430 replies to this topic

[tim]

You have to calculate the algebraic percentage of alcohol in the finished product. 

You begin with 25.4 ounces of 100 proof (50% ABV) vodka.  When you finish, measure the total volume.  Divide 25.4 by the total volume and multiply by 100 to get the final proof.

Tim

Thanks, Tim.

But are you assuming that the alcohol and water of the spirit get absorbed into the solid matter at an identical rate? Because it's been my experience that the solids (fruit, herbs, etc.) absorb more alcohol than water. If you taste a piece of fruit that's been macerating in booze for some time, it hardly tastes like fruit, just fibrous booze. And the resultant liquid is much more flavorful and has a lower proof than the spirit used, hence the ability to freeze. Without a hydrometer, how can you tell what the proof is?

Hi,

I never assumed that precision was important to this equation. If you have to be that precise, a $10 hydrometer is the obvious solution, and probably faster than a caculator.

Tim

[Keith Orr]

You have to calculate the algebraic percentage of alcohol in the finished product. 

You begin with 25.4 ounces of 100 proof (50% ABV) vodka.  When you finish, measure the total volume.  Divide 25.4 by the total volume and multiply by 100 to get the final proof.

Tim

Thanks, Tim.

But are you assuming that the alcohol and water of the spirit get absorbed into the solid matter at an identical rate? Because it's been my experience that the solids (fruit, herbs, etc.) absorb more alcohol than water. If you taste a piece of fruit that's been macerating in booze for some time, it hardly tastes like fruit, just fibrous booze. And the resultant liquid is much more flavorful and has a lower proof than the spirit used, hence the ability to freeze. Without a hydrometer, how can you tell what the proof is?

Hi,

I never assumed that precision was important to this equation. If you have to be that precise, a $10 hydrometer is the obvious solution, and probably faster than a caculator.

Tim

A Hydrometer won't tell you the alcohol of the resulting liquid only the specific gravity of the finished product. Alcohol has a lower specific gravity than water, sugar a higher specific gravity.

You can come up with an approximate amount of alcohol by comparing the volume of alcohol you started with and the volume of the finished product. I.e if you started out with a liter of 100 proof vodka and you end up with 1.25 liters of finished product it would be about 80 proof.

[tim]

Hi,

I should have been more clear.

For precision, use the hydrometer before adding the sugar. Follow with the algebraic method using the weight/ABV of the infused vodka and the weight of the finished limoncello.

Tim

[Natho]

Hi, not sure if this has been covered in the preceding 12 pages or not (I only read up to page 5...) but has anyone tried adding any of the lemon juice to the limoncello for extra tang? I'm really keen to make some, as soon as one of my friends goes overseas so they can get me duty free booze, seeing as how I don't relish buying $100+ of vodka to make a batch.

[KatieLoeb]

There's no inexpensive vodka in all of Australia?? The vodka needn't be the top shelf stuff since the lemon flavor will basically take it over. 100 proof Smirnoff will do just fine. How big a batch were you planning to make that you think you'll be spending 100's of dollars?

As for adding the lemon juice, I'd be afraid it would make the limoncello far less shelf stable (if at all shelf stable) and the end result too cloudy. YMMV, but I've never tried to add juice to the original recipe I was given. If I wanted more tartness I'd add some tartaric acid powder available at the homebrew/winemaking shop before I'd add something I'd be afraid would cause it to spoil.

Edited by KatieLoeb, 22 December 2008 - 09:59 PM.

[MattJohnson]

Performing a bit of thread necromancy...

I recently finished up my first batch. I just used plain old grocery store lemons/lime, microplaned, soaked in .5 bottle of 100 proof smirnoff for 1 week, added the rest of the bottle, dumped in warm 1 cup suger and water syrup and into the freezer. I think it turned out great - although I've never had the real deal. I found out my buddy had a bottle from Italy that he received as a gift. He brought it over for a comparison.

1. His had more of an herbal/green flavor. You could really tell it was a different lemon. Also, his was a bit sweeter. I think the proof was a tad lower too - it seemed a tad smoother.

2. Mine was much brighter lemon flavor. Had a bit more bite - which I don't mind. 1 friend liked mine better. Everyone else just thought they both were different and had their place.

Thanks so much for the inspiration. I'm definitely going to be making more.

[thirtyoneknots]

Performing a bit of thread necromancy...

I recently finished up my first batch.  I just used plain old grocery store lemons/lime, microplaned, soaked in .5 bottle of 100 proof smirnoff for 1 week, added the rest of the bottle, dumped in warm 1 cup suger and water syrup and into the freezer.  I think it turned out great - although I've never had the real deal.  I found out my buddy had a bottle from Italy that he received as a gift.  He brought it over for a comparison. 

1.  His had more of an herbal/green flavor.  You could really tell it was a different lemon.  Also, his was a bit sweeter.  I think the proof was a tad lower too - it seemed a tad smoother.

2.  Mine was much brighter lemon flavor.  Had a bit more bite - which I don't mind.  1 friend liked mine better.  Everyone else just thought they both were different and had their place.

Thanks so much for the inspiration.  I'm definitely going to be making more.

If your taste-test didn't exhaust the bottle, try it again in about two months. Homemade liqueurs and such benefit greatly from some resting to help integrate all the flavors.

[MattJohnson]

Thanks for the tip Andy. I have about 1/3 of it left. I'll let it sit. A responsible individual would start the next batch... :)

[jess mebane]

I never get tired of bumping this thread, if only to see what you erudite grainheads have been up to. Amazingness this year? Just a little opener I like to call The Killer:

Performing a bit of thread necromancy

[DCP]

Hi, not sure if this has been covered in the preceding 12 pages or not (I only read up to page 5...) but has anyone tried adding any of the lemon juice to the limoncello for extra tang?

Sure. Only a couple tablespoons, filtered, because it is for color and not flavor. I find the slight cloudiness reminiscent of the commercial frosted glass bottles, as well as avoiding the 'sample' appearance.

When you mix in significantly more juice, you're making something more akin to a ratafia, which has different properties - and, as I understand it, significantly more perishable.

[DCP]

I never get tired of bumping this thread, if only to see what you erudite grainheads have been up to.  Amazingness this year?

Definitely. This year's experiments (or variations, I should say) included lime zest (18-24 limes, depending on size) and grapefruit zest (4 grapefruits) - both otherwise according to the 'Loebcello' recipe. The 'limecello' has received rave reviews - more so than the limoncello, oddly - but the grapefruit is not appreciably different from lemon to about half those who have tasted it.

[Goatjunky]

I recently bought a house that has a lemon tree (yay!) and I have tons of lemons, so I am going to make a batch of limoncello this week. I have never actually tried any myself, so will be guessing whether or not the finished product turns out right or not. I have read thru a good portion of this thread but not all of it, and just wanted to clarify something. This does not have to be refrigerated correct? I saw a post saying it did not, and understand that it is put in the freezer before serving just so that its nice and ice cold. I plan on giving away a few bottles and wanted to be sure as I found another recipe (on a different site, and which I will not be using) that says to store it in the refrigerator. Glad to hear about the grapefruit option also, might try that too since I also have a pink grapefruit tree and I cant even give enough of it away.

[tim]

Hi,

Definitely no refrigeration required. Good Luck.

Tim

[Yajna Patni]

[quote name='KatieLoeb' date='Apr 1 2004, 10:30 AM']


Place the peels into an airtight container (I use a large screwtopped jar) and cover with one bottle of 100 proof vodka (I use 100 proof Smirnoff).

just to be stupid, is this a one litre bottle, or a 750?

i think i am going to mix in some meyer lemons.
thanks

[KatieLoeb]

That would be one standard issue 750ml bottle. At 100 proof.

[Yajna Patni]

Thanks! its sitting on my counter right now. Looks a little pee like, but it smells amazing already!

[KatieLoeb]

Yes - sometimes it's hard to convince folks you aren't some sort of really bizarre fetishist with a giant <ahem> sample being kept on the counter.

[MattJohnson]

Yes - sometimes it's hard to convince folks you aren't some sort of really bizarre fetishist with a giant <ahem> sample being kept on the counter.

I don't try to convince them. I just open the jar and take a large sniff and smile.

Hah, just thinking about how funny it would be to keep it in the bathroom...

[Yajna Patni]

I had a litre bottle of smiroff, so into the left over i put a little grated ginger, and some leaves from my Thai Lime tree. I plan on putting a little honey in it when it is ready.
it has turned a kind of sick green. It looks like the problem pee.

[Yajna Patni]

Just finished the limoncello.... its really really delicious!

[deensiebat]

Just strained off this batch of limoncello, which had been infusing for 3 weeks:



Crazy yellow! Some friends and I made a ridiculous amount of apricot jam a few weeks ago, and I decided we might as well use the zest of all of the lemons that we were juicing. Added bonus! Last time I made KatieLoeb's delicious recipe, but this time I went with grain alcohol, after loving a version I tasted at a friend's house. 1 bottle grain alcohol, zest of 12 lemons, 1.5 bottles water with 1.3 cups sugar.

I know it's supposed to age for a few more weeks, but man it looks so good now.

[MaggieL]

I've noticed a few other people mentioning that they'd been "following this thread for years." I, too, have been a long time reader, first time limoncello-maker. Thanks for being such an entertaining read so far!

I am halfway through making my first batch of limoncello (hopefully to give away for Christmas) and I am feeling a bit confused. I am hoping that someone can help me plan my next move.

I started with the recipe that KatieLoeb posted way back on page 1 (thank you for that, KatieLoeb!). Three weeks ago, I used my microplane to zest one dozen lemons + one lime into a 750 ml bottle of vodka. I've been checking my mason jars every few days, and they have a nice yellow colour to them, and smell like lemony-vodka.

It is the next step that confuses me.

I live in Canada, and was unable to find 100 proof vodka. I used a bottle of Wyborowa (40% -- which makes it 80 proof?) . I know that I still need to add the simple syrup--but I'm not sure if I need to add more (unsteeped) vodka (as Katie's recipe suggests). My fear is that the 80 proof vodka won't have gotten enough flavour out of the zest, and that the addition of extra vodka will dilute the lemon flavour too much.

I've used the ratio's Tim provided last year (thank you, Tim), and figured out that if I want to bring my 80 proof steeped vodka closer to 60 proof limoncello, I'd just add 187 ml of simple syrup to my 750 of vodka.

I know a lot of this will be trial and error, and that I'll just have to keep tasting as I go until I find a result that I like-- but I am hoping that someone might be able to steer me in the right direction.

My questions:

If anyone has made limoncello with 80 proof vodka before, would you mind sharing your recipe? Did you add extra (unsteeped) 80 proof vodka at the end? Did you use a simple syrup that was 1:1 or 2:1 sugar:water?

In the LA Times article, the recipe suggests that you should "let the flavours marry" for a week before using. Is this step actually very important?

---

I remember sipping limoncello in Italy about five years ago, and I absolutely loved it. I remember a liqueur that was sweet and smooth, with a strong taste of bright, sour lemon. I'm hoping to produce something similar.

[MattJohnson]

I've only made it with 100 proof, but after steeping for a couple weeks, I add another bottle of vodka, then the syrup. I think I used a 1:1 syrup. Maybe you want to do less water in the syrup since you're using 80 proof. It won't taste bad, whatever you do.

I have a different question. I followed the recipe as well and it tastes fine, but I noticed after being in the freezer for a couple weeks, I have a bit of a waxy sludge at the top of the bottles. I did blanch my lemons and scrub them to try to get rid of any wax on the lemons - could this be residual wax? Anything else it could be? I think I'm going to try and strain it out, but I'm curious because last time I made it, I didn't get this.

[vice]

I've gotten that too and just figured that some of the essential oils from the lemon peel came out of solution when the proof dropped upon sweetening.

[tim]

Maggie,

I will suggest that you NOT add any vodka for two reasons. The 80 proof vodka does not pick up as much lemon flavor as the 100 proof vodka. More importantly, why would you want to dilute that wonderful lemon flavor?

Using a higher ratio of sugar in your simple syrup is very easy. For you to get that 60 proof limoncello, you will want to add 8 ounces of simple syrup.

It is very easy to dissolve 8 ounces of sugar in 8 ounce of water. I usually run the sugar for 5 seconds in a food processor to make instantly dissolving sugar. I also heat the water slowly while stirring.

You might want to begin with about 6 ounces of the sugar syrup to allow you to adjust the sweetness.

You may also find that you want to add more simple syrup to the limoncello. In this case, for every ounce of syrup, you will add 1/3 ounce of 80 proof vodka.

Good luck,

Tim

[MattJohnson]

I've gotten that too and just figured that some of the essential oils from the lemon peel came out of solution when the proof dropped upon sweetening.

Ah, thats definitely a possibility. I think I'll adopt your outlook and just tell people that if they ask. :)

[MaggieL]

Thanks so much Tim! That was exactly the clear sort of answer I was hoping for. I'm excited to give that a try this weekend.

Now, if only I can find a place to buy pretty bottles in Ottawa....

[mkayahara]

Now, if only I can find a place to buy pretty bottles in Ottawa....

Have you tried the Glebe Emporium?

Also, since you're in Ontario, I should point out that I've had good luck making limoncello with Kittling Ridge's "Prince Igor Extreme" vodka. It's an unfortunate name - aimed at the frat boy set, I assume - but it seems to be the most reasonably priced vodka that's above 40% abv that the LCBO carries (it's 45% abv). For your next batch!

[bostonapothecary]

I have a different question. I followed the recipe as well and it tastes fine, but I noticed after being in the freezer for a couple weeks, I have a bit of a waxy sludge at the top of the bottles. I did blanch my lemons and scrub them to try to get rid of any wax on the lemons - could this be residual wax? Anything else it could be? I think I'm going to try and strain it out, but I'm curious because last time I made it, I didn't get this.

you either have the precipitation of pectin which can float to the top or you have the separation of terpenes.

the terpenes come from part of your lemons oxidizing. many commercial products are "terpene-less". liquids are chilled and the terpenes come out of solution and then you just decant them to separate. the terpene-less result should be rounder in flavor with less of the angular character of the terpenes. i think that products like cointreau go through terpene separation to make them shelf stable.

joseph merory's book "food flavorings" details terpene removal in the context of commercial liqueurs if anyone is really curious, but it seems as simple as chill and decant or ladle off.

if you are concerned about diluting your alcohol with a simple syrup just skip the syrup and stir in the sugar patiently with a wooden spoon so you don't crack the glass. alcohol is a better solvent than people give it credit for. 100 proof can be over kill. many botanical concentrates for vermouth production use only 20% alcohol solvents.

if you just want to drink your lemoncello straight, triple-sec's sugar content is a good one to shoot for. 250 grams of sugar in 850 ml of 80 proof infused spirits will yield an approximate liter of gorgeous 60-something proof liqueur.

[iguana]

Thanks to this inspirational thread, and a large impulse buy of Meyer and regular lemons, I decided to make limoncello. Because I wasn't sure if I would like it, I only sprang for 80-proof Smirnoff. I used a combination of regular and Meyer lemons, about 4:1. Because the alcohol was already at a good proof, after the first extraction step, I added granulated sugar instead of simple syrup. I was a little worried about solubility, but 1.5 cups of sugar dissolved in my 2-qt jar with no problem-- just a little mixing. Here is the aged limoncello, ready for filtering. It's a bit cloudy, because I had just inverted it:

The brew:


Here it is during filtering:


Mmm, "golden hour" lighting is so perfect for photography. You can see that the extraction is not perfect-- some yellow still remains in the peels. One possibility to improve extraction is to use the higher-proof alcohol; another possibility is to decant the first extraction, set it aside, add fresh 80-proof vodka to the peels, let that extract, then combine everything at the end to let the flavors marry. That sounds like work.

Never having tried limoncello before, I wasn't sure if I would like it, or if it would just make me think of Lemon Pledge. Well, we had some (served at freezer temperature) as a digestif after a garlic-loaded dinner party and it was splendid. Not too sweet, it went down so easily, I could see that it could be very dangerous. It was absolutely delicious-- as soon as I finish filtering this batch, I will be on the lookout for more organic lemons. This time, maybe I will try 100-proof vodka-- or maybe I won't mess with success.

Thanks egullet (and especially Katie!)

Jen