Cream liqueurs (Cream liqueur): concept, types, home recipes

Cream liqueurs (Cream liqueur) are dessert alcoholic drinks with a viscous texture and sweet taste. The creamy structure is given to them by natural thickeners: cream, sugar, honey or egg yolks. Manufacturers achieve bright tastes by adding fruit extracts, essential oils, flavorings and spices. One of the fashionable market trends is cream liqueurs for vegetarians with oat and coconut milk.

Historical information

The first liqueurs appeared in the XIII century. Sweet tinctures based on herbs, roots, honey and sugar were made in monasteries and taken as medicine. The recipe for Chartreuse, one of the earliest liqueurs, is set out in a manuscript dated presumably to the XNUMXth century. The first mention of the prototype of cream liqueur is found in documents of the XIV century. In Irish monasteries, whiskey was infused with thyme, anise and mint, and cream was added before drinking. It was believed that the drink helps with memory disorders and inflammation of the skin.

The history of the production of Irish cream liqueurs began in 1973 with the advent of Bailey’s. David Gluckman and his business partners needed to find a way to get rid of excess whiskey in warehouses, and they decided to create and experiment with recipes. The first sample of the liqueur was blended in a home kitchen mixer from Jameson whiskey, fresh cream, sugar and cocoa powder.

The partners liked the result, but it took another two years to perfect the formula. The launch of the liqueur on the market became a sensation. Over the entire history of the brand’s existence, more than 2 billion bottles of Bailey’s have been sold, and the popularity of the liquor has not decreased over the years.

The success of Irish cream liqueur has led to the emergence of many brands of cream liqueurs. Famous brands:

• Cruzan Rom – a mixture of rum, cream and spices;
• Dooley’s – based on toffee and vodka;
• Heather Cream – with the addition of Scotch whiskey;
• RumChata – made from rum, cream and vegetable milk.

Peak sales of cream liqueurs fall on the Christmas and New Year holidays; in the summer, sweet and high-calorie alcohol is less in demand.

Bailey’s is now promoting its products as part of its cocktail culture to appeal to young people with a passion for healthy lifestyles.

Types and brands of cream liqueurs

A separate category of cream liqueurs does not contain cream and has a thick consistency due to the high sugar content – from 250 to 400 g per liter. Most of these products are produced by French companies. There are many brands on the market today with the name Creme de (translated from French “cream from …”) based on herbal ingredients: berries, fruits, chestnuts and even flower petals.

Crème de menthe is a 25% abv mint cream liqueur. The author of the recipe is the herbalist and pharmacist Emile Giffard, who devoted his whole life to experimenting with new ingredients and founded GiFFarD, which has been producing mint liqueurs since 1885. The digestif contains neutral alcohol and an extract of Corsican mint, which gives the drink a bright green color.

Creme de cacao became popular in Europe in the XNUMXth century, when it was made from whole cocoa beans. Today, most manufacturers use chocolate extracts, but the Austrian Mozart distillery prefers to follow the classic technology. Cocoa beans and vanilla pods insist on alcohol from sugar beets for two weeks, and the finished liquor is aged in oak barrels. To achieve a delicate texture, the manufacturer uses ultrasonic equipment to mix the components.

Blackberry Crème de mûre is very popular in France. A dessert drink is made by macerating fresh berries in neutral alcohol, and lemon or lime juice is added to the finished product. Due to its rich purple color and thick structure, the liqueur is often used to make multi-layered cocktails.

Crème de cassis is a dark red blackcurrant liqueur that has been produced in Burgundy since 1841. It has a thick structure, rich berry aroma, and a very sweet taste. According to EU standards, one liter of drink must contain at least 400 grams of sugar. The main consumer of Crème de cassis is France.

Homemade cream liqueur recipes

The recipe for homemade Baileys is presented in the video.

Chocolate cream liqueur

Ingredients:

• dark chocolate (no additives) – 200 g;
• vodka (moonshine, alcohol 40%) – 1,5 l;
• sugar – 1 kg;
• milk – 1 l;
• vanilla sugar – 2 g.

Recipe:

1. Freeze chocolate in the freezer, then grate on a medium grater.
2. Add chocolate chips to a glass container for infusion, pour in the alcohol base, mix, close tightly.
3. Insist in a dark place at room temperature for 7 days, shake once a day.
4. Mix milk and sugar in a saucepan, bring to a boil, boil for 2-3 minutes over low heat, removing the foam, then cool the resulting milk syrup to room temperature.
5. Mix chocolate infusion with milk syrup, pour into bottles for storage and seal tightly. Leave in the refrigerator or cellar for 35-40 days to stabilize the taste.

Banana cream liqueur

Ingredients:

• bananas – 3 pieces;
• vodka (moonshine) – 300 ml;
• condensed milk – 400 g;
• eggs (chicken) – 2 pieces;
• milk – 150 ml.

Recipe:

1. Beat in a blender peeled and sliced ​​​​banana, condensed milk, eggs, milk and vodka (moonshine).
2. Strain the resulting liquor through a kitchen sieve and pour into bottles.
3. Close tightly, leave in the refrigerator for 1 hour to stabilize the taste. Due to the eggs in the composition, the shelf life in the refrigerator is no more than 10 days.

Coconut cream liqueur

Ingredients:

• coconut chips – 400 g;
• condensed milk – 800 g;
• water – 400 ml;
• vodka (moonshine) – 1 l.

Recipe:

1. Place the coconut flakes in a glass container for infusion. Pour in the alcohol base, mix, close tightly. Leave for 10 days in a dark room at room temperature, shake once a day.
2. Filter the coconut infusion through gauze, then mix with the alcohol base and condensed milk. Leave for 4 days in the refrigerator. Do not stir or shake. A greasy layer forms on the surface, which should be removed.
3. Infuse the liquor for another 7 days, then remove the fatty layer again and pour the drink into bottles for storage.

Lemon cream liqueur

Ingredients:

• moonshine or alcohol 70% – 0,5 l;
• lemons – 6 pieces (medium);
• sugar – 1 kg;
• milk – 1 l;
• vanilla – the floor of the pod.

Recipe:

1. Rinse the lemons in hot water and wipe dry to remove the preservative from the surface. Then remove the yellow part of the zest without white bitter pulp.
2. Place the zest in a glass jar, pour in alcohol or moonshine, close tightly, leave for 4 days in a dark room, then strain through a kitchen sieve.
3. Mix milk, sugar and vanilla seeds in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, boil for 5 minutes over low heat, removing white foam. Cool the resulting syrup to room temperature and strain through a kitchen sieve.
4. Mix lemon juice with milk syrup. Pour the resulting cream liqueur into bottles and close tightly. Store in refrigerator or basement.

Nutella cream liqueur

Ingredients:

• Nutella – 180 г;
• vodka (moonshine) – 0,5 l;
• sugar – 120 g;
• cream (the fatter the better) – 300 g.

Recipe:

1. Combine Nutella, sugar and cream in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring constantly.
2. When the mixture becomes a homogeneous consistency, remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
3. Mix nut butter with alcohol base, bottle for storage. Before drinking, leave homemade Nutella liqueur for 2-3 days in the refrigerator to stabilize the taste. Shelf life – no more than 20 days.

How to drink cream liqueurs

It is customary to drink cream liqueurs in small glasses after the main meal. They are pre-cooled to 5-7 ° C or ice is added to the glasses.

Manufacturers recommend mixing dessert alcohol with dry or sparkling wine and using it in cocktails.

Cream liqueurs go well with coffee, desserts, fruit salads and ice cream.