Making infused alcohol is great, because it’s such a small amount of ingredients and yet such a classy gift, similar to last year’s infused oils which went down an absolute treat with my family. While there a multiple different recipes floating around the internet, the basic premise is that you can bung a whole variety of things into alcohol and leave it to infuse. Barely any work required. Also it works out pretty cheap; really high quality alcohol already has a more complex flavour that we don’t want to mess with, so these recipes work best when using middle to low grade alcohol. That’s right, you can use the cheap alcohol and you’ll still look good.

Below are the two recipes I’ve used this year for some festive gifting fun!

Apple & Cinnamon Whisky

Ingredients

  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 3 apples
  • 500ml of middle grade whisky

Instructions

  • Slice and core the apples
  • Place apples and cinnamon sticks in a large glass jar or container. Pour the whiskey over, making sure all the apples are covered
  • Seal and leave for 3 weeks in a cool dark place
  • When happy, strain through cheesecloth and decant into a container of your choice

Redcurrant Vodka

I basically made this one because I had a ton of redcurrants sitting around in my freezer needing to be used! It’s currently still infusing, and the vodka has started to turn a wonderful pink colour.

Ingredients

  • 150g fresh or frozen redcurrants
  • 500ml vodka

Instructions

  • Go through the berries, removing any loose stems and berries that have shrivelled or spoiled
  • Place into a jar or container, fill with vodka making sure all the berries are covered
  • Seal and leave in a cool, dark place for at least 3 weeks, occasionally shaking the bottle
  • When happy, strain through cheesecloth and decant into a container of your choice, you should end up with a vodka that isn’t particularly sweet, which is perfect for combining in cocktails

Until tomorrow, stay magic y’all.

Photos by Yeshen Venema