Fake Drambuie
Trevor Hyde
> I just love Drambuie but here in the Great White North it is beset by a
> plague of taxes. The base is good Scotch Whisky and honey and some special
> herb or herbs. This is the problem. A lot of internet searches for home made
> liqueurs yielded Rosemary, Alfalfa, Fennel Seed, Star Aniseed as the
> flavoring elements. With the exception of Alfalfa, I doubt if any of these
> flavouring agents are native to the Isle of Skye. Heather? I tried a batch
> using cheap gasohol type scotch, very dark wildflower honey and one
> tablespoon of fresh, finely chopped rosemary soaked for two days. Close but
> no cigar. Did not taste quite right but a mighty fine drink. Next time I
> will use Johnny Walker Black or Chivas but I must have the right botanicals.
> Anyone know what these secretive Scots use?
The real stuff is made with Angelica and a touch of lemon zest. Macerate
the lemon zest overnight and remove from the Scotch, then add the
Angelica
and let it sit for a couple weeks. I forget what Scotch is used. I have
to
admit that I have not gotten the balance right with this one. The
closest
I came in taste was with rosemary and orange blossum honey in Clan
MacGregor.
I think the main problem was finding a source of fresh Angelica (the
stuff
at health food stores is always too old to have any aroma left), and I
have not tried growing it yet.
Trevor
Dianna Visek
edible, I think.
Regards, Dianna
Trevor Hyde
> What part of angelica is used? Roots, seeds, stems, leaves? It's all
> edible, I think.
Good question. I think the root is used for making candy, so that is
what I would guess. Since it is an umbilifor (like dill, fennel and
carrot), I would guess that the seeds pack a lot of flavor as well.
If I remember I'll try growing it next year and see which parts seem
the most appropriate.
Trevor
Colin Malsingh
wrote:
>What part of angelica is used? Roots, seeds, stems, leaves? It's all
>edible, I think.
It's the stems. The plant can grow up to 3-4 feet tall and the stems
become up to half an inch thick.
I can heartily recommend growing it. I bought seed from a garden store
and grew it with little difficulty. I never tried it in whisky, but
infused it in vodka with great success.
However, the best use was in home made mead - it transformed it.
Angelica is a wonderful herb. It's also very nice when crystallized -
much better than the stuff shops sell for putting on cakes etc.
Colin
(To reply direct, replace the obvious with bigfoot)
Dianna Visek
Some herbs can't steep very long without getting yucky. Unlike fruits
or spices.
Regards, Dianna
On Fri, 22 Sep 2000 19:19:03 GMT, Colin Malsingh
<col...@somewhere.com> wrote:
>On Wed, 06 Sep 2000 16:21:12 GMT, dvi...@prairienet.org (Dianna Visek)
>wrote:
>
>>What part of angelica is used? Roots, seeds, stems, leaves? It's all
>>edible, I think.
>
Alf Christophersen
<col...@somewhere.com> wrote:
>However, the best use was in home made mead - it transformed it.
>
>Angelica is a wonderful herb. It's also very nice when crystallized -
>much better than the stuff shops sell for putting on cakes etc.
Try it in rhubarb jam.
Colin Malsingh
>Some herbs can't steep very long without getting yucky. Unlike fruits
>or spices.
Sorry Dianna, I've been out of touch for a while.
It didn't seem to cause any problem leaving it for a long while.
Angelica is quite a gentle taste/aroma.
I think the longer you leave it in, the less there is left (unlike
something powerful like cloves, where you might just want the essence,
but not the full overpowering blast).