Rhubarb Liqueur
Rhubarb liqueur has a delightful rhubarb flavor (and color), and it's just sweet enough to enjoy on it's own. Or, add it to your favorite rhubarb cocktails!
Servings: 16 servings (about 1 quart)
Ingredients
- 6 cups rhubarb stalks chopped (about 1 1/2 pounds)
- 1 cup sugar plus more to taste, see notes
- 750 ml vodka or neutral spirit
Instructions
- Mix the chopped rhubarb with the sugar and place it into a large jar. (A half gallon mason jar works great.) Allow the fruit to macerate in the sugar for about 24 hours, until it's released it's juices.
- Add the vodka over the top of the macerated fruit and cap the jar tightly.
- Allow the fruit to infuse into the vodka for about 4 to 6 weeks.
- Once fully infused, strain through a fine mesh strainer.
- Taste, and add sugar if necessary. (See note)
- Bottle and store at room temperature.
Notes
Sugar
This recipe uses 1 cup sugar, which is 1/2 pound, to a total of 1 1/2 cups chopped rhubarb. That's a 1:3 ratio by weight. Some recipes use as much as a 1:1 ratio, which would be a full 3 cups of sugar (or 2 additional cups of sugar). If you'd like a sweeter liqueur, feel free to add more sugar. To help the sugar dissolve, make a simple syrup first, using a 1:1 ratio of water to sugar by volume and heating it on the stove. Allow the simple syrup to cool completely before adding it to the liqueur. The initial 1 cup of sugar is there to help the rhubarb give up their color and flavor into the mixture. Without the sugar at the start, rhubarb does not turn the vodka a red color and it doesn't let out nearly as much juice to flavor the liqueur.Shelf Life
Liqueurs are high in alcohol and they won't ever spoil or go bad. They will, however, slowly lose color and flavor intensity. For peak flavor, use within a year, and store out of direct sunlight at room temperature. This particular liqueur is delicious chilled, and you can place it in the freeser about half an hour before serving for a chilled drink.Nutrition
Calories: 168kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 0.4g | Fat: 0.1g | Saturated Fat: 0.02g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.04g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.02g | Sodium: 2mg | Potassium: 132mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 47IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 39mg | Iron: 0.1mg