Tincture is an alcoholic drink, the strength of which varies from eighteen to sixty degrees. The tincture is obtained as a result of the interaction of a water-alcohol solution and fruits, berries, spices or herbs. One of the most popular tinctures is mountain ash.
Instructions
Step 1
Getting a good tincture takes time, so be patient. The preparation of the drink will take from three weeks to six months.
Step 2
It should be noted that tinctures differ from another type of homemade alcoholic beverages - liqueurs. They are obtained by fermentation or by simply adding pre-prepared fruit drink to alcohol. In the tincture, essential oils and aromatic substances pass into alcohol directly from the berries, which is why the preparation of this drink takes so much time. A variety of spirits, from gin to whiskey, are also suitable for creating infusions, but it is easier to work with alcohol, since you do not have to mask or play with the original taste of the drink.
Step 3
All tinctures can be categorized as bitter, spicy, and sweet. They differ in taste and strength. Bitter and spicy tinctures usually have a strength of thirty to sixty degrees, and sweet ones - from eighteen to twenty-five.
Step 4
The basic recipe for mountain ash or other berry bitters is very simple. Fill a suitable container two-thirds full with well-washed berries. If you picked mountain ash before the first frost, you can and should hold it in the freezer for a while before preparing the drink, this will soften its taste. Fill the remaining space with alcohol or vodka (this option is becoming more and more popular, since alcohol is quite difficult to buy), it is advisable to pour the liquid under the very lid, this will save it from oxidation.
Step 5
Close the container with a lid or a thick cloth, put in a dark place for at least three weeks. Shake the drink every three to four days. Then filter the resulting tincture through several layers of cloth or a funnel with a filter, pour it into a clean jar or bottle, leave in a cool, dark place for a few more weeks.
Step 6
To make a sweet rowan tincture, add sugar syrup to the finished bitter tincture. You can be guided by your taste preferences, but usually about 250 milliliters of sugar syrup is added for each liter of tincture. To get the sugar syrup, heat the same amount of water and sugar over a fire, stirring constantly. The mixture of tincture and syrup must also be warmed up over a fire, but in no case should it be boiled. Cool the resulting liquid, pour into bottles. Ordinary honey can be used instead of sugar syrup.
