Homemade juniper tincture is remembered for a light “Christmas tree” aroma and a slightly tart taste, slightly harsher than that of gin. Excellent alcohol for a male company. The organoleptic properties of the drink can be supplemented with citrus zest, sugar or honey.
For the preparation of tincture, only common juniper (blue berries) or prickly (red-brown fruits) is suitable. All other varieties, including Cossack and Siberian, are poisonous – they contain dangerous sabine oil! In order not to get poisoned, it is better to buy berries in a pharmacy or supermarket. I advise you to use common juniper, as the tincture on prickly sometimes has a nasty smell of medicines.
With self-harvesting of raw materials, poisonous juniper can be distinguished from normal by the following features:
- The number of bones. Suitable berries have 3 seeds, poisonous ones have 2.
- Smell. After kneading, the fruits and leaves of the Cossack juniper smell sharply of turpentine.
- Appearance. The leaves of ordinary juniper are like needles, Cossack – in the form of scales.
The optimal alcohol base is vodka or ethyl alcohol, well-purified moonshine (preferably grain-based) is also suitable. Cognac and whiskey in this case are not the best option, as juniper interrupts the tannic notes of aging in barrels.
Juniper tincture is not gin (juniper vodka) because distillation (distillation) is required to obtain gin after infusion. The full technology of cooking at home can be found by clicking on the link.
Ingredients:
- juniper berries (dried) – 10-12 pieces;
- vodka (alcohol, moonshine) – 0,5 liters;
- lemon zest – from half the fruit (optional);
- sugar (honey) – to taste;
- water – up to 100 ml (optional).
Zest adds citrus notes, instead of half a lemon, you can take the zest of one lime. Sugar is needed only to sweeten and soften the taste of the drink, water – to reduce the strength. Honey combined with juniper gives a specific flavor that not everyone likes.
Attention! It is better to dilute the alcohol base before infusion to the desired strength (make it 2-3% higher), so as not to dilute the finished drink with water – there are a lot of essential oils in juniper berries, due to which the tincture may become cloudy. It does not affect the taste, but it spoils the appearance.
juniper tincture recipe
1. Crush the berries, put them in a container for infusion – a glass bottle or jar, pour in an alcohol base. If desired, add the zest (the top ball without the bitter white pulp) of a lime or lemon. Pre-wash the citrus in hot water and wipe dry to remove the preservative from the peel.
2. Close the container. Put for 14 days in a dark place at room temperature. Shake every 3-4 days.
3. Strain the resulting juniper infusion through gauze or a strainer, slightly squeeze the berries.
4. Taste the drink, add sugar (honey), water or sugar syrup if desired.
5. Pour homemade juniper tincture into bottles for storage, close tightly. If sweetened or diluted, leave in the refrigerator or cellar for 3-5 days before tasting to stabilize the taste.
Shelf life in a place protected from direct sunlight – up to 5 years. Fortress – 37-38% (without sugar). I advise you to serve the drink chilled, you can dilute it with tonic.