Blackberry Liqueur
Why I Love This Recipe
This came about from a drink I grew crazy about when I was lost one time on an island in the Puget Sound. I came across this distillery that was on this farm in the middle of nowhere and they had the best fruit liqueur I ever had. I used this to drink this straight, but it is also amazing over ice cream. However, when I moved back to Wisconsin there were no distributors here that carried their brand, so I had to try to recreate it on my own. I only had two real facts to go off of – the fact that they said that each bottle had 1 pound of fruit and that they also sold a few other neutral spirits that they distilled on location.
So with that knowledge and a lot of experimentation, I went about trying to get this as close as I could to the few bottles I had brought with me. I have been told that this version is better than the bottles I brought back, but it still does not stop me from tinkering it a little bit here and there still to get it “just right”. It also makes a good gift, the picture from above is what is left of the bottles I made to give out to my family for Christmas.
This can be made with pretty much any berry (blackberry, blueberry, raspberry, boysenberry, or (my favorite) loganberry). I have used blackberry only because it is the easiest to obtain. But if you can find loganberries near you – you won’t regret using that instead!
--Mike L.
--Milwaukee, WI
Ingredients You'll Need
1 750ml bottle of Brandy
2 pounds (600g) blackberries
1.5c (300g) white sugar
Directions
Macerate the blackberries to release the juices. I usually macerate 3-4 blackberries at a time in a bowl and just keep adding blackberries. Not only does it keep it in one place, it helps further mash the blackberries already in the bowl.
Once blackberries are macerated, use a funnel and pour them into a growler sized contain (roughly 64 fl oz or 2L). Add in sugar, cap, and shake to incorporate. Using a funnel again, add in brandy until container is full. Cap and shake again.
Let the mixture sit anywhere from 14 – 30 days. If blackberries are looking “white/bleached” in the container, this is also a sign that the process has completed. Once this process has finished, strain the liquid using a cheese cloth or fine mesh to separate the solids from it.
Bottle in whatever desired bottle you wish. From here, I usually let this sit again for another 14 days to mellow out the flavor. The flavor gets better over time as any drink does – so I would recommend against drinking it before 2 weeks as it will still be too “young”. Depending on the brandy you use, the final ABV will be around 20-23%.
