- wild Vashon Island blackberry collected at my folks place on Sylvan Beach - my Dad loves this one;
- nocino, a walnut liqueur from Italy... green walnuts from mio amico John Welch at Pleasant Hill Winery in Carnation;
- red currant from my Grandma Elaine's - may God rest her soul! - bushes in Tacoma... first try at this one... should be great;
- and black currant from my garden - could be my favorite berry liqueur.
The basic recipe I follow for berry liqueurs (I also have a tasty mulberry liqueur from my stunning and prodigious mulberry tree - may God rest her soul!) is as follows:
- Combine 1 lb. bruised or barely mashed fruit and 1.5 cup pure grain alcohol. Let sit for 2 weeks or so, shaking every few days.
- Strain through cheese cloth-lined mesh strainer.
- Prepare simple syrup: heat 1.25 cups sugar in 1.5 cups purfied water until just dissolved.
- Mix alcohol and syrup. You may drink right away, though most of these will improve with age.
Nocino is different altogether with several other ingredients. I am happy to share the recipe I use, just let me know. Fiorino, or loosley translated, "Fiore's little liqueur", is a mix of herbs from my garden with some spices I cannot grow here. The picture up top shows this year's batch macerating away. Like a craft brewer reimaging a seasonal brew, each year for the past 3-4 years, I've used a different combination. I just prepared this year's batch and I kept it simple: just a bunch of rose geranium and lemon verbena, a tiny bit of chamomile, plus a little bit of cinnamon and cardamon - no bay, sage, lavender, tarragon, or other herbs. Once my cultured and feral fennel is in full seed mode, I will make some anisette - very simple but very good. Think of your typical anisette or anisone or Sambuca.
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