Yuzu Cocktails

[Rob Simmon]

I had some spectacular cocktails with Yuzu (japanese citrus fruit) at WD-50 in New York City over the weekend. (I think the drinks outshone the food, or were at least more consistent)

Betsy Flanagan

cognac, orange curacao, yuzu juice, peychaud bitters

Trinidad-Thailand Connection

dark/golden rum, yuzu, ginger beer, maybe something else?

seems like an excellent ingredient for further experimentation-has a funkier spectrum of flavors than lemon or lime. once I get my hands on some I'll start experimenting, and I'd like to know of other recipes.

[BTR]

Sumile has a yuzu mojito that's pretty good.

[bacchant036]

want to make money start growing the things cause they cost a fortune in the uk,

great flavour, some more digging around asian foodmarkets and hassling reps for liqueurs will unravel a list of citrus fruits longer than my arm (and i get scuff marks on my knuckles walking up stairs), some good, some that taste like, citrus. surprisingly.

the yuzu, or the stuff i can get, goes great with sake and a dash of honey to sweeten, you'll need to play around with the amounts depending on which sake or yuzu, you can then try different sweetners, tend to find yuzu as versatile as lemon or lime.

cheers.

[eje]

Is Yuzu juice similar to Calamondin (Kalamansi)? Intensely sour and aromatic?

I've only ever seen the bottled Yuzu juice here.

I have seen fresh Calamondins and would love to get a tree. Sadly, I don't have any place left in my back yard which gets enough sun for a citrus tree.

These folks in Oregon seem to sell yuzu plants and lots of other cool stuff. Sadly, they cannot ship yuzu to the citrus growing states (AZ, CA, LA, TX).

Added URL.

Edited November 22, 2005 by eje (log)

[trillium]

My kalamansi limes (we use them green, and call them limes, even though they are an orange) are in pots. I bought the 3-4 year tree from Four Winds Growers in CA and they're in a 3 gallon pot. They're on a dwarf rootstock, and are very happy and prolific, so if you really want one, don't let lack of a space in the yard stop you.

I have to bring them in for winter, and the smell of the blossoms in the house is really nice.

regards,

trillium

[AzianBrewer]

Is Yuzu juice similar to Calamondin (Kalamansi)?  Intensely sour and aromatic?

I've only ever seen the bottled Yuzu juice here.

I have seen fresh Calamondins and would love to get a tree.  Sadly, I don't have any place left in my back yard which gets enough sun for a citrus tree.

These folks in Oregon seem to sell yuzu plants and lots of other cool stuff.  Sadly, they cannot ship yuzu to the citrus growing states (AZ, CA, LA, TX).

Added URL.

←

They are not similar to Kalamansi. Yuzu looks closer to the hybrid of orange/tangerine/grapefruit..

[eje]

They are not similar to Kalamansi.  Yuzu looks closer to the hybrid of orange/tangerine/grapefruit..

←

Different varities (or possibly species) of Citrus, I know.

I'm just wondering if the flavor of the juices of the fruits is similar enough for gov't work and, if I have a choice between bottled Yuzu juice and fresh Kalamansi (Calamondin), which is tastier. I generally avoid bottled citrus for my home cocktails.

Possibly because of the relatively large Philipino population in the bay area, it is easy to find Kalamansi. I can buy plants at local farmers' market or nurseries and the ice cream maker down the street makes a pretty outstanding Kalamansi sorbet.

I've only ever had Yuzu as a plate garnish at upscale restaurants and don't have a very strong memory of its taste.

spelling

Edited November 23, 2005 by eje (log)

[Tess]

I picked up a couple of these fruits just now. Do you think I could make infused vodka with them?

[Kent Wang]

Wikipedia has a fairly accurate definiton of yuzu. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuzu

Central Market carries yuzu at $29/lb. I bought a few. I find them to be much less acidic than limes, but have a more full flavor profile. Sweet and aromatic. I made a variation of the Trinidad-Thailand Connection as Rob Simmon described. I made a Captain and Ginger (aka Happy Skipper) with Captain Morgan spiced rum and ginger beer. I added some yuzu juice to that and it turned out well. For an average sized martini glass, I had to use between 2-3 yuzu. I made a seperate glass with limes instead and only needed to use half a lime. So that gives you an idea about the comparative acidity.

You can also use the zest. I was able to flavor a pint-glass of this drink with one yuzu's worth of zest, and I'm not a very thorough or competent zester. This is much more affordable than using just the juice.

Conclusion: I really like yuzu, but mostly for its novelty value. I think I will be making this Trinidad-Thailand Connection for the next few weeks. Oh, can we come up with a better name? How about "the Commodore Perry"? It incorporates the naval aspect of the "Captain and Ginger" plus the Japanese aspect of the yuzu (Perry opened Japan to the West).

[eje]

In the interests of experimentation, I purchased Calamondin (Kalamansi), Yuzu, and Yuzu Juice.

In the photo above, from left to right, Lime, Yuzu, and Calamondin.

The purchased Yuzu juice ended up being a bust, having that cooked bottled citrus taste (real-lemon) and the added detriment of being salted. Yuck. Very attractive packaging, however.

In order of sourness, Calamondin is the most sour, lime next, and Yuzu the least sour. Trying to describe the flavors, we thought the easiest way to describe it was Calamondin is lime-tangerine-indescribable and Yuzu is lemon-tangerine-grapefruit(a little pine).

At $1.50 for two, I fastidiously zested those Yuzus and added them to a cup of vodka to macerate for a while. Should make a tasty, if small, batch of yuzu-cello.

Both of the grocery stores in Japan Town on Post Street had Yuzu, I haven't seen them anywhere else.

[alanamoana]

in the bay area, i was able to get fresh bottled yuzu juice (unsalted, without that "real lemon" taste) from a japanese purveyor (i was working in a restaurant at the time).

i made a yuzu granite and it was deelish. i'm sure a yuzu-drop cocktail would be just as tasty. simple and clean.

Edited December 4, 2005 by alanamoana (log)

[Rob Simmon]

I got a bottle of salted yuzu juice as well. Not suitable for cocktails, or at least novice cocktailians like me.

[Tess]

I steeped some (4-5 oz.) vodka with the zest of two yuzu fruits plus all the pulp and juice I was able to get out of them. After 2 days it was really delicious!

I paid $2+ for those two yuzu and you're right about affordability. Much more bang for the buck with the zest. Not worth it in my view without, although the taste is heavenly; it's just very little fruit.