Tuesday, October 22, 2013

DIY {Flavors of Fall} Infused Vodkas




That's right!  I have returned from our fabulous vacation with the family and I am going to show you how to infuse the "Flavors of Fall" into liquid heaven. It is a super simple and age-old process that can be done with any flavor for any season. I let the gorgeous herbs, spices, and freshly harvested fruits below be my inspiration for my four Fall-infused vodkas that I have created. When you serve this at your next party, you will trick all your guests into thinking you are fancy pantsy.
These make lovely gifts as well!  

Collect all your supplies
-A decent amount of mid-grade vodka. Since it will be infused with robust flavors, a top-shelf brand is unnecessary
-Four airtight jars (or the number of jars for amount of flavors you will be making)
-Four bottles (or... blah, blah, blah, see above bullet)
-Fruits, herbs and spices of your choice

The flavors that I have created are:
Apple, Pear, Cinnamon, Vanilla (my favorite!)
Rosemary Vodka 
Vanilla Vodka
and
Blackberry-Sage Vodka
but... you can create anything your boozy little heart desires. 

Let's begin, shall we?
You will want to clean your fruits and herbs and prepare them accordingly.

For Herbs
Rinse with water and dry. You will use the herb as it is, leaving the stems attached.

For Fruits
Clean and towel-dry fruits. Leave berries whole. For larger fruits such as apples or pears, leave the skin on and chop in chunks. If you are using mangos, papayas or pineapple you will need to remove the skin and cut into chunks as well. The more chunks you have the more the flavor will be infused into your vodka. For citrus fruits and strawberries, cut into thin slices or use the citrus peels or zest.

Vanilla
For vanilla infused vodka, slice the bean vertically and use whole bean. 

For Peppers and Garlic (fabulous for Bloody Marys)
Cut peppers into large chunks.
Remove skin on garlic and use the entire clove.

Place your fruit, spices, and herbs in your jars and fill up with vodka. Once the jar is sealed, you will shake the vodka (and your booty!) for a few seconds and continue doing this several times a day.
Store your jars in a cool dark place until your vodka is ready! 

Here are the estimated infusion times for the different flavors you may want to use. The times below are just a suggestion, the best way to find out if your vodka is ready is to taste test it. Remember, these are to be used with mixers and are unsweetened. 

Peppers will only need to infuse for a few hours (around 2-3).

Intense flavors such as cucumbers, basil, coffee beans or vanilla beans take about 3-4 days to infuse. 

Moderate flavors like berries, lavender, cardamom or rosemary will take a week or so to infuse.

Mild flavors like lemongrass or ginger will take around 2 weeks to infuse. 

The estimated ratios for my flavors were:

Vanilla
About 2 cups vodka
1-2 vanilla beans

Rosemary
About 2 cups vodka
3-5 sprigs of rosemary

Blackberry-Sage
About 1.5-2 cups vodka
A Handful of blackberries
6 sprigs of sage

Apple, Pear, Cinnamon, Vanilla
About 1.5 cups vodka
1/2 pear
1/2 apple
2 cinnamon sticks
1 vanilla bean

Modify it however you would like! The best part about this is you don't need to be exact, you can play around to get different flavors and intensities. 

After the vodkas have been infusing for the right amount of time, many will turn a beautiful, rich color. Once it is ready, you will want to filter all the gunk out by using cheesecloth or a coffee filter. 

Voila! It is that simple!


The fresher ones that I created are de-lish in lemonade and the ones with cinnamon and or vanilla are great in cider. Vanilla is good in all the above, including coffee!

I am working on my Christmas flavors now! The mashed potatoes and gravy flavor didn't turn out too well (insert wink).
What flavors will you be creating??

Enjoy and remember to drink responsibly.


Linking up to:



12 comments:

  1. While I'm not much of a drinker, these sound wonderful, especially the one for bloody marys. You always have the best ideas!!!
    Did you spend all of your vacation in Kentucky (my adopted home state!)? Glad you had such a great time with family!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey there! Thank you so much! I love infusing things haha! We went to KY and FL... It was AMAZING! I love KY so gorgeous!
      I hope you are so well! xo

      Delete
  2. I LOVE this idea! What a great way to cut the calories from those days you're feeling a little "lushy". I hate that the manufacurers add sugar or corn syrup to all these liquours before you can even get your hands on them...

    I just have to say I also LOVE your writing style. It feels like I get to sit down and chat with you in your adoreable kitchen everytime I read a post. Thank you for blessing us with all this inspiration!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much! You seriously made my day! I try to be myself when I write :)
      These taste so much better than the store bought kind... It is always amazing to me the difference it artificial flavors and all natural ones!! I hope you are having a blessed and beautiful day! xo

      Delete
  3. what a fabulous gift idea! Thanks for the inspiration!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are so welcome!! I hope you enjoy it! Let me know how it goes!! xo

      Delete
  4. Wow, this is amazing! Sharing on my FB page today!
    Hugs,
    Jamie @ somuchbetterwithage.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. I wish I was your neighbor, you know that? I would be one happy person trying out all of those flavors for you ;). I want to try and make the vanilla, I think my hubby would like that one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I would love for you to be my neighbor! It gets a bit lonely out here in the middle of nowhere.. just me, my booze, and crafts haha! xo

      Delete
  6. I do believe this is a great blog to learn something new. The way you represent the content amazed me much. Also enjoyed reading your brilliant writing. All the images also looking wonderful and eye-catching. Thank you very much for your good work.
    Cow skin rug

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for the lovely comments! Each and everyone means so much to me! xo

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...