Raspberry Vodka Infusion

As my Man (blog) Overboard post alluded to, I went a little bonkers at my local Farmer’s Market near the end of June. The result was lots and lots of berries. If you are lucky enough to live in a part of the world that didn’t have a diminished berry crop this year, go hog wild. Otherwise, I’m afraid you might be stuck buying from your local grocery store.

If you are skipping your workout to make this infusion, don’t feel too bad about yourself. Why? Did you know raspberries are really good for you? It’s among the plant foods with the healthiest contents (I think). They are a rich source of vitamin C, manganese and are rich in antioxidants. Take that, oxidants!

So there you have it, skip your workout for the betterment of all your friends’ inebriation, um… er…. I mean health.

So, without further ado, I give you… raspberry vodka.

Easy to make, easy to drink!

Preparation Time: About 10 minutes   

Infusion period: 4-7 days

Materials you’ll need:

·      1 pint of fresh raspberries

·      One quart-sized canning jar

·      375ML of vodka (or more if you like)

·      wire strainer or a coffee filter (not pictured)

·      funnel (not pictured)

Recipe:

·      1 pint fresh raspberries

·      375 ML vodka (or more)

Servings:

Approximately 14 drinkable ounces if you fill your entire 1 quart Mason Jar after adding your 1 pint of fresh raspberries.

How to make this tasty drink:

1.     Wash your fresh raspberries, removing any bad berries.

2.     If your canning jar has a measurement on the side like mine, use it to measure your vodka.

3.     Add your berries to your canning jar.

4.     Seal your jar (duh)

Voila!

5.     Don’t forget to add your “ready” date. 

6.     Shake it up.

7.     Store in a cool dry place.

8.     Shake well every day, or even a couple times a day if you’d like. The key to this tasty drink is the juice.

9.     Optional: strain from your canning jar into another container with a coffee filter or cheesecloth if your guests are squeamish about the berry bits.

How to drink your tasty drink:

Much like most infusions, you can serve raspberry vodka many ways. At room temp, cooled in your freezer, over ice or in a martini.

What I learned after doing this for the very first time:

A good scientist always tests their experiments. I’m pretty excited about how the raspberry turned out. Straight up, this drink is pretty dynamic. At first, you taste vodka, with the strong flavor of raspberries chasing quickly behind it. I think the beverage would make for a very interesting mixed drink with soda water, tonic water or a white soda like sprite or 7-Up.

Almost ready to enjoy.

Also, someone asked me if the beverage would get more flavor if you muddle your berries. Muddling the berries will give your drink an unappetizing look, so you’ll have to strain the dickens out of it before serving to guests.

Finally, in the interest of science, I tasted the raspberries. Much like most of my infusions thus far, they tasted very boozalicious and lacked all the flavor of a fresh raspberry. This doesn't surprise me, as much of the berry flavor has been pulled into the vodka. Still, not bad!   

Want some fun mixed drinks?

Raspberry Lemon Drop:

Mix 1 oz. lemon juice, 1 oz. of your raspberry vodka infusion and 1 tsp. sugar in a martini shaker with ice. Shake your little heart out and pour it into a shot glass. I’m told it tastes great when you rim the shot glass with sugar.

Finished product. Yum!

Here’s another to try:

Raspberry Martini

3 oz. Raspberry Vodka, 1 oz. Triple Sec, 1/2 oz. Fresh Lemon Juice & 1/2 oz. Simple Syrup

Mix the above with ice in a martini shaker cup, pour and enjoy!

Recipe Alterations:

I’m interested to hear your feedback. Please, let me know what you think!