The start of fall marks a very important moment in the year where the leaves begin turning, the nights and mornings are crisp and cool, and the sweaters come out of storage. Most importantly though, this is the last chance you have to make some tasty beverages that you can enjoy during the winter holiday season. This year, I’m prepping some Aronia Berry and Blackberry Schnapps as well as some Red Plum Liqueur. Making treats like this require 3 months at minimum to sit so you should probably drop whatever you’re doing and get started. You’re probably wondering why I didn’t alert you to this sooner if 3 months is the minimum, but I’m a realist. You, as well as I most likely don’t have the patience or willpower to resist cracking one of these open if it was going to sit beyond 3 months, so really I’m doing you a favor.
Fortunately prep is minimal and there is quite a bit of margin for error so you can even embark upon this project after a hard day of apple picking and tipping back the hard cider. Before the instructions though, let’s go over a little bit of terminology. For our purposes, let’s assume you reside in the US for this terminology lesson.
What does it all mean, Aaron???
Liqueur or Cordial: Distilled spirit infused with fruit, cream, herbs, spices, flowers, or nuts and a sweetener.
Schnapps: Derived from the German word Schnaps, or “Swallow” in English. Any kind of alcoholic drink with distilled spirit in it. Most bottled schnapps will usually be infused with some natural flavoring. Does not necessarily need to be sweetened.
Therefore, liqueur or cordials are kinds of schnapps, but schnapps is not a kind of liqueur or cordial. Now, if you are traveling to parts of northern Europe, Schnapps will likely be some infused brandy or aquavit. Traveling to the UK and that cordial is most likely going to be some non-carbonated soda pop (Sound tasty?).
Recipes For Tasty Goodness
A note on which distilled spirit to use: If you’ve ever seen a recipe that calls for neutral grain spirit, they are talking about vodka. Before you get your flavored end-product, it all starts with a pure distillate that is about as close to being only ethanol and water that the producer could get it to (or cared to). After that you add your flavorings to produce that whole array of colorful beverages in the liquor store. Gin, although classified into its own category starts as vodka as well. The difference between schnapps and all of those flavored vodkas? Not much.
Aronia Berry and Blackberry Schnapps
- 16 oz of Aronia Berries (They’re super trendy right now so you can find them frozen or fresh in any upscale grocery store).
- 10 oz of Blackberries
- 750 ml of distilled spirit
- 1 2000 ml mason jar or sealable glass container
Intense instructions: Put all of the ingredients into your glass container. Seal. Put into a cool and dark place like your basement and do not touch it for at least 3 months.
Red Plum Liqueur
- 6 Red Plums
- 1/2 cup raw sugar or rock sugar
- 750 ml of distilled spirit
- 1 2000 ml mas jar or sealable glass container
Intense instructions: Put the plums into the jar. Put the vodka into the jar. Pour the sugar over the top. Resist the temptation to shake or stir it. Put into a cool and dark place like your basement and do not touch it for at least 3 months.
Aaron Berdofe's Wine and Food Experience 