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Juniper tincture is one of the most popular and often prepared at home. We present recipes for homemade juniper tincture, as usual – several at once, simpler and more sophisticated.
Recently, rereading old articles on the Rum Diary, I came across an unfortunate oversight: we already have so many tinctures-balms-liqueurs, but juniper tincture – one of the most popular and often prepared at home – was somehow deprived of attention authors. Well, we are correcting ourselves – we present recipes for homemade juniper tincture, as usual – several at once, simpler and trickier.
I remember that at the age of 14 I first tried this wonderful drink – it was the first tincture I tasted. And then she surprised me so much – it’s impossible to describe! Well, what happens – you take ordinary vodka, a bag of berries in a pharmacy, combine everything, wait – and at the end you get an excellent, unlike anything and very easy to drink product! Probably, it was from that time that my love for homemade tinctures and, in general, for home-made alcohol began. Growing up, I became convinced that with juniper not everything is as simple as it seemed to me … But first things first.
A little about the raw materials for juniper tincture
First of all, it must be said that juniper tincture on vodka should by no means be considered gin. Gin is not a tincture, but a distillation product, like absinthe. You can read more about gin in this article.
The main ingredient in the juniper berry tincture… let me guess… juniper berries! More often than not, it is the only component. But juniper is different. Berries can be blue, purple, red … What kind are needed for tincture?
First, I warn against using Cossack juniper – it contains deadly sabine oil, causing miscarriages, kidney failure, fainting and other rubbish. Outwardly, its berries are similar to the cones of the common juniper we need – the same blue or blue-brown, with a slight bloom.
This variety can be distinguished by several signs:
- Bone. A poisonous berry has 2 of them, a normal one has 3;
- Smell. Cone fruits, and especially shoots, leaves, branches of Juniperus sabina, strongly stink with turpentine if they are ground.
- Twigs. If you collect raw materials yourself, pay attention to the juniper bush. The leaves of the Cossack juniper look like scales, and the usual one looks like needles.
I repeat once again – in no case do not use raw materials in which you are not sure! There is always the opportunity to check the berries at least for the smell and the number of seeds. By the way, the Siberian juniper is also poisonous – it can be identified in the same way as the Cossack juniper.
In addition to the above varieties, Juniperus oxycedrus, Juniperus oxycedrus, can be used to prepare juniper tincture. It is easily identified by its bright red-brown berries. It is this variety that is most often sold in pharmacies. But experts say that the tincture is brighter from blue cones, red ones can give an unpleasant pharmacy smell.
So, the theory is clear, now – the practice.
Juniper tinctures on vodka, with and without additives
For juniper tinctures, either ordinary vodka, or alcohol, or well-purified double moonshine is used. The only caveat is that this drink should be made immediately of the strength that you need, otherwise it may become cloudy when diluted due to the high oiliness of the berries.
The simplest juniper tincture
All it takes is:
- A tablespoon – 10 things – juniper berries.
- 0.5 liters of vodka.
- Sugar syrup – as needed.
Berries need to be crushed in a mortar or rolling pin, pour vodka and send to infuse for 2 weeks in a dark place. After that – strain. Now juniper tincture on vodka can be consumed. The only caveat is that the drink can turn out to be harsh, especially if you did not use vodka, but alcohol or moonshine. In this case, you need to add a little sugar syrup or fructose to it – if desired. After that, the juniper must be defended for another 2-3 days.
Due to the fact that berries of different varieties can differ significantly in the strength of taste and aroma, many experienced bootleggers advise not to prepare a ready-made drink right away, but to make a concentrate first. For it, you will need a 50-gram bag of juniper and a liter of vodka, everything is infused for 10 days. After that, the concentrate must be added to the drink literally in a spoonful, until it becomes quite “Christmas tree” in taste and smell. This principle is used in the following recipe.
Imitation gin: juniper tincture with zest
This drink is a little more difficult to prepare, it first prepares the concentrate, and only then the drink itself. For the concentrate you need:
- Juniper – 50 grams;
- Zest from 4 whole oranges;
- Alcohol 50 ° (moonshine) – 2 liters.
For tincture:
- Alcohol 45°;
- Fructose – a teaspoon.
To begin with, we prepare 2 concentrates: for one we crush the juniper berries, for the other – three zest. Both that, and another separately we fill in with alcohol and we insist week.
Now we take 100 grams of each tincture and add a liter of 45-degree alcohol or vodka to them, as well as a teaspoon of fructose or one and a half tsp. Sahara. Mix everything well and try. If the taste is not rich enough, you can add one of the concentrates. After that, the drink must be infused for another 10 days.
Juniper tincture with spices
- 10 juniper berries;
- Coriander (seeds) – 1/3 teaspoon;
- Cumin – ½ teaspoon;
- Vodka – 0.5 liters.
We crush the juniper, throw it into a jar, add spices, pour it with alcohol and let it brew in a dark place for about 10 days. After that, we filter. Separately, we prepare sugar syrup from a tablespoon of sugar and 100 ml. boiling water. Add syrup to the drink and insist another 2-3 days. Ready!
Tincture with juniper “New Year’s”
- Alcohol or moonshine 50-60 ° – 2 liters;
- Juniper berries – 2 tablespoons;
- 2 large tangerines;
- 2 medium oranges;
- Kernels from 2-3 walnuts;
- Sugar – as needed.
We crush the berries, crush the nut kernels, cut the zest from the fruit and send it all to the jar. There we add juice squeezed from citrus fruits and pour alcohol. We insist all this for 2-3 weeks, after which we filter it well.
Separately, prepare caramel syrup. For it you need to pour into a frying pan or saucepan
100 grams of sugar, add 0.5 tsp. lemon juice (or citric acid – on the tip of a knife). Sugar is melted to a thick mass, 100 ml is added to it. water. The mixture is again put on fire and cooked with constant stirring until smooth.
Now we take our tincture and gradually introduce syrup into it. It should be sweet, but not cloying. We mix everything well and defend for another 3-4 days. Juniper tincture “New Year’s” combines all the symbols of the holiday – tangerines, a Christmas tree and sweets. If you have a bite of Olivier, then you can create a New Year for yourself at any time!
Let me remind you once again that by any of the above methods you can get exactly juniper – juniper tincture. And for those who want to make a true gin with distillation, I recommend reading this article, there are two detailed recipes here!