Travis Jiorle

So I got all the ingredients for this amaro recipe— http://www.washingtonpost.com/pb/recipes/amaro-cucciolo/13646/ —but I had to get liquid gentian root extract instead of gentian root, which was unavailable. What would be the extract equivalent to the recipe's called-for 1/2 teaspoon of gentian root? The only info on the bottle is that the "botanical preparation ratio" is 1:4, and the ingredients are dried gentian root, distilled water and ethyl alcohol. My guess is still 1/2 teaspoon, but I'm not sure. And of course I don't want to screw up this ingredient since it's the bittering agent, so too much could render the amaro unpalatable.

Oh, right—that recipe is 1/4 simple syrup! And if starting with the lower abv base spirit of 50%, the final product's abv would be 37.5%, within the upper range of most commercially available amari in the U.S. Yeah, I think I'll try the higher-fire version first and see what that does.

This amaro recipe from the Washington Post looks good. http://www.washingtonpost.com/pb/recipes/amaro-cucciolo/13646/ But it calls for a 75.5% abv vodka. It admits, "You may use a lower-proof alcohol, [but] don't go below 100 proof, though; the effect of the alcohol on the spices will be reduced." Fair point, but with no instruction to cut with water after steeping and filtering out the solids (which would, granted, dilute the flavor intensity), that's a 50-70% abv product! Most commercial amari are in the 20%-35% abv range. I want to try this recipe, but that high abv just doesn't seem right. Any thoughts?

I second the Brave Bull. I like Black Russians just fine, but replacing the vodka with white tequila really livens it up. Another fine two-ingredient drink is the French Connection—equal parts Cognac and Grand Marnier in a snifter, neat. It's good after a meal when you want something sweet, but not cloying.

Nardini, famous for its grappa, makes a Campari-style bitter: http://www.nardinigrappa.com/index.php?c=3&pid=8 The company shows a sensitivity to vegetarians by noting on its website, "The red colourant in Bitter is Ponceau 4R, not cochineal, making it suitable for both vegan and kosher diets." Ponceau 4R is a synthetic colorant and, according to Wikipedia, an allergen to some and a possible carcinogen: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponceau_4R (I don't mention the possible ill effects of Ponceau 4R to turn people off to Nardini Bitter, but rather as additional information to those interested in the whole carmine/synthetic color conversation.)

Something I came up with as a cold, more alcoholic version of an espresso with sambuca: ITALIAN FOG 1 oz coffee liqueur (something dry -- NOT Kahlua!) 1 oz anice Pour the coffee liqueur into an old fashioned glass with ice and float the anice on top. Wait for the anice to cloud over. For those unfamiliar with anice, it's an Italian, sugarless, anise-flavored neutral spirit. Luxardo makes one called Anice Forte. It's kind of like sambuca without the sugar and other spices. Maybe that makes it closer to ouzo or arak or raki, although it won't strip the lining of the throat like the raki I've tried.

Yes, I was worried a simple infusion might not be the best method, but of course I don't own distillation equipment. As far as other florals go, St. Germain's website has this to say about its elderflower liqueur: "Traditional maceration processes yield little flavor from these tiny blossoms… It was necessary, then, to invent and perfect an entirely new method of persuading the elderflower to give up its prized essence…” Perhaps that’s a bit of hyperbole to help build a mystique, but it's doubtful they just let some flowers sit a jar of alcohol for a month. And in an archived post on creme de violette, eGullet member trillium wrote of trying an infusion of violets, but a follow-up was never posted as far as I can find. I think I'll try to make a batch of redbud syrup and a separate batch of redbud liqueur through simple maceration, just in case the flowers behave differently in the water than in the alcohol. I'm sure I'll need some advice on steeping times, sugar content, etc., but I imagine each flower has its own optimal recipe; what works for a violet may not work for a rose, which in turn differs from an elderflower, a redbud flower and so on. By the way, a redbud flower and a red pink are two different flowers. The Eastern Redbud is small tree naturally occurring in southern Canada and the eastern half of the US. Its beautiful, bright, purply pink flowers in early spring make it popular as an ornamental in gardens, parks and yards. Here's a nice picture of one in bloom: http://www.hoffmannurseryinc.com/images/Redbud.jpg And a close-up of the flowers: http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/bi...ca4-fl10393.JPG

Has anyone heard of making a floral-based liqueur from the flowers of the redbud tree? There are other floral-based liqueurs (violet and elderflower, just to name two), and the redbud's distinctive purple-pink flowers have other culinary uses (in salads, for example) — maybe redbud liqueur would taste good? I'll have access to an Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) when it blooms in early spring. April is far away, but unless there's a compelling reason not to try, I think I'll macerate some of the flowers in grain alcohol, cut the result with water and simple syrup, then hope it doesn't taste awful. -Travis