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“Okhotnichya” is one of the most popular Soviet bitters, spicy, sharp, spicy – the drink of real men, “hunters” both literally and figuratively, that is, hunters to drink. A sip of this tincture invigorates, gives strength, warms and improves mood.
The classic recipe for the Hunting tincture includes more than 10 spices, port wine and sugar, the drink is made in 2 stages: first, the fragrant rich base is infused, then the tincture itself is prepared. In Soviet times, aromatic alcohol was made at the factory, distilling alcohol along with spices, this option would be the best for the owners of the devices. But you can prepare a similar drink using the maceration method. Today we will get acquainted in detail with both methods, and also – we will find out the simplest recipe for “Hunter”, which can be drunk immediately after a week of infusion.
Where the bitter hunting tincture came from is not exactly known. Logically, the aromatic herbs included in its composition were collected in the forest by hunters, mushroom pickers, herbalists. The tincture perfectly helps to warm up in cold weather, on winter fishing, on a hike – it invigorates, but does not discoordinate, especially since it is difficult to overdo it with this drink – it is painfully sharp and saturated. A couple of “Hunter’s” glasses will help you relax after hard work, a long day in the cold, it is perfect as an aperitif for game or spicy, spicy meat dishes, it will help digest food and increase your appetite.
“There was a pause of thirty seconds between the first and second glasses of hunting, and I am not a superman to do something in thirty seconds. Yes, the superman would have collapsed after the first glass of hunting, without drinking the second … “
V. Erofeev
It is known that the General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev, an excellent shooter and a lover of stormy feasts, was very fond of vodka “Hunting”, as well as bison. Allegedly, the release of the first industrial batch of tincture was timed to coincide with his anniversary, which pleased both the leader of the country and ordinary hard workers.
And a certain Andrey Lazarev in his blog claims that the recipe for “Hunting” was told to his grandfather by a fugitive smuggler, who, in turn, learned it from … a forest sorceress. I won’t argue, but I haven’t heard that star anise, for example, or black peppercorns are used for occult practices. Or port, for that matter.
In general, enough demagoguery – to recipes!
The simplest recipe for tincture “Hunting” on vodka
This recipe appears in many sources, including Alkofan, a video blogger widely known in narrow circles, who tested it. This tincture has little in common with the “Hunting” made according to Soviet GOSTs. But this does not mean at all that the drink will not taste good. An excellent spicy-spicy tincture, extremely simple in ingredients and preparation.
For a liter of vodka you will need:
- 50 grams of dill seed
- 40 grams of horseradish
- Juniper berries (30 pieces – if red, “Prickly Juniper”, 20-25 – if blue, “Common Juniper”). Remember that some varieties of juniper are poisonous, read this article first.
- 2 grams ground pepper
- 3-5 grams of salt
The preparation is very simple. Horseradish needs to be cleaned and cut into pieces, juniper – crushed with your fingers. Pour all the ingredients into a suitable jar, pour alcohol and keep in a dark place for 14 days, then filter through gauze. You can taste the tincture already at this stage, but it is better to wait another week for it to clear up and filter it through a cotton swab.
Soviet “Hunting” without distillation
This recipe is a simplified copy of a real Soviet one according to GOST USSR. An alembic is not needed here, the effect is achieved by maceration. Accordingly, the weight of the ingredients is significantly reduced by the author so that the drink does not turn out to be too saturated. First, the concentrate is made, and only then – the “Hunter” itself. A big plus of this technology is that you can adjust the intensity of taste and aroma yourself by adding the extract to the main drink and tasting it a little bit.
Ingredients (for spicy infusion-concentrate):
- alcohol 70% – 200 ml;
- dried lemon peel – 3 g;
- dried orange peel – 3g;
- ginger (fresh, grated) – 2g;
- coffee (in beans) – 2g;
- galangal root (cinquefoil) – 1g;
- angelica root – 1g;
- cloves – 1g;
- star anise – 1g;
- black pepper (ground) – 0.3g;
- red pepper (ground) – 0.2g;
- juniper – 0.2g
Pour all the ingredients with alcohol and leave for 2 weeks in a dark place, filter through a cotton or other filter, after which the infusion is ready for blending.
Ingredients (for final drink):
- Concentrated infusion “Hunting” – about 120 ml;
- White port – 30 ml;
- Fructose – 0.5 tsp;
- Alcohol 40% – 850 ml.
Combine liquids, add fructose, mix well and taste. Is the tincture not strong enough? Add concentrate. On the contrary, would you like to make it less intense? Add the rest of the ingredients.
Important! After blending, the drink must necessarily stand for at least two weeks, preferably more, so that its taste is rounded, the aromas “make friends”, and also a possible precipitate falls out. If necessary, after settling, it must be filtered again. Everything, the bitter tincture “Hunting” is ready for use!
Vodka “Hunting” with distillation
This is the most authentic recipe, taken from the Soviet reference book “Recipes for alcoholic beverages and vodkas”, 1981. Naturally, the number of ingredients and the nuances of technology are adapted to domestic needs.
Preparation of aromatic alcohol “Hunting”:
To produce our vodka according to this recipe, you first need to make aromatic alcohol. To do this, we take all the spices and spices, throw them into a cube and distill them together with a water-alcohol mixture with a strength of 50%.
Ingredients:
- Alcohol 50% – 2 liters;
- Ginger root – 20 grams;
- Galangal root – 10 grams;
- Angelica root – 10 grams;
- Cloves – 10 grams;
- Black pepper (peas) – 3 grams;
- Capsicum red – 2 grams;
- Juniper – 2 grams;
- Star anise – 10 grams;
- Coffee (grains) – 20 grams;
- Dried lemon peel – 30 grams;
- Dried orange peel – 34 grams.
In total, we will get 151 grams of solid ingredients that need to be mixed with 2 liters of alcohol, insisted for 12 hours and overtaken with a small selection of heads. The result should be about 1.2 liters of aromatic 75% alcohol, which is enough to prepare 10 liters of the final drink.
Preparation of vodka “Hunter”
For 1 liter of product we will need:
- Aromatic alcohol “Hunting” – 120 ml;
- White port – 20 ml;
- Sugar – 5 grams;
- Caramel – as needed;
- Purified alcohol 40% or vodka – about 800-900 ml.
We dilute the aromatic alcohol with vodka according to the alcohol meter, so that its strength reaches 45-50%. Add port wine and sugar, tint the drink with caramel until it acquires a medium brown hue. After that, the tincture is kept in a dark place for 2-3 weeks, if necessary – filtered.
The recipe, of course, is complicated, but the “Hunting” tincture as a result will turn out exactly the one that was produced in the USSR, without any liberties.
Today, using the example of Okhotnichnaya, we have analyzed 3 main ways to create homemade tinctures: the easiest, when the drink is aged on alcohol and drunk, more complex, with preliminary preparation of a spicy extract, and the most correct, with aromatic alcohol. We hope these principles will help you in your home experiments!