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12 noon January 1 – deep morning. I wake up from a phone call. A friend sniffs into the phone: “The New Year failed!” Sleep takes away like a hand. They noted that he had just moved to a new house.
I ask anxiously, “What happened?”
He calmly: “We didn’t reach the quince. Come.”
I laugh into the phone. I go to the kitchen to the treasured bottle. I fill the quince bottle. So what if you already brought him your tincture yesterday? And this will definitely not be superfluous.
The story was sent by blog subscriber Artem.
Why I decided to make quince tincture
About ten years ago, also on New Year’s Eve, I tried this drink at a friend’s house. Fragrant aroma, mild taste and pleasant aftertaste struck on the spot. Got the recipe right away.
I found my first expensive quince in the supermarket in winter. And he began to practice witchcraft. I can’t say that this experience was successful – the fruits were unripe and sour to such an extent that I had to sweeten the resulting tincture more than once.
The addition of a large amount of sugar increased the viscosity and resulted in a liqueur. I don’t like sweet alcoholic drinks.
Since then, as they say, housewives count chickens in the fall, and I count quince. I buy from grandmothers in the market, they are brought by acquaintances who have heard or are already tempted by my tincture.
Sometimes we argue with my wife about what to use the cherished fruit: for jam or tincture. Basically, I win.
Tincture Ingredients
To make a quince tincture, you will need the following ingredients:
- in fact, quince of any variety, the more the better;
- ethyl alcohol (necessarily high-quality) – you can use store-bought vodka or good moonshine as an alcohol base, but I insist on quince on alcohol;
- water (children’s or drinking, but of good quality, distilled or boiled water, in my opinion, will not mix with alcohol properly);
- sugar (makes the drink soft, removes an unpleasant aftertaste);
- table vinegar 9% (softens the taste of alcohol and regulates acidity).
Based on my first experience, I take quince fruits ripe, slightly soft, without rot and mold. I prefer large fruits with a skin evenly colored yellow. The presence of green spots is a sign of immaturity.
It is advisable to let the fruits ripen within two to three weeks after being picked from the tree.
The process of making quince tincture
I cut the quince washed under running water into small thin slices. The thinner the cut, the more juice it will give. But you don’t need to grind too much either. I don’t peel fruits.
Quince peel contains tannins, which give the drink a peculiar flavor. Fresh quince seeds contain amygdalin, so I do not use the core of the fruit.
I pour the resulting amount into a bottle. If you want a less strong drink, fill 2/3 of the container with quince. I take raw materials at the rate of 1/3 of a three-liter bottle. As you understand, the filling will depend on the way you cut.
I mix ethyl alcohol with water in a ratio of 1: 1,5 liters. This is just enough to fill my volume of quince in a three-liter bottle. In this case, alcohol must be poured into water, and not vice versa. I fill the fruits with liquid.
First night of quince tincture
I add to the bottle 1 tbsp. a spoonful of sugar. I often dilute it in a small amount of the liquid previously poured from the bottle to achieve complete dissolution. I add 1 tbsp. a spoonful of vinegar.
Shake the mixture lightly and leave the bottle open overnight. In the morning I close the bottle with a lid and leave the quince in a dark place at room temperature to infuse for 10 days. The longer the exposure, the tastier. Periodically, every 2-3 days, I shake the tincture.
I filter the finished quince through several layers of gauze and leave it in a cool place. Sometimes I strain again before drinking.
Quince now, aged 2 months
I squeeze the fruits well and throw them away. You can taste it, but I did not like the alcoholized fruit.
The shelf life of the drink is unlimited and is determined only by the number of holidays in the year. These days, the tincture has the peculiarity of unexpectedly ending.
What is the result
We get a fragrant tincture, 37-38 degrees with a characteristic quince flavor and a slight astringency in the aftertaste. The ripeness and yellowness of quince will bring a soft warm hue.
At your discretion, additional ingredients can be added: honey, ginger, lemon, vanillin, cinnamon. The taste of the tincture can also be changed by using other types of alcohol for infusion: brandy, calvados, chacha.
Women also like the astringent tart taste of the drink. For them, at the last stage of preparation, after sampling, you can add more sugar or honey. But this is only if you are ready to share your work.
I don’t tell my wife about the possibility of such a change in the standard recipe.
What do you do with quince?
*Alcohol abuse is dangerous for your health!