contents come close to 212*F.

[StriperGuy]

You might be right. We need to either do an experiment, or get a serious physics nerd to chime in. (Unless of course you are one Dan...)

[JMF]

It takes a heck of a lot of cooking to boil off the alcohol. I'm tempted to put some booze in a canning jar and process it. Then open it up and test the alcohol level. If I have the time I will do that today.

[JMF]

OK, so I put 16 oz of 50% abv alcohol in a pint canning jar. Sealed it and put it into a waterbath and brought to a boil for 30 minutes, then removed it and cooled it down. There was no determinable loss in liquid quantity (there may have been a few ml. loss, but such a small amount that it wasn't noticeable using a lab measuring retort), and zero change in alcohol by volume. Absolutely none.

[AlizaEss]

Awesome, thanks for doing the experiment! So happy to know that my maraschinos will still be tipsy cherries come wintertime :)

[StriperGuy]

That's about what I figured would happen.

Thanks.

Stripey

[alphanumeric]

I appreciate your dedication to trivial but fascinating scientific ventures. Kudos.

[scubadoo97]

I've attempted cocktail cherries many months ago before seeing your post. I did one batch which was not canned and one that was. I used a significant amount of Maraschino liqueur, bourbon and simple syrup to keep bacterial growth from down. On the one not canned I had some fermentation since I saw some bubbles being formed the first couple of days. I stored these in a dark place in the kitchen for about a month before transferring to the fridge. They came out okay. Quite boozy but tasty.

I recently did another couple of jars but took your advise and blanched the cherries for 4 min in salted water. I added similar liquids and flavorings as before and did not do a water bath. No fermentation noted.

My question is how do you store yours while they are curing and for how long?

Thanks and here's to a better Manhattan

[StriperGuy]

Just in a cool dark place. I have a very dark corner in my home office.

I have been working on eating a LARGE batch that I made a year or so ago. They continue to be fine.

If you add enough booze, there will be NO fermentation even if you don't blanch. Nothing can survive (yeast or bacteria) if the ethanol level exceeds 20% or so. The bubble you saw might just be air...

[scubadoo97]

definitely fermentation. It was a small Ball jar so the amount of booze may have been insufficient. They taste boozy though

[StriperGuy]

I suppose if the jar was stuffed with cherries, and then there was some syrup you could get the alcohol count below 20%. Also I believe Maraschino is pretty low in alcohol so sure, I get ya.

You could always spike with a bit of grain alcohol just to nuke any possible fermentation / spoilage.

[scubadoo97]

Thanks SG. The two new batches are doing well. No fermentation. They are in a dark place but cool is not something that we have in Fla. Ambient temp in the house is around 78 and that feels cool with the A/C blowing. I just was sipping on a Manhattan with one of my first cherry batches. Still better than the jar stuff.

Thanks for the input. As a note, instead of hibiscus flowers which required a trip to the Mexican store, I use a small wedge of red beet to help retain color lost from blanching. I doubt that little wedge will have much effect on flavor but sure kept the liquid deep red. Will see in a few weeks were we stand. I used a vanilla bean and a drop of almond extract in this new batch as flavorings. fingers crossed.

[StriperGuy]

Good call on the beet. A ubiquitously available colorant. Also good call on the almond extract.

Cool is not such a big issue. My house gets hot on a good day in Boston 80+. Dark is more important.

[scubadoo97]

StriperGuy, just wanted to report back on the cherries

Just popped on jar open yesterday to make my wife a cocktail. The cherries had great structure. Not soft or wrinkled. They had regained a lot of color and were a deep dark burgundy. They tasted excellent. So far this is my best attempt.

The cocktail made was vodka and fresh grapefruit juice with simple syrup and I added the cherry and a tsp of the liquid which streamed down to the bottom until there was a nice color gradient. Overall it was an impressive looking cocktail which tasted even better with the addition of these wonderful cherries.

[StriperGuy]

Muy bueno; glad they turned out well.

I am definitely going to make a batch again this spring.

[JMF]

Luxardo maraschino is 76 proof.

[StriperGuy]

Gosh, would not have thought it...

[MC Slim JB]

I also recently learned that the Luxardo maraschino cherries are shelf stable. I wondered why the syrup was congealing to gelatin in my fridge, and apparently they are formulated to be stored in a cool, dark place, like honey. With syrup to cover, they will last as long as a couple of years. No danger of that in my household, but still good to know.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[sku]

Are you sure about that? I had some develop some mold after just a month or so, and they were in the refrigerator.

[davis_sq_pro]

MC probably went ahead and replaced the syrup with Everclear. That'll keep the mold at bay!

Seriously, though, it's possible that keeping them in a fridge can actually increase the chance of mold development, due to development of surface moisture. Thick syrups like honey, when kept on a shelf, tend to be fairly homogeneous with regard to water content, but when put in a fridge will sometimes develop a thin layer of water (or thinner syrup) on the top. And while the syrup itself may be dense enough to inhibit growth, the thinner layer will not be.

Just a theory--but if in doubt, I guarantee that the Everclear method will work!

[sushigirlie]

I'm sure your own cherries are better than Luxardo cherries, but Luxardo cherries are clearly better than the average neon red maraschino cherry. This is night and day. I bet the price difference per drink is miniscule too.

[StriperGuy]

True, true.

[StriperGuy]

One note here... other Luxardo products are really excellent:

- My favorite triple sec Luxardo Triplum
- Their Marascino liquer, arguably the best available, though I have had other (only available in Italy) brands that were just as good.
- Their Amaretto, by FAR the best I've ever had. Once you try it you will NEVER drink DiSaronno again.

Too bad they can't do a bit better on the cherry front.

[EvergreenDan]

I agree. Alas their Amaretto, as good as it is, is still Amaretto.

The also make Luxardo Bitter, a red Campari-like amaro. I liked it, although I eventually decided that I liked Campari better, despite the higher price.

And they make Luxardo Abano amaro, a black-pepper flavored brown digestif. Also very good.

--
www.kindredcocktails.com | Craft + Collect + Concoct + Categorize + Community

[StriperGuy]

I love using their Amaretto in Mai Tais. Perfect almondy flavor.

[nickls]

I would just like to state for the record that I have revised my opinion on Luxardo cherries since starting this thread. I still think $20 is a lot to pay for a jar of cherries, but have to admit that these things are much better than neon maraschinos. They are definitely super sweet, but are a nice thing to add to a Manhattan or other drink. I am still on my original jar, so the $20 doesn't seem so bad now, but at the same time that means that I am not dying to eat these things up in a hurry.

[JMF]

I have to agree with your revised thought. I think the Luzardo cherries are excellent. Well worth the money since they last so long, and have that deep morello cherry flavor and firm semi candied texture.

[StriperGuy]

It's the texture I don't care for. All syruped up and nothing at all like a cherry.

[will47]

I don't care for the texture either, or how sweet they are. I will take housemade brandied cherries any day over the Luxardo ones.

[JMF]

I like the firm, semi-candied texture.

[will47]

While not on their site, I was picking up some Seville oranges at a local (to LA) shop, and discovered that they have jarred brandied dark sweet cherries. They're pretty plain (no spice or lemon), but good. Not quite as good as our homemade ones, but pretty decent, and a lot closer to home-made than the Luxardo in terms of taste / texture. On the site, I can only find their Maraschinos, but if you call, I bet they can sort you out. It's $10.20 for a 17 oz jar.

http://www.waldoward.com is their site.

[Outerspace]

Where did you find the Seville oranges in LA?

[will47]

There's a farmer at the Wednesday and Saturday farmers markets that can bring them if you ask him, but these ones I got from the company mentioned above.

I found them through another Chowhound post, actually.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/350568
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/52894

I've also heard there are trees at the LA Arboretum (see second post above)

[fishFromLand]

I've recently started mixing cocktails at home. I found these alternatives to the cheap grocery store "toxic" cherries as well as the $20 ones-at a local gourmet shop-Tillen Farms Merry Maraschino Cherry. While I'm no expert, they've been great so far, in my whiskey sours and manhattans. Cost about $6.99/jar:
http://www.worldpantry.com/cgi-bin/nc...

[invinotheresverde]

Old post, but:

I've been using Amarena cherries for my drinks lately. They're expensive, but God, they're addictive. Highly recommended!

[noradeirdre]

I am trying to find where to buy these in the Boston area. (Luxardo or Amarena). Any suggestions?

[StriperGuy]

Marty's in Newton usually has em...

[tomjb27]

I believe i saw them at the Boston Shaker in Davis, but please give them a ring to confirm.

[noradeirdre]

Ding Ding Ding! This is where we found them.

[litchick]

Cambridge Wine and Spirits (is this its old name or new name, I can never remember) -- the one next to the Alewife Whole Foods -- has them too, for about $18/jar.

[MC Slim JB]

South End Formaggio and the Wine Gallery in Brookline are two places I've bought the Luxardo cherries.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[invinotheresverde]

I get them from my work, so I'm not sure.

[MC Slim JB]

I agree that homemade are better, but I think the Luxardo cherries are worth the price, and they're available year-round.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[kimfair1]

Agree 100%. You may not like them, but they taste the same or only marginally different from the neon red ones? I must strenuously disagree with that statement. Does anyone know how much the Amarena brand costs? It would be nice to find a slightly less expensive alternative.

[barleywino]

Amarena Fabbri cherries are ~$23 for net wt of 21 oz. Luxardo Marachino cherries are ~$18 for net wt of 12.7 oz. So the Amarena Fabbri cherries are roughly $1.10 per oz, while the Luxardo are roughly $1.40 per oz. (Some of each jar is syrup of course.)

[StriperGuy]

I agree, was underwhelmed by the Luxardo cherries. Last Christmas they had them here in boston essentially for free. It was buy a bottle of Luxardo Marashino liquor and get two bottles of cherries for free.

I far prefer my homemade cherries.

[invinotheresverde]

Striper, any chance you could post the redipe for your cherries? I've been wanting to make some, but haven't found a decent recipe.
Thanks!

[StriperGuy]

Cocktail Cherry Recipe:
- Blanch cherries in very Salty boiling water for 4 minutes
- Rinse and soak for a few minutes in cool water to get rid of salt
- Place cherries in large jar
Add healthy amounts of the following: star anise, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, allspice, anise seed, fennel seed
- Make some REALLY concentrated red hibiscus tea (this is to help the cherries keep their color) and add 1/2 cup to the bottle
- If you can find some good cherry juice add a cup to the jar
- Fill the rest of the jar with vodka or cheap brandy
- Add sugar to taste
- Wait at least a month

Yum.

[invinotheresverde]

Sounds great. Thanks!

[StriperGuy]

They are spicy, awesome, and blow away any other cocktail cherry I have ever had.

The juice in the jar itself makes a delicious addition to drinks as well.

[katidyd]

I hope this doesn't sound like a dumb blonde question...but why do you soak the cherries in salted water first? and how salty?

[StriperGuy]

The recipe above is my own creation based on several other recipes I read. Short answer: I am not exactly sure why, but several recipes I saw suggest that. I will also add that the finished cherries have a very nice firm texture and I think the salt water blanch has something to do with it.

I can only imagine that the salt water blanch draws some water out of the cherries, firming them up, and then also makes the skins more permeable to the spices/booze. But I am only guessing here.

How salty? I probably did a 1/2 cup of kosher salt to 2 quarts of water.

[katidyd]

Thanks much - if our farmers' market still has cherries when I go today I will definitely be making this this weekend.
Cheers!

[kayowinter]

StriperGuy - do you pit the cherries? How long do you think they would stay good? I'm mad I just saw this and now have to wait until next cherry season to try!

[StriperGuy]

No need to pit. And with all the alcohol and sugar they keep semi-indefinitely. Certainly good for a year or so...

[Produce Addict]

we talking bing cherries or sour cherries?

[StriperGuy]

I used bing. I would like to try sour. I think if I try sour I may go lighter on the spices cause they are a bit more delicate and have their own delicious flavor.

[StriperGuy]

Not bad to add 1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice too.

Other optional additions:

- Orgeat syrup or almond extract

[Meann]

Made these. They ROCK.

[StriperGuy]

So glad you liked them, they are easily the best cocktail cherries I have ever had.

[MC Slim JB]

Are fresh sour cherries essential for this recipe, or do any fresh cherries, like Bing, work?

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[StriperGuy]

As I said above... I used bing. I would like to try sour. I think if I try sour I may go lighter on the spices cause they are a bit more delicate and have their own delicious flavor.

[Produce Addict]

funny that we both asked this question at the same time! thanks striper guy for the response. i've made brandied cherries with sour cherries (no recipe, just put them in brandy) and they were good but not very firm, so i am excited to try your recipe.

[StriperGuy]

I have to try sour cherries. I assume the salt water will firm those up the same way it worked with the bing cherries.

[ted]

I could be wrong, but I think the firmness has to do with the liquid essentially dehydrating the cherries somewhat as they pickle. Maybe, since you're doing whole unpitted cherries, blanching makes the skin a little more amenable to osmosis.

I've been doing pitted ones, without any pre-treatment, and they come out perfectly firm. I figured out to only put the spices in for half as long as you do to avoid them becoming more like bitters.

[StriperGuy]

Hmmmmm, interesting. Mine are way spicy punchy so I could definitely see straining out the spices after a few days for a milder cherry.

[will47]

Haven't tried the salt blanching yet, but I always pit mine (other than my first batch) - they do soften up a little more, but it's much easier to deal with eating, and they're much easier to pit when they're fresh.

I do usually leave the stems and pits in the jar for flavor, though.

[gordonb810]

I've made two batches this summer. One is pretty much exactly as Striper describes in his original recipe, with vodka. Then I decided to do another batch, varying the ingredients, but adhering to the method with the salt water boil etc. but not using the tea. Here's what I added to the jar: fennel seed, cinnamon stick, whole allspice, cardamom pods, slices of fresh ginger, a vanilla bean, and slices from a habanero pepper (!) and sugar. As I say, skipped the tea, but used 1.5 Cups of cherry juice and the rest was brandy. Just tried one, and pretty darned good, gotta say... might add a bit more habanero for a bit more kick. So glad I saw this thread in cherry season!

[StriperGuy]

Glad you like em. I have been working on mine all summer. They are tasty.

I like the addition of fresh ginger.

Some recipes advocate pitting, but then cracking the pits and including the interior seed which adds a nice cherry/bitter almond note. Not sure it's worth the trouble.

[gordonb810]

Hi StriperGuy... Am totally impressed with your cherry recipe, so many thanks for sharing this with all of us who want to add a bit of home cookin to our manhattans etc this coming winter. Also, you are definitely keepin up with this thread! Just to note on my earlier comment: I mentioned that I thought i would add a little more habanero to the mix, now I don't think so... actually could feel the mild burn (it was mild, but definitely there) pretty much all afternoon after I sampled the cherry today, so enough is enough. Don't want to overwhelm, just add a subtle note. But I do think I might add another vanilla bean... Also, I think that the brandy works better than vodka as it adds roundness... I wonder what they would be like if you used bourbon or rye instead of vodka or brandy? And while you are at it, maybe a half cup of sweet vermouth. Why not take it in the direction of the drink you are mixing? hmmmmmm.... If I can find some more cherries in good shape, think it will be time for a third edition! Thanks for all!

[StriperGuy]

Hmmmm, brandy next time.

I like heat, but not in my cocktail cherries ;-)

Glad you enjoyed em.

Next try making your own bitters... YUM

[Klunco]

Any approximation on the amount of sugar to use? Also do you usually make these in a 1L jar or 1/2L?

Just picked up cherries and hibiscus tea and am ready for my first batch!

[StriperGuy]

Awesome.

I just used random jars I had lying around the kitchen and added sugar in each until the liquid in the jars was good and sweet.

Key piece is not to over-blanch, you don't want to cook the cherries.

Honestly this recipe is pretty hard to mess up, and in a few weeks you will have awesome cocktail cherries. Please report back and say how they turn out.

[Klunco]

Will do, only difference is I think I'm going to pitt the cherries. Thanks for the recipe Striper!

[StriperGuy]

God bless you, that's a lot of work. I kinda like em with the pits.

[EvergreenDan]

One suggestion from my attempt last year: go really easy on the spices. You can always add more, but once they have too much anise / fennel / licorice flavor, you can't get rid of it.

And the blanched ones were better than the raw ones. (Should have believed SG.)

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www.kindredcocktails.com | Craft + Collect + Concoct + Tease StriperGuy

[StriperGuy]

I must've got lucky on the spicing and the blanching. I just blanched em the first time and it worked.

One of the jars I made I went a little heavy on the cinnamon sticks, but that was okay. I bet too much anis flavor would be a bit much though.

One of my favorite things is that the syrup they are in ends up as a delicious addition to cocktails as well. I put a splash in my Aviations and my Manhattans.

[Klunco]

Did you blanch pitted ones or unpitted? Should I blanch the pitted cherries?

Will definitely go easy on fennel. I LOVE pastis but not in my cherries. I'm going to use brandy and was even thinking about adding a splash of Campari. Anyone tried this?

[StriperGuy]

I would blanch then pit, not the other way around.

[davis_sq_pro]

What was better about the blanched ones? I'm trying to understand what effect the blanching has on the result.

Also, how does the texture compare with the Luxardo or Fabbri cherries?

[EvergreenDan]

Never had Luxardo. The blanched ones have a slightly soft texture. The raw ones were crispy -- like a fresh cherry. Somehow this was less appealing in a cocktail.

[Klunco]

Yeah, when I made these the other night my cherries were definitely very firm before blanching. After blanching they softened a bit but still held their shape.

[StriperGuy]

The Luxardo and Fabbri are just candied to death. Likely boiled in a sugar syrup. Mine end up less like candied fruit and more like... wait for it... cherries.

[Zusie]

I'm glad I found your post. I just made a recipe of homemade maraschino cherries that involves a brine and then a simple syrup and Luxardo soaking liquid. I tried one and it is unpalatable, but I guess I have to give it a month to soak?

http://www.seattleweekly.com/2007-08-...

[StriperGuy]

Hmmmm, I like maraschino well enough, but it is not what I would choose to soak my cherries in. They do need to soak for at least a few weeks regardless.

Do you like the taste of maraschino? If not, you won't like the cherries. Take a look at the soaking liquid I describe above. Way better then that boring recipe from the paper. You could certainly just take the cherries out of the maraschino and switch over to the liquid above...

[alphanumeric]

Thank you for the delicious-sounding recipe, Striper. But damn you for giving me another reason to hate it not being summer.

[French Foodie]

Maraschino cherries may have their place after all. Personally, I use my own brandied cherries whenever I'm making a drink, but if one needed a cherry for a non-alcoholic drink, that would most certainly rule out brandied cherries...

[sku]

I don't doubt that homemade cherries would be better, but I love the Luxardo cherries. They have a nice texture and are a big step up from the candied horrors that most bars use. They have real cherry flavor too, which interacts well with the spirits in my Manhattan.

Yes, they are expensive, though I get them for closer to $15 per jar.

[NINII]

can you direct me to where you buy them?

[davis_sq_pro]

Amazon

[EvergreenDan]

www.thebostonshaker.com. Support a small business.

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www.kindredcocktails.com | Craft + Collect + Concoct + Categorize + Community

[davis_sq_pro]

Agreed. I wasn't aware that he sold 'em.

[EvergreenDan]

http://www.thebostonshaker.com/shop/c...