Ginger Liquor

[Jean Blanchard]

I have this bottle of ginger liquor and I'm sure how I even got it. Must have been a really good dinner party! The problem is, I don't know what to do with it. Any suggestions?

Jean

[Carolyn Tillie]

Is it a liqueur (i.e., sweet?) or a brandy? I also ended up with a bottle of ginger brandy which is a strong, essence-of-ginger alcohol which I have used in various cooking. When I'm doing a really complicated Asian-based sauce, I'll throw in a splash. I also made some amazing apricot/ginger jam -- not only adding the brandy to the jam base but a good hand's worth of steamed ginger to the fruit compote.

Wish I could find more of mine -- I bought it at a 99-cent store and love it!

[Jean Blanchard]

Checked the bottle, it's a liqueur. I've no idea what it tastes like but my husband thinks that somebody brought it to make martini's.

[Jean Blanchard]

I have to bump this up again. Doesn't anybody have a drink I can make using this stuff??

Jean

[Kent Wang]

Ginger flavor is very versatile. You can add it to a Dark & Stormy. Union in Seattle has a drink called the Jenny O that was pretty good: rum, lemon, ginger syrup, shaken and served up.

[David McDuff]

I stopped in at the wonderful Pegu Club for the first time this past weekend. Between my drinking companion and me, we enjoyed among other things a "Jamaican Firefly" (dark rum, homemade ginger beer, fresh lime juice) and a "Gin-Gin Mule" (gin, homemade ginger beer, mint, fresh lime juice). Both were served on the rocks in tall glasses. Though ginger liqueur, per se, did not figure in any of their special cocktails, ginger certainly did -- in the form of both ginger beer and candied ginger slices. The floral/spicy flavors of ginger worked well in both the gin and rum based drinks.

I would think this might give you the basis to at least experiment a bit. Not having tried ginger liqueur, I would guess that it will exert a somewhat richer influence on its drinks than did the ginger beer. Enjoy and report back!

Edited October 5, 2006 by David McDuff (log)

[Friend of the Farmer]

Cook with it. I keep a bottle of ginger liqueur at home for cooking thai and chinese dishes. And for a last minute marinate to steamed veggies you'll be glad it's there. Hopefully your selection isn't too sweet.

[KatieLoeb]

You can make a tasty Lemon-Ginger Cosmopolitan with 2.5 oz. lemon vodka (I like Ketel One Citron for this application), 1 oz. of ginger liqueur, a splash of fresh lime juice to counteract the sweetness of the liqueur and a tiny splash of cranberry or pomegranate for color, then shaken and strained. Garnish with a skewered slice of candied ginger and lemon peel.

[raxelita]

How about an Apple & Ginger Cocktail

[Bridgemo]

You could see what it is like replacing ginger wine in a Whisky Mac - suitable now as winter closes in:

3 parts Scotch whisky

2 parts ginger wine/ginger liquor

Mix in an old fashioned glass without ice.

How about making ginger ice-cream with it?

[petite tête de chou]

Maybe a warm ginger lemonade?

[Jean Blanchard]

These are all great ideas! It's only 10:00 AM so I'll need to wait until a little later in the day to actually taste it and judge how sweet it is. Maybe I'll try one of these drink suggestions and then try cooking with it. Should I be worried that I already have the ingredients in the house to make most of the drinks???

Ginger ice cream...that's a strong possibility.

[KatieLoeb]

Should I be worried that I already have the ingredients in the house to make most of the drinks???

Heck - I'd be proud!

[Danne]

make an mojito or something with a lot of limejuice, lika the caiphrinia, and add some gingerliqueur. It's a good combination.