Tobacco infused spirits

[Nathan]

As a little project I'm attempting to come up with a multi-faceted cocktail which has to follow a certain theme and already has a name.

Specifically, I want it to use tobacco liquor (I have Perique but due to that liquor's scarcity it should be possible to substitute another tobacco liquor if necessary). Ideally, Irish whiskey should be used as well.

The taste profile of Perique is essentially sweet on the nose and through the body followed by bitter tobacco on the finish.

I have this either absurd or brilliant idea that whiskey and tobacco with a couple drops of rose water and Peychaud's in a glass that has been rinsed with orgeat might actually work.

But before I get around to experimenting tonight or tomorrow...does anyone have any other suggestions?

[eas]

If your tobacco liqueur is in short supply, consider your own infusion. A high quality, loose leaf pipe tobacco in a tea strainer, then choose your base spirit. Then consider some of the flavors used to flavor tobacco, and you'll have an interesting path to follow. I've had a few cigarschnaps made in this manner, and if you enjoy the tastes from tobacco you'll find it worthwhile.

Do be careful in your pour to non-smokers. Beyond a small taste, the nicotine can be intense and turn stomachs.

Edit - as others have noted - it can get toxic fast.

Edited February 3, 2007 by eas (log)

[Nathan]

I have a full bottle of Perique...I was just thinking more down the road.

I'm not a smoker and don't actually like the taste of tobacco

Perique is amazingly good though...like anything Ted Breaux does.

[eje]

Just a note about Perrique.

Perrique is a distilled liqueur, so according to the testing the maker has done (so far), it actually contains no measurable amount of nicotine or any of the bad things normally associated with tobacco.

A simple tobacco infusion will contain nicotine and other fun, (I want to stress I'm using "fun" sarcastically here,) tobacco related substances, many of which are fairly toxic when consumed orally in any quantity.

edit - clarify point.

Edited February 3, 2007 by eje (log)

[cdh]

Indeed. Be careful. Tobacco tea is used as a poison in some gardening contexts.

[varicose veins]

Oh dear, I'm doing a mixology competition later on in the week with a cigar foam, hadn't thought about the lil nasties... I have done a drink using liquid smoke before, but obviously as smoke can be highly toxic, I looked into it a bit and found that the toxic part of smoke (poly cyclic hydrocarbons) is not soluble in water. I was hoping this was so in the case of cigars also? I'd well believe the nicotine is soluble but are all the other toxins also?

For anyone who's interested in my recipe, I have to make a mixed drink with Talisker (which I know a lot of people are not going to be happy with) so I decided to work on Heston Blumenthal's cigar and chocolate combination. The chocolate and truffle in my recipe adds a good depth to the Talisker, but the cocktail remains spicy and quite smoky due to the spiciness and bitterness of the foam. Here's my recipe...

12.5 mls truffle syrup

1 orange zest

25ml Talisker

12.5 ml Amaretto

12.5 ml good quality creme de cacao

Shake and strain into a martini glass, top with a cigar and honey infused foam (Roast the cigar at a very low level heat, add to hot water and simmer for a few minutes. This can be very, very bitter so add a litle honey syrup to taste. Then add egg white and create foam).

Any suggestions to improve this recipe and I'm all ears. Also wondering what other unusual ingredients people have worked with?

Edited February 6, 2007 by varicose veins (log)

[Nathan]

btw, I came up with something I'm happy with:

to wit:

The Tia Cocktail

.75 Perique (or other) tobacco liquor

1 Irish Whiskey (I used Knappogue Castle 94). Scotch would work well.

.25 Benedictine

.25 Green Chartreuse.

2-3 dashes Peychaud's.

serve up in a Sazerac glass.

[Journey]

I am thinking of making a tobacco infused bourbon. Has anyone done this, what do people think?

[Peter the eater]

Sounds positively addictive. I have wondered about tobacco as a flavour, without the smoke and chew. I have enjoyed port and rum flavoured cigars in the past, why not do it the other way?

[andiesenji]

I suggest you read the warnings about nicotine poisoning before you attempt this.

Nicotine-based insect poisons were taken off the market quite a few years ago because alcohol extractions of nicotine are readily absorbed through the skin at lethal doses.

[BrisbaneBartender]

I am thinking of making a tobacco infused bourbon.  Has anyone done this, what do people think?

←

A local bar in Brisbane is doing tobacco infused tequila for a drink on their extensive margarita list, and it seems to work quite well. Bourbon would definitely be something to try though.

[Katie Meadow]

A Votre Sante!

[slkinsey]

Yea... I gotta tell you, I'd be very reluctant to try a homemade infused tobacco spirit. Nicotine is a very dangerous drug. Personally, I'd want to have the assurance of some kind of testing for nicotine levels in the infused spirit before I'd think of trying any of it. People in prison occasionally use tobacco infusions to commit suicide.

[eje]

Because of its similar flavor and smell to tobacco, I've been meaning to experiment with Rooibos infusions for a long while now. I was, however, kind of unhappy with the quality of the packaged tea I'd purchased. I did finally get some bulk stuff that smells awfully good.

Though, I believe bostonapothecary has done some experimentation along these lines already.

To the best of my knowledge, Rooibos has no serious side effects.

[bostonapothecary]

Because of its similar flavor and smell to tobacco, I've been meaning to experiment with Rooibos infusions for a long while now.  I was, however, kind of unhappy with the quality of the packaged tea I'd purchased.  I did finally get some bulk stuff that smells awfully good.

Though, I believe bostonapothecary has done some experimentation along these lines already.

To the best of my knowledge, Rooibos has no serious side effects.

←

i'm wondering if a tobacco input will even give a pipe tobacco output and if that is even the goal...? rooibos is like liquid pipe tobacco concentrate and i think you get better flavor out of it dissolving in booze than in straight water... i use it in my "african" rye whiskey which is just a novel little infusion for messing with cheap whiskey. the beauty of the liqueur relative to others is that the flavors really come alive with out the need to use sugar as a flavor enhancer. i was kinda writing a book about the fun i've had with liqueurs but i'll give this one up if anyone is game to try... 1 liter of overholt rye or rittenhouse... 2 oz. of rooisbos decorated with vanilla... let sit for two or three days and strain into a bottle that exudes curiosity. the beauty of the flowers is that they never become bitter so you can never over steep them... i used the infusion with and without vanilla and then again with too much... in a wine class to illustrate oak's role of pulling flavors together... it seemed to be a pretty good analogy...

other flavors in the range people are looking for might be an animalic earth character... i just ordered myself a case of really intense salice salentino from sicily... its earth character is stunning with strange intensity (which i think comes more from particular native yeasts than the grapes themselves) so i was thinking of making minimalist vermouth from it. more or less adding only sugar to 25 brix and fortifying it with grappa bittered with wormwood and maybe orange peel, galangal, etc. i think i can preserve its intensity and use it to make really interesting manhattans. a nice cocktail to kick off truffle season with...

a feral manhattan...

[slkinsey]

I've enjoyed rooibos ever since a South African friend introduced me to it. Honestly, I'm not sure where the tobacco comparisons come from (people don't smoke it, do they?) but the thought that it resembled tobacco never occurred to me. Honestly, I don't get that at all.

Anyway, rooibos is delicious brewed as a tea, and I don't see why it wouldn't be great infused into alcohol. For one, there isn't the tannin to be dealt with.

[Danne]

Could anyone help me with a Tobacco liqour? We dont have it here in Sweden. I problably have some fun stuff that you have some troubble finding..? please Message me.

[EvergreenDan]

Darcy O'Neil (Art of Drink and a chemist) chimes in on tobacco infusions. They no longer seem like a fun idea to me.

Nicotini Tobacco Infusions, Art of Drink

[andiesenji]

While looking for something else, I came across this product on Amazon, of all places!

A friend who is not on the internet asked me to find "hookah molasses" - a product that was totally unfamiliar to me prior to this.

It is inexpensive so an experiment should not be that costly.

[OliverB]

I like tobacco and liked smoking quite a bit, but don't use or do that much any more. But I do remember reading that the nicotine in one cigarette, if consumed at once, would be deadly. It just breaks down quick in the body, while you smoke the thing. I'd be very very careful with this approach. And as somebody upstream mentioned, it can easily make people sick, especially those that aren't used to it, but also light smokers. A friend of mine got quite sick form a patch she put on to quit smoking. Suddenly was white as the wall and had to run to the bathroom. NOT what you want the effects of your drink to be I'd guess. Nicotine is a very dangerous and powerful nerve toxin.

[andiesenji]

I like tobacco and liked smoking quite a bit, but don't use or do that much any more. But I do remember reading that the nicotine in one cigarette, if consumed at once, would be deadly. It just breaks down quick in the body, while you smoke the thing. I'd be very very careful with this approach. And as somebody upstream mentioned, it can easily make people sick, especially those that aren't used to it, but also light smokers. A friend of mine got quite sick form a patch she put on to quit smoking. Suddenly was white as the wall and had to run to the bathroom. NOT what you want the effects of your drink to be I'd guess. Nicotine is a very dangerous and powerful nerve toxin.

In the early '60s, when I lived in Glendale, one of the gardeners who worked for the city, nearly died after spilling Black Leaf 40 on his pants and shoes and not removing them and washing immediately. He was hospitalized for a long time and was not able to return to his job because of severe palsy. It was surmised that if he had not received treatment when he did, he would have died.

That was before the days of 911 and people with emergencies had to get to ERs on their own or with help from ordinary citizens.

I don't remember when this insecticide was taken off the market but it was available for years after that episode.

Rose growers loved it because it was a very effective bug killer.

I grew up on a farm where tobacco was grown and while us kids were allowed to help in the drying barns, we were warned to not get any of the sap on our skin and if we did, wash with soap right away.

Edited March 25, 2011 by andiesenji (log)

[Mjx]

. . . .But before I get around to experimenting tonight or tomorrow...does anyone have any other suggestions?

I used 'Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9 Chemistry and Toxicology', by Dietrich Hoffmann and Ilse Hoffmann as a reference, when I wanted to determine a safe level of tobacco to use in some truffles.

In an infusion, I'd err on the low side, since alcohol is likely to extract the tobacco compounds very effectively, and could spoil the flavour.

[evo-lution]

Why the obsession with infusing tobacco into spirit? I've yet to taste any tobacco bitters, liqueur or infusion that is/was any good, and that's before you take into account that it's really, really not good for you...

[ChrisTaylor]

What can I do with Perique? Any suggestions? Recommendations? Is this something I want to have?