Infusions, Extractions & Tinctures at Home: The Topic (Part 1)

[Xanthippe]

And it has begun!!

Thursday before I went to bed, I started the first 2.

The first two flavors are: habanero and watermelon Jolly Rancher.

I ended up going with Smirnoff 100 proof, as KatieLoeb recommended to me the higher alcohol content would be helpful.

I did go with more flavoring than recommended above, 3 habanero peppers for 800ml.

I used 5-6 Jolly Ranchers for the watermelon.

The 3rd one will be star anise, I just have to put it together.

I am very concerned about oversweetening the vodka with that one.

Keep us posted, herba!

[KatieLoeb]

I did go with more flavoring than recommended above, 3 habanero peppers for 800ml.

YIKES - Herb! 3 Habaneros! You know usually a pinhead sized bit of habanero is enough to give off noticeable heat. I'd watch this carefully. It might be lethal by the time it's done. Might also make a truly ass-kicking Bloody Mary!

[mjg]

I've eagerly read around through this post and didn't find any info on infusing vodka with herbs. How might that work? I'm envisioning a basil vodka with the backlog of basil I have from my garden. Not sure exactly what I would do with it, but a penne with basil vodka sauce is on my mind. Any thoughts on this?

[Jason Perlow]

I did go with more flavoring than recommended above, 3 habanero peppers for 800ml.

YIKES - Herb! 3 Habaneros! You know usually a pinhead sized bit of habanero is enough to give off noticeable heat. I'd watch this carefully. It might be lethal by the time it's done. Might also make a truly ass-kicking Bloody Mary!

I did a vodka with 3 RED SAVINA habeneros last summer. You have to dispense it in eyedroppers mixed with regular vodka.

[herbacidal]

I did go with more flavoring than recommended above, 3 habanero peppers for 800ml.

YIKES - Herb! 3 Habaneros! You know usually a pinhead sized bit of habanero is enough to give off noticeable heat. I'd watch this carefully. It might be lethal by the time it's done. Might also make a truly ass-kicking Bloody Mary!

I did a vodka with 3 RED SAVINA habeneros last summer. You have to dispense it in eyedroppers mixed with regular vodka.

how much volume was that with?

you cut them up and dumped it all in seeds and all?

i wanted to get the full flavor out of it.

yea, i think that's what i might do, just use it as a topper to a standard strength and flavor vodka in a bloody mary.

i've decided that the third vodka i will do will be ginger.

interested to see how it will come out. ginger martinis, among other things should be interesting.

i like it in particular because i've used lemon grass for drinks before and it's overpowering.

ginger should be not quite as strong.

[KatieLoeb]

I've eagerly read around through this post and didn't find any info on infusing vodka with herbs. How might that work? I'm envisioning a basil vodka with the backlog of basil I have from my garden. Not sure exactly what I would do with it, but a penne with basil vodka sauce is on my mind. Any thoughts on this?

Brilliant makes a Tarragon flavored vodka I'm dying to try, but alas I live in PA and there's the Liquor Control Board to contend with and all the Prohibition era regulations so good things are hard to find or must be special ordered.

[herbacidal]

well, the debut of the habanero vodka last night was a smashing success.

really nice kick. awesome bloody marys.

[slkinsey]

I picked up some fresh lavender at the Union Square Greenmarket this morning and am currently infusing a fifth of Absolut. Will report back soonest.

[beans]

I picked up some fresh lavender at the Union Square Greenmarket this morning and am currently infusing a fifth of Absolut.  Will report back soonest.

Sam--

Please do report back on that! Busboy thought it was odd I wanted to do the same thing...

[TuWanda]

A good Asian combination is ginger, lemongrass and szechuan peppercorns. Absolut vodka, 100 proof, proferably.

I love Stoli Doli's - they serve them at a local bar here, too. But I like to use Ketel One instead of the Stolichnya, just because I like the flavor.

[slkinsey]

I picked up some fresh lavender at the Union Square Greenmarket this morning and am currently infusing a fifth of Absolut.  Will report back soonest.

Sam--

Please do report back on that! Busboy thought it was odd I wanted to do the same thing...

So far it is already a beautiful emerald green. Lavender must be bursting with aromatic oils, because I had to pour out a little of the vodka to make more room after I had stuffed in about half of the lavender and it already tasted quite lavender-ey! I want to make sure I strain it out while the flavor is strong but still delicate amd floral -- before it acquires any of the darker vegetal flavors infused vodkas can pick up if you over-infuse herbs. Now, the question is what interesting cocktails I can make with lavender vodka.

[herbacidal]

A good Asian combination is ginger, lemongrass and szechuan peppercorns.  Absolut vodka, 100 proof, proferably.

I love Stoli Doli's - they serve them at a local bar here, too.  But I like to use Ketel One instead of the Stolichnya, just because I like the flavor.

really?

i didn't want to use lemon grass because i had it in a drink before. i thought it overpowered everything else. thought the ginger was a better ingredient for a subtler, more moderate drink.

[beans]

Sam:

Think about culinary combinations for inspiration and then adapt.

Lavender and Ginger

Lavender and Lemon

Lavender and Berries

Lavender and Tea

Lavender and Pear

I found an odd recipe for a Lavender Margarita, but the measurements were kinda whacky, it needs to be tweeked. It uses lavender flower heads, but why not add the vodka? It's also a bit involved.

Ingredients: Tequila (for one drink I'd use about 1 1/4 ounce), Blue Curacao (1/2 ounce and I'd probably opt for a substitution of Cointreau or Grand Marnier), coconut milk (eyeball it), fresh lime juice (ditto), frozen raspberries and frozen blue berries (cuts down on need for ice, although a few cubes may be necessary).

Hope this helps. Cheers!

[slkinsey]

hmmm... lavender vodka, limoncello and a little bit of lemon juice for acidity might be interesting...

[beans]

hmmm...  lavender vodka, limoncello and a little bit of lemon juice for acidity might be interesting...

Yum. Sounds lovely.

[herbacidal]

now i think i'm gonna do a horseradish vodka.

[Exotic Mushroom]

As far as what vodka to use - I think a good rule of thumb is never to use something for infusing that you wouldn't happily drink on its own. I like Skyy for infusing because it starts out so flavor empty, but smooth. But in general, don't go with super cheap stuff.

As for what to infuse with - I've recently become enthralled with using cucumber. It produces a very mild flavor, but also very crisp and pleasant. It's an interesting twist and is generally great to drink straight, in martinis, or in bloody marys.

[Truffle]

Turi Vodka, featured at Tru in Chicago.........aromatic.........Check it out.

[jawbone]

I recently had a martini made from vodka infused with berry-flavoured tea. Does anyone have suggestions for the best way of making tea-infused vodka? I'm assuming that some sort of heat will be required to extract the tea flavour?? And how does one do that without losing alcohol? Any help would be very welcome.

[tryska]

I also liked garlic and dill -- I started out putting it in bloody maries and ended up drinking the stuff straight, iced.

mmmm...this sounds really good.

how much garlic did you use?

i'm actually thinking about making one with garlic, bell pepper and horseradish flavored vodka.

my problem is, that i'm liberal with my use of garlic, but it winds up incredibly overpowering.

[herbacidal]

my problem is, that i'm liberal with my use of garlic, but it winds up incredibly overpowering.

yup, mine was the same with my liberal use of habanero peppers. also that i decided to fully expose the peppers by cutting them open rather than throwing them in whole.

i didn't really mind it per se, because as far as usage, basically i get twice as much, since i have to dilute the habanero infused vodka with regular vodka to spread the flavor out. others, however were insistent on dilution.

[tryska]

yeah habaneros are one of those things where truly a little dab will do ya.

[herbacidal]

hey,

infused 2 more vodkas.

800 ml each of grape jolly rancher

and crystallized ginger

the latter is gonna be interesting. it was crystallized ginger that i bought at a flea market because i love ginger candy (chinese kind).

but the kind i bought had sugar all over it, and was quite sweet.

before i put the ginger in the jar, i soaked it in water to lose what sugar i could, then dried them in a toaster oven. also put a lot more than i did of other ingredients because i didn't notice a particularly large amount of flavor.

we'll see how it goes.

[stephenc]

As far as what vodka to use - I think a good rule of thumb is never to use something for infusing that you wouldn't happily drink on its own. I like Skyy for infusing because it starts out so flavor empty, but smooth. But in general, don't go with super cheap stuff.

As for what to infuse with - I've recently become enthralled with using cucumber. It produces a very mild flavor, but also very crisp and pleasant. It's an interesting twist and is generally great to drink straight, in martinis, or in bloody marys.

As for what to infuse with - I've recently become enthralled with using cucumber. It produces a very mild flavor, but also very crisp and pleasant. It's an interesting twist and is generally great to drink straight, in martinis, or in bloody marys.

I do this. It smells amazing

[beans]

First, stephenc, welcome to eG!

Following slkinsey's spiritous preferences or suggestions will lead you to some very good things.