Raspberry Vodka

Keeping in theme with the previous post, I'm currently half way through making some raspberry vodka, so here are the details for making that.

Raspberry Vodka
Makes 1 litre

450g raspberries (3 punnets)
1L vodka
sugar, to taste

I always use Smirnoff, as I think it's a good quality vodka and reasonably priced. You could use a cheap vodka, but if you're going to the trouble of making this, then why not use something you're happy to drink neat?

I have a 2L glass canning jar that I use for this, but any jar that will fit the vodka and the raspberries in is fine (the vodka bottle will be a bit too small, but hang on to it if you like to put the vodka back in at the end).

Put the raspberries and vodka into the jar. Add about 1/4 cup sugar. Seal it up and give it a light shake, to dissolve some of the sugar. Give it a little shake every day for a week, until the sugar is dissolved. Let it sit in a cool, dark place for about 3 months. The vodka should be bright red, and the raspberries a little sad looking, but still holding their shape.

Carefully separate out the raspberries from the vodka and eat them with some icecream for a nice boozy dessert.

Test the vodka for sweetness. I don't like to make mine too sweet, but it is personal taste. Add some more sugar a little at a time until you are happy with the flavour. I usually add about another 1/4 cup. Shake/stir to dissolve the sugar. Put this back into the original bottle if you kept it and seal up and leave for another 3 months (if you can). This is definitely the hard part. The longer it sits the more mellow the flavour becomes, but if you can't stand it any longer, then serve over ice and enjoy!

I have also made homemade cointreau in a similar way with strips of orange peel and vanilla extract, using about 6 beans per cup of vodka.