Orahovac (aka Vin de Noix, Nocino, Nussenschnaps, Licor de Nuez or Ozhekhovka, depending on the region of production) is a sweet and spicy liqueur made with unripe walnuts. The drink is popular only where raw materials are available – in Central Europe, Italy, Southern Germany, Croatia, France. Orahovac is not produced in Russia, individual bottles enter the country as a souvenir thanks to tourists who have visited the Balkans.
Taste and color
The finished liquor has a thick coffee color, a bittersweet taste and a spicy aroma, in which notes of citrus, cloves, pumpkin pie, molasses, maple are felt.
Unripe walnuts give a clear juice, but in the air it darkens very quickly, and the tincture turns from green to dark brown, even black.
History
Walnut tincture was known even to the Celts who inhabited Europe hundreds of years ago. Then the monks used the recipe for a delicious and warming liquor: it turned out that the Orahovac drink perfectly cures stomach pains, improves overall tone, improves mood and promotes digestion.
It is difficult to say exactly when the tincture went beyond the monastery walls and became public – “nut” belongs to the category of folk drinks, and in each house it is prepared in its own way, there is no single recipe.
The most famous manufacturer of real Croatian Orahovac is the Maraska company.
Manufacture
Unripe, soft and light green, walnuts (Juglans Nigra is best, but any other will do) are harvested on Midsummer Day – June 23rd. Of course, nothing will happen if you choose a date a couple of days earlier or later, but tradition is tradition. It is important that the nuts have not yet hardened – this can be easily checked by piercing the skin with a fingernail.
Having selected an odd number of fruits (11 large, with an egg, or 21 small, with an olive), they are cut into quarters, poured with a liter of 40-degree alcohol (vodka, alcohol or grappa) and left for at least 40 days. You can add spices, but this is already a matter of taste.
Possible additives:
- whole bean coffee;
- orange and (or) lemon peel;
- cinnamon sticks;
- cloves;
- cardamom;
- berries of cloves.
The longer the drink ages in the bottle, the more softened the taste of the nut and the stronger the notes of spices.
The finished tincture is filtered, mixed with one and a half glasses of granulated sugar, if necessary, diluted with water to the desired strength, bottled and waited at least until December: it is believed that the “nut” should be uncorked no earlier than Catholic Christmas. If you keep the drink longer, it will only benefit him.
How to drink Orahovac
Orahovac is sipped in small sips while sitting by the fireplace on a cold winter evening. In addition, it is an excellent digestif (an alcoholic drink after a meal), “nuts” are also served with cheeses, desserts (especially with creamy caramel).
Liquor can be added to coffee, hot chocolate or ice cream.
Cocktails with Orahovac
Walnut Martini. Mix 2.5 parts of vodka, 2 parts of walnut liqueur, string 3 fresh cranberries on a sprig of rosemary, put half a roasted walnut on the bottom of the glass.
Nutty Russian: Mix equal parts vodka, orahovac and coffee liqueur.
If you dilute the “nut” with ginger beer, you get a good aperitif.