Infused alcohol projects

These are my latest experiments. In the jar is coconut vodka, the bottle next to it is coconut rum. Then there are drinks I have made from the vodkas I have made. Dill, Strawberry Basil, Honeycrisp Apple and a Pina Colada, each of which clocks in at 2g carb or lower. They are all delicious.

Dill infused "vodka"

This infused for just 2 days. It is luscious. Sharp and dilly, green and spicy with a vegetal finish. It tastes crunchy and cool. I really like this one.

the Experiment Table

this is all my infusion project so far. And with all of this, my favorite is still a Jalapeno margarita.

Infused vodka tasting results

Well last night I had a friend over for a tasting of my hooch. SHe & her DH came over and we tasted almost all of the things I've created so far. I have:
limoncello
orangecello
grapefruitcello
coffee liqueur
almond liqueur
cocoa liqueur
pineapple vodka
vanilla vodka
jalapeno lime tequila
cranberry vodka
pomegranite vodka
black pepper vodka
ti kwan yin tea vodka
basil vodka
cucumber vodka
fennel vodka
ginger root vodka

The most popular one was the cocoa one. it did not even need any sweetener, it is chocolaty and bitter and rich tasting. I've never tasted creme de cacao but my friend said it was better

The surprise of the evening was the grapefruitcello. It was made with Texas red grapefruit peels and has the most complex, intense flavor and I didn't sweeten this one either. The flavors keep changing as you swallow, going from bitter to fruity to sweet and back to bitter. It makes you think as you drink and was totally fun to ride the wave of flavor.

The pineapple was strange, it smelled totally of ripe pineapple but it had little flavor. a tich of sweetener brought up the flavor a bit but still this vodka was a bit lackluster
As was the pomegranite. I think that this one needs to infuse with more fruit than I used. I'm going to try it again by adding more pomegranite to the batch I have now and see what happens. The color is beautiful, however.

The Ti Kwan Yin was the most intreuging of the evening. It was spicy and peppery while tasting of flowers at the same time. it was not sweet at all and for those who like dry martini's , this would be an interesting variation.

It was a very fun evening, I perfected my sip, swish and spit technique so I was not flattened by the end of the evening and I feel pretty good this morning.

coffee!

a coffee made from cold brewed coffee, 1oz vanilla infused "vodka"(sweetened) and 1oz "Kahlua" makes for a smooth, luscious afternoon coffee.

Basil and Fennel

These are my latest decantations, not to be confused with incantations (tho I did mutter a few as I made them). So far I have only tasted them by drops on the tongue as they are 95% alc and really just a poison at this point. Let me say that they are GREAT and if I have to be poisoned, this is the way I want to go.
The Fennel is very fennely, with a licorice kind of flavor but also there is a vegetal taste to it that lingers after the initial hit of licorice disipates. For those who like ouzo or anisette this would be a very nice choice.
The basil is really intreguing. There are layers of flavor there that come out as it rolls on the tongue. There is a spicy flavor, a slightly minty taste, a anise type flavor and a big BASIL whallop at the end. This would take a Bloody Mary in a totally different direction of delish.
Note the difference in the green of each infusion. I hope that the color remains after I dilute them down.

chocolate, pomagranite & Black pepper

yummy.

infused alcohol/coffee experiment

The coffee experiment continues. I've made 2 coffee liqueurs made by 2 different methods. The first method uses liquid coffee added to everclear to dilute to 80 proof then sweetened. The second steeped cracked, whole beans in everclear then diluted with water to 80 proof and sweetened. There is a profound difference in appearance and flavor between the 2 batches.
The first batch has a very rich flavor with little or no bitterness. The color is a deep brown and although it has a bite from it's high proof, it is smooth and flavorful. I can taste all the flavors in the coffee I intitally used.
The second batch is less successful. There is a coffee aroma, but the flavor is much more bitter than the first batch. The color is a pale straw brown that I can see through. When I diluted the infusion with water it became cloudy like cafe au lait, not a color that says rich coffee flavor to me. I sweetened both batches with Sweetzfree, a sucrolose sweetener and in the second batch the bitter flavor of the sucralose is highlighted my the bitterness of the coffee infusion. Lost in the second batch is all the smoky coffee aromas and the depth of flavor that coffee has. I have yet to try this batch in a drink, it's too early in the day for experimentation, but just from the smell I can tell that a White Russian made from it will be somewhat acrid in flavor. I'm going to let this batch age and retest but I really prefer the first technique's results.

Al-kee-am-haul!

The stash and cucumber vodka up close and personal.

more infusions, brandy and vanilla( these are 5-7 yr old dry crunchy vanilla beans I forgot I even had. Lucky me!) cucumber, fennel, grapefruit and today I put up a coffee. I want to see the difference between using liquid coffee & everclear and beans in everclear.

infused alcohol

Well here are more of my efforts. My coffee liquor is fantastic, the time it sat while I was on vacation really helped the flavors blend nicely. The White Russian I made with it was killer and it had no effect on my blood sugar! I'm guessing it clocks in at 2g carbs and that is very generous. My Limoncello is very nice too. At first I thought it was horrible but I had not diluted it enough. Once I got it down to about 80 proof it was smooth and lemony. I put in about half the sweetener called for as I can add more sweetener later if needed.
I found diet cranberry juice at the store so I made a LC Cosmo which I found to be meh, I don't like cosmos much with full sugar but it did taste just like a cosmo should. I think that the addition of cranberry infused vodka might give it more depth.
I am now infusing navel orange peels in Everclear, Seville orange peels in Brandy( E&J's VS), Cranberries in Everclear, and lime peels and jalapeno in tequila. I'll sweeten these when they are finished and all of them will have a carb content of about 0. Then the fun begins, mixing them!