Making Limoncello

[eje]

it's not that hard to get your hands on basically pure ethanol from chemical supply places.  i mean, if you get it without the denaturing agent or the vomit inducer or whatever you have to pay a liquor tax on it, but it's not like it's illegal or anything.  wouldn't that really be better than everclear?

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I've always been a bit curious about this. After tasting some of my strawberry liqueur last year, one of the guys in a lab said they'd be glad to get me some 100% ethanol to expermient with. I never did follow up on that lead.

I think 100% ethanol is a controlled substance, though, on some level. I seem to recall some bureaucratic hoo-ha about a small amount of it when one of the labs I used to work for moved across campus.

edit - spelling

Edited May 20, 2006 by eje (log)

[jess mebane]

The Loeb Limoncello thread. Some things are timeless, I guess. Like Laarb, in a way. Happy summer!

[dockhl]

Time to start a batch with all the huge lemons I got this weekend

[LindaJ]

Summertime, and the 'cello is flowing. Based on Katie's recipe, I've made orangecello, limecello and grapefruitcello over the past year. Orange is my standard and is everyone's favorite. The lime is very like Rose's lime juice with a helluva kick. It's basically a vodka gimlet. Very tasty. I didn't like the grapefruit because it required too much simple syrup to cut the bitterness of the grapefruit, but I have a friend who loved it.

I'm down to using 80 proof vodka cause no one can seem to stand the 100 proof stuff even when it's combined with a mixer. Maybe my friends are just lightweights.

I regularly get requests to bring my "Lindacello" to parties I'm bottling it in 375ml bottles from the local beer/wine supply store with tasting corks which are reusable. It makes a quite pretty gift presentation with some custom labels my husband Photoshopped for me.

Next on deck, by request of my Memorial Day picnic crew, is strawberrycello since my little organic strawberry patch is producing a bumper crop. Should be ready for July 4th so I'll let you all know how it goes.

Happy 'celloing.

[eje]

[...]

I'm down to using 80 proof vodka cause no one can seem to stand the 100 proof stuff even when it's combined with a mixer. Maybe my friends are just lightweights.

I regularly get requests to bring my "Lindacello" to parties  I'm bottling it in 375ml bottles from the local beer/wine supply store with tasting corks which are reusable. It makes a quite pretty gift presentation with some custom labels my husband Photoshopped for me.

Next on deck, by request of my Memorial Day picnic crew, is strawberrycello since my little organic strawberry patch is producing a bumper crop. Should be ready for July 4th so I'll let you all know how it goes.

[...]

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Sounds great Linda!

I've got a Strawberry liqueur going myself. Used Pisco as the base liqueur instead of vodka. Should be sweetening it next week. I'll let you know how it turns out.

I need to investigate better bottles. I've been using re-sealable ones from a health food store; but, they are just so darn expensive. Thanks for the tip on the beer supply stores. I've got pomello-cello and limoncello that need bottling, not to mention a pomegranate liqueur from last year!

Next projects are apricots, cherries, and, in a few weeks, Nocino. I also want to try dapple dandy pluots again this summer. Sheesh, I really need to get that stuff out of the aging jars and into bottles.

[KatieLoeb]

Summertime, and the 'cello is flowing. Based on Katie's recipe, I've made orangecello, limecello and grapefruitcello over the past year.  Orange is my standard and is everyone's favorite. The lime is very like Rose's lime juice with a helluva kick.  It's basically a vodka gimlet. Very tasty. I didn't like the grapefruit because it required too much simple syrup to cut the bitterness of the grapefruit, but I have a friend who loved it.

I'm down to using 80 proof vodka cause no one can seem to stand the 100 proof stuff even when it's combined with a mixer. Maybe my friends are just lightweights.

I regularly get requests to bring my "Lindacello" to parties  I'm bottling it in 375ml bottles from the local beer/wine supply store with tasting corks which are reusable. It makes a quite pretty gift presentation with some custom labels my husband Photoshopped for me.

Next on deck, by request of my Memorial Day picnic crew, is strawberrycello since my little organic strawberry patch is producing a bumper crop. Should be ready for July 4th so I'll let you all know how it goes.

Happy 'celloing.

←

Lindacello! I love it!

There's a gelateria here in Philly (not Capogiro, Cafe Carmen) that makes what they call "Francacello" flavored gelato - Strawberry-Limoncello! YUM! Strawberry Lemonade is one of my favorite summer beverages, so I'd imagine that Strawberry-Limoncello has potential to be awesome!

[dockhl]

I just made some lemon last weekend and have noticed a milky 'layer' floating on the very top. I read a reference to that upthread but never saw an explanation of what it really is........should I be concerned?

[Abra]

I have a jar of 100 proof vodka and Meyer lemon zest, microplaned, that's been extracting for about 3 weeks. How do I know when it's done? It's not turning bright, neon colors, but then, it's Meyer lemons to start with.

[eje]

I have a jar of 100 proof vodka and Meyer lemon zest, microplaned, that's been extracting for about 3 weeks.  How do I know when it's done?  It's not turning bright, neon colors, but then, it's Meyer lemons to start with.

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Abra,

Three weeks is plenty, especially with microplaned zest.

Home made limoncello doesn't come out the bright yellow like the commercial brands. I suspect there may be something other than Lemon zest, alcohol, sugar and water in many of those.

~Erik

[LindaJ]

I tried my last batch of orangecello last night. I seem to detect a "cheap lollipop" taste underneath that comes from the sugar. I didn't overcook the simple syrup or carmelize it in any way. I didn't add a huge amount to the batch either. There was plenty alcohol to balance the sweetness, but somehow it didn't do it for me.

Has anyone tried any other sweetening agent? Cane sugar syrup like in the super fancy pants sodas?

Based on this tasting, I've decided to go back to the 100 proof vodka for my next strawberry Lindacello experiment. Maybe the additional proof will cut the sweetness? My friends will just have to suck it up and use more mixer if they can't stand the bite.

[Moto]

Have you tried using both 100 and 80 prooof. at the top of the thread I think it mentions 100 proof over zest for 45 days then filter and combine with 80 proof for 45 days. I think the results are great. One step i skip is adding the simple syrup. i just add it to my drinks as I mix them up. I've tried blood orange, orange and lemoncello and the blood orange wins hand down

I tried my last batch of orangecello last night. I seem to detect a "cheap lollipop" taste underneath that comes from the sugar.  I didn't overcook the simple syrup or carmelize it in any way. I didn't add a huge amount to the batch either. There was plenty alcohol to balance the sweetness, but somehow it didn't do it for me.

Has anyone tried any other sweetening agent? Cane sugar syrup like in the super fancy pants sodas?

Based on this tasting, I've decided to go back to the 100 proof vodka for my next strawberry Lindacello experiment. Maybe the additional proof will cut the sweetness? My friends will just have to suck it up and use more mixer if they can't stand the bite.

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[Miriam Kresh]

For those with access to an unsprayed lemon tree, try adding one fresh, washed and gently dried leaf for every lemon in the recipe. It changes the color to a darker, greenish tone and gives a pleasant edge to the taste of the limoncello.

I have made pomelo wine, but not liqueur. I think I'll make small batches of pomelo, grapefruit, and tangerine liqueurs, limoncello-style. Thanks for the inspiration!

Miriam

[BTR]

Will the flavor suffer if the zest is left to steep too long? I'm going out of the country for a few months and thought it would be the perfect way to prevent myself from stopping the steeping too early, but if there are dangers in letting it steep too long as well... I'll be gone nearly three months.

[KatieLoeb]

Will the flavor suffer if the zest is left to steep too long?  I'm going out of the country for a few months and thought it would be the perfect way to prevent myself from stopping the steeping too early, but if there are dangers in letting it steep too long as well...  I'll be gone nearly three months.

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I don't think so, as long as there isn't any pith attached to turn it bitter. If you Microplane off the zest you can avoid getting any white pith. I suspect after all the oils have been leeched out of the zests they just sit in the alcohol waiting to be strained out. I usually consider mine "done" when the little shreds of peel have become completely white, with no trace of color left. By then the alcohol has taken on all the color.

[dockhl]

I usually consider mine "done" when the little shreds of peel have become completely white, with no trace of color left.  By then the alcohol has taken on all the color.

Katie~

do you find that lemon, lime and orange all go to white ?

[Heidi the Pilgrim]

hey, just wondering, did everyone here use organix unwaxed lemons? Or do waxed lemons work? I went to the grocery store today to get some organic lemons and they were 6$ for three!! $24 for a dozen!? yikes. Anyway...just wondering what my options are.

thanks

B

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I can't always find organic ones, so I buy what I can get and use a fruit and vegetable wash to get the wax and whatever else off. I'm still working on my produce manager to get me some green lemons - fortunately he's Italian, and he knows what I'm after, but is frustrated because he can't seem to get them green. He was going to have his mother send them from Italy!

[tim]

I don't see why it wouldn't work. The reason everclear has such a bite is not because of its proof, it's because it contains lots of impurities due to a not-so-strict filtering process. Diluted down to the same proof as vodka, it should in theory taste exactly the same if those impurities were not present.

The problem with doing this at home is that it is very difficult to get decent quality high proof grain alcohol at retail -- most of it is swill. 

What is the difference between low and high quality high proof grain alcohol? Is it really just a matter of filtering as with cheap vodka?

only one way to find out...

I have plenty of everclear, now I just need to find a brita filter. I don't suppose anyone wants to volunteer to judge the results...

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Sam,

In the vodka threads, (I think) there is a story about filtering cheap vodka three times with a brita filter and coming up with wonderful vodka.

Is there any possibility that this would work with Everclear?

Tim

[slkinsey]

Maybe. But I kind of doubt it.

[eje]

Article on Limoncello in today's Chronicle.

A taste as sweet as a World Cup title

I found this quote interesting:

Bay Area restaurateur Pat Kuleto says one of the first things he noticed about the Amalfi region is how the lemons are grown -- on terraces in the steep hillsides, shaded from the sun.

"They let the lemons hang for two seasons," Kuleto says. "If you don't pick them, they go back to green and then grow again. They get these big gnarly lemons, with a lot of skin."

[Abra]

Wow, lemons that go green and start to grow again? That sounds pretty sci-fi.

Just for a color check, here my limoncello in progress. I used Meyer lemons and 100 proof vodka, and let the microplaned zest steep for 2 months, waiting for the zest to lose all of its color. It never did turn all the way white, so today I diluted it with 80 proof and simple syrup. The color is more or less like a giant urine specimen.

It's shown here with the vin de noix and nocino I was also putting up today.

[Chef Metcalf]

Will you be taking that with you on any vacations Abra?

[KatieLoeb]

Abra:

Your limoncello looks perfect! And the Nocino looks pretty tasty too. You must let us know if it passes the taste test though.

I usually pour mine into tall thin bottles (former shnapps or fancy vinegar receptacles usually) and keep it in the freezer so it gets really cold and viscous. A wee glass after dinner makes for a wonderful digestif.

A nice pour of limoncello went in with my pink lemonade in the cooler I brought with me to the outdoor (in the humid July Philly heat) Bonnie Raitt concert I attended this evening. Most refreshing!

[Abra]

Why yes, Chef M, I imagine that the limoncello would travel well. The vin de noix won't be ready when I'm up your way, alas.

Limoncello and Bonnie Raitt sound like a dynamite combination, Katie. I'll get some into the freezer as soon as it has a chance to mellow with the syrup for a bit. I have no idea what nocino is supposed to taste like, so I'm really looking forward to that too.

[tim]

Article on Limoncello in today's Chronicle.

A taste as sweet as a World Cup title

I found this quote interesting:

Bay Area restaurateur Pat Kuleto says one of the first things he noticed about the Amalfi region is how the lemons are grown -- on terraces in the steep hillsides, shaded from the sun.

"They let the lemons hang for two seasons," Kuleto says. "If you don't pick them, they go back to green and then grow again. They get these big gnarly lemons, with a lot of skin."

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Hi,

I make orangecello every year, usually with a two week infusion in 100 proof vodka.

A few years ago, I tried a two month infusion with microplaned peels (no pith) from very fresh florida navels. That batch had a bitter background.

Does anyone know what went wrong with this orangcello?

Tim

[Heidi the Pilgrim]

If I could figure out how to attach a photo, I'd add one of the last batch I made with the mostly green lemons - it still didn't come out as 'green' as I'd hoped, but I was lucky enough to find green swing top bottles at a kitchen store so it at least makes it look less like a urine sample. I guess unless we get those miracle italian lemons that go back to being green, we'll have to live with the yellow ones.

Edited July 22, 2006 by Heidi the Pilgrim (log)