I do not like vodka, I do not feel any taste or aroma of this drink. Just alcohol diluted with water. I sometimes get the feeling that people drink it purely for the sake of the intoxicating effect, but not for the sake of pleasure.
The same whiskey can have a whole palette of flavors and leave such a pleasant aftertaste that vodka has never stood next to it.
Once I had a chance to try Finlandia Redberry (Finland Cranberry), sort of like vodka, but I would say that this is a skillfully prepared cranberry tincture. It had nothing to do with vodka: a pleasant smell, light taste and a delicate berry aftertaste.
Therefore, as an experienced moonshiner, I accepted the challenge and decided to cook Finland myself. And here’s what I got out of it.
This story was sent by my subscriber Michael.
A set of ingredients and sugar calculation
The first thing I bought was cranberries. I took 3 cans of 3 liters each and filled them half with cranberries, it took me about 6 kg of berries for everything. I sugared the cranberries themselves at the rate of 200 g of sugar per 1 kg, sugar is needed only in order to rid the future drink of the characteristic acid and bitterness.
Then I thought for a long time how to pour this tincture. And yet, a great idea came to me, I did not mess with purchased vodka, so as not to spoil the whole idea, but overtook my own distillate. I did it according to my classical method, triple distillation.
I used sugar-berry mash as a basis. Even though I’m not a fan of sugar brews, I was afraid that the malt drink wouldn’t go well with the cranberry flavor. As a result, I got a distillate with a strength of 95⁰ with a light, barely noticeable strawberry aroma of an absolutely transparent color.
We pour and insist
All cranberries are not washed, the twigs where they are caught remain there. Then I just crush the berries with my hand, without much fanaticism, but so that most of the cranberries are crushed. Then the whole thing is sprinkled with sugar, poured with rectified and closed with a lid.
After that, the tincture must be stirred. To do this evenly, you can simply shake the jar. You need to do this procedure daily, and best of all – two or even three times a day.
We prepare everything you need
Cranberry tincture is infused for about a month. During this time, it acquires a very rich shade, much denser than that of the original drink.
How do I judge readiness? He just opened the jar and sniffed it, if the smell of alcohol is still preserved, we leave it, if the berry aroma prevails, the drink is ready.
Pour and dilute
Then it remains only to strain the tincture through cheesecloth to separate all the “rags” of cranberries. I did this using a regular sieve and a small basin, but there are many options, everyone filters the way they like.
And now attention! You can’t eat leftover berries! Yes, they will taste barely bitter from alcohol, otherwise – cranberries are like cranberries.
And that’s just an hour later. The color will change almost every day
But what a delusion. I love cranberries, and decided to drink tea with berries. After 20 minutes, I felt like I had drunk 400 grams of strong alcohol!
After filtering, we simply dilute the resulting drink to the required strength.
I use distilled water for this and dilute it not to 40⁰, but to 35⁰, as for me, this way the tincture is even more tender and softer.
The result
As a result, I got a rather interesting tincture. I won’t say that it resembled Finland, but I can safely say that it was certainly no worse. If you asked me how to describe this drink, I would single out its main advantages:
- Thicker consistency than classic tinctures. Cranberries add something to the alcohol, making it thicker.
- Bright and natural burgundy shade.
- Aroma of berries. The smell of strawberries was also traced, since I used rectified after a steamer on strawberries, but cranberries smell so that alcohol is not felt at all.
And of course, a colossal dose of vitamin C, thanks to this, the tincture never causes a hangover. Of my guests, cranberries were appreciated by both men and women.
I would say that if you remove a little more fortress, you would get an excellent female drink. I was glad that my Finland came out even better than the original. Have you managed to get around the factory product in terms of quality, taste and aroma?