BajaNomad - infused tequila

infused tequila

willardguy - 10-23-2013 at 04:51 PM

I was reading earlier about how tequila manufacturer's (don julio.casa noble, all the top shelf brands) lead you to believe theres nothing in there but gods own blue weber, when in fact they add all sorts of crap. they call this "augmentation", and its allegedly rigorously controlled, but of course its not.
anyway I got thinking about making some infused tequila for fun. jalapeno, cucumber,bacon,nuts, fruits, anything works. any nomads ever fool around with this?? here's a link.
http://www.voodootiki.com/infusing-tequila-the-how-to-infuse...

[Edited on 10-24-2013 by willardguy]

Ateo - 10-23-2013 at 05:08 PM

Oh wow. Jalapeño sounds delightful. Cucumber as well. Maybe throw in some Banana for some potassium.

This might be overdoing it

durrelllrobert - 10-23-2013 at 05:16 PM

Paulina - 10-23-2013 at 06:20 PM

Somewhere in my foggy brain I remember a margarita contest. I think it was at the first BBBB at Cielito Lindo in S.Q. There was a cucumber version that was quite tasty. Maybe someone else who was there can fill in the missing pieces, but I think that it was the cucumber margarita that won.

Bacon tequila doesn't sound bad.

P>*)))>{

woody with a view - 10-23-2013 at 06:37 PM

cook off the bacon in the morning and strain the grease into a blender!!! :lol:

Taco de Baja - 10-24-2013 at 07:58 AM

I've done the Jalapeño tequila, came out nice with a pleasant burn at the finish. Blended Jalapeño margaritas are really fun; you get the burn of the Jalapeño and the cooling of the ice.

I’m currently infusing several batches of spiced rum with things like vanilla beans, cloves, cinnamon, allspice, orange peel, mesquite wood chips, chipotle, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, star anise, and Szechwan (Timur) peppers. I find it’s best to use whole spices as it’s easier to remove them when you need to. Different combos and ratios of course give different flavor profiles; I just add things I think will play well together.

Homemade spiced rum is way better than any spiced rum you can buy especially since it is not loaded with sugar, caramel color and who knows what, like a lot of them are. It gets better with aging for months, but you have to taste every now and then and adjust the flavor profile, by adding or removing spices. For example, I have found that the star anise and the allspice have to be removed in about a week, or they will become the dominant taste.

A nice inexpensive, and not harsh, base rum is Cruzan. If you buy the white one you are rewarded your own golden colors that are imparted by all the spices.

Here’s another cheap infusion trick for bakers: Add some vanilla beans to a bottle of vodka (~8-10 per cup), let it soak for 6 months and you will have your own vanilla extract at a fraction of the cost. And like the rum there is no added sugar or other mystery ingredients.

a dfferent fusion

durrelllrobert - 10-24-2013 at 08:24 AM

When I lived up north I had 2 real nice pear trees and when the blossoms formed I would stick the end of the branch in an empty bottle tied to a stronger branch and let the pear grow inside it. After it was mature I removed the stem, filled the bottle with cheap vodka and a little bit of sugar and let it age for about a month.

Pear liquor with a whole pear in the bottle.

dasubergeek - 10-24-2013 at 11:47 AM

Pour off a shot from a fifth of decent tequila reposado. Add a toasted chipotle (the dry kind, not the canned kind) and an avocado leaf. Shake and leave for a week, then strain so it doesn't get overwhelming.

Oh, and it's perfectly possible to infuse bacon into tequila; it's called fat washing. You put the melted fat (not the actual bacon) into the tequila, then shake it up and put it in the fridge. When it solidifies, you lift off the fat, strain the tequila, and voilà, bacon-flavored tequila. Works better with bourbon or rye than with tequila, though.

[Edited on 10-24-2013 by dasubergeek]

willardguy - 10-24-2013 at 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by dasubergeek
Pour off a shot from a fifth of decent tequila reposado. Add a toasted chipotle (the dry kind, not the canned kind) and an avocado leaf. Shake and leave for a week, then strain so it doesn't get overwhelming.

Oh, and it's perfectly possible to infuse bacon into tequila; it's called fat washing. You put the melted fat (not the actual bacon) into the tequila, then shake it up and put it in the fridge. When it solidifies, you lift off the fat, strain the tequila, and voilà, bacon-flavored tequila. Works better with bourbon or rye than with tequila, though.

[Edited on 10-24-2013 by dasubergeek]

does an avocado leaf taste like an avocado or another flavor? also, how do remove those annoying Dibblers from the bottle? :?:

[Edited on 10-24-2013 by willardguy]

Taco de Baja - 10-24-2013 at 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy
does an avocado leaf taste like an avocado or another flavor?

Depending on the variety, it can have an anise-like flavor; with the Guatemalan varieties having the more anise like flavor. Crush a leaf and take a smell.
Some people even use avocado leaves to wrap their Christmas tamales. :light:

bajacalifornian - 10-24-2013 at 05:14 PM

Paulina, I just like hearing from you . . .

Paulina - 10-24-2013 at 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy

... also, how do remove those annoying Dibblers from the bottle? :?:

[Edited on 10-24-2013 by willardguy]

You just take it from their hands, tell them their done. Save some for the rest of us. Their sip wasn't at the bottom.

P>*)))>{

woody with a view - 10-24-2013 at 08:02 PM

^^^F'ing Hi-larious!^^^

dasubergeek - 10-28-2013 at 12:01 PM

Hahahahaha!

Avocado leaf is a slightly anisey taste. Taco de Baja is right that the southern ones are better, but any of them taste like kind of anise-y bay leaves.

What Dibblers? If you mean how do you get the leaves and the chile out, pour the tequila into something else and use a chopstick or something like that. Turn the bottle over, put the chopstick up the neck, and stir in one direction; the chile pieces and avocado leaf pieces will work their way down far enough that you can pluck them out. Or, you know, put them in another bottle and get rid of the 'dirty' one.

Sweetwater - 12-24-2013 at 04:38 PM

I just realized how little I like the sweetened coffee liquors so I've been steeping some Corazon blanco with a dozen coffee beans.....time to break it out for Merry Christmas Eve..... :yes:

BajaParrothead - 12-24-2013 at 05:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Sweetwater
I just realized how little I like the sweetened coffee liquors so I've been steeping some Corazon blanco with a dozen coffee beans.....time to break it out for Merry Christmas Eve..... :yes:

Interesting, eager to hear how it turns out.

durrelllrobert - 12-24-2013 at 05:49 PM

I bought (cross that out) it was free at Duty Free with the purchase of a liter of Don Julio and it was NOT worth that price. Peppers just ruined the taste of an otherwise good tequila.

monoloco - 12-24-2013 at 06:02 PM

I have a tequila infused liver. :lol:

BajaParrothead - 12-24-2013 at 06:17 PM

:lol:

Kalypso - 12-28-2013 at 06:39 PM

I've done quite a few infused tequilas. Some are better than others. Three of the better versions have been

- 5 dried chile de arbols wiped clean of anything on them, into a 5th of tequila. Rest for 3 days, strain out tequila, fish out chiles and rebottle the tequila. Spicy without being over the top.

- Empty a 5th of tequila (Espolon reposado works really great for this version) into another container with a lid. Add about 1 cup of dried jamaica flowers that have been rinsed. Stir and let rest about 4-5 hours. Strain, discard jamaica flowers and then rebottle the tequila. Jamaica has bitter tendencies, don't infuse too long or the tequila will get too bitter. I've not had good luck infusing jamaica past 8 hours without it getting bitter.

- Slice up 3 baskets of fresh, totally ripe strawberries and put them in a container with a lid. Pour in a 5th of tequila, it should cover the strawberries. If it doesn't take out the extra strawberries. Cover and store/ignore in a cool dark place for a month. Save the original tequila bottle. After a month, strain off the tequila and discard the strawberries. Rebottle the tequila in the original bottle. This makes a really nice margarita, one that isn't too sweet or cloying. It also goes down pretty easily on it's own.

I've had good results using Espolon reposado or Centenario plata; meaning the end results was drinkable and mixable.

I had some vanilla infused mezcal last month in Oaxaca that was truly spectacular. That may be my next experiment...although, after tasting George Clooney's Casa Amigo tequila (reposado) with it's heavy vanilla finish, I'm not sure it's tequila and vanilla are made to play together.

I recently infused a partial bottle of rye with some pineapple I had and needed to use up. It was pretty darn good too. Pineapple infused tequila will be an upcoming experiment too.

Biggest failure was with blood oranges.

[Edited on 12-29-2013 by Kalypso]

dasubergeek - 12-28-2013 at 07:08 PM

Casamigos is gross, I agree. I wonder if it tastes like George Clooney.

Kalypso - 12-29-2013 at 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by dasubergeek
Casamigos is gross, I agree. I wonder if it tastes like George Clooney.

Jeez...I hope not

Casa Amigos is pretty dreadful and worse still, it's a poor value for the price.

willardguy - 12-29-2013 at 10:05 PM

what the heck does a Jamaica flower taste like?

dasubergeek - 12-29-2013 at 10:33 PM

Like unsweetened fruit punch—seriously.

Kalypso - 12-30-2013 at 12:04 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy
what the heck does a Jamaica flower taste like?

A lot like unsweetened cranberry juice. It's a member of the sorrel family and fairly floral. It's rumored to have medicinal properties - especially around control of high blood pressure - so why not give some tequila a healthy edge.

Jamaica flowers will turn the tequila a deep vibrant ruby red. Mixed drinks come out a nice shade of fushia. Makes a nice margarita or paloma.