Homemade Cherry Liqueur

I have been on a cherry liqueur making quest of Arthurian proportions. It started eight years ago in the first home we owned where my homesteading passion was first ignited. Cherries were in "season" and I somehow ended up with an abundance of them. I had this really cool book whose title I no longer recall**that had lots of recipes for staples of a Mediterranean pantry. Among those recipes was one for cherry liqueur. I'm not generally a huge fan of liqueurs but the picture was so pretty, the color so shiny and attractive I knew it was something I needed to have in my own pantry.

It is suggested that you use Morello cherries or another sour cherry variety for best flavor. I had only dark Bing cherries and figured- why not? Because there is nowhere in Sonoma County where you can find or buy sour cherries. A huge oversight on everyone's part there. Another suggestion is that you use 100 proof vodka or some kind of Everclear. I could not locate 100 proof to save my life.

I went ahead and made the liqueur using the Bings and 80 proof vodka. My friend Sharon was inspired by this recipe too and made some as well. Fast forward a few months of letting the cherries steep drunkenly in my kid's dark closet. I pulled it out and admired the rich red color which appeared just as it should. The moment of truth turned out to be a huge let down. It tasted like stewed overly sweet fruit. That's not a taste I like having in my mouth. Sharon's actually did turn out to be very good but she didn't follow the directions exactly and failed to take notes on what she did so none of us will ever know the secret to making good liqueur with sweet cherries.

I tried again the next year and had another spectacular disappointment. Then I did it one more time two years after that and still ended up feeling deflated. Most people would have given up. Instead of giving up I decided that I was going to make a good cherry liqueur if it killed me.

This year was the first time since moving to Oregon that I returned to my old quest for cherry truth. It's not impossible to find sour cherries here which is a huge bonus and one of the reasons why I love Oregon. It is also not difficult to find 100 proof vodka though you have to go to a state liquor store and can't buy it on Sundays. After years of running the gauntlet only to crash and burn I could finally reasonably hope for success. It has seemed to become clear to me that there was a reason for the suggestions that book made.

And there are. Although I long ago got rid of that book because it seemed to have failed me so miserably and set me on this ridiculous path, the recipe I followed this year is nearly identical if you ignore all the things I did. You will need these ingredients:

1.5 pounds sour red cherries, cut in half with the pit left in one side
1.5 cups granulated sugar
2.5 cups 100 proof vodka
small piece of cinnamon

You put a third of the cherries in a half gallon sized jar, then pour a third of the sugar in. Do the next third of the cherries and the next third of the sugar. Then do the last third of both. So it is layered in the jar. If you want to use the cinnamon add it now. Then pour the vodka in. I guess the layering is just for fun because then you stir it all up. Every recipe I've read always calls for layering the ingredients in the jar first. Stir it up, cap it, and then put it in a cool, dry, dark place.

For the first two weeks shake the jar up at least once every day. This makes sure that the sugar completely dissolves. After that let it age for 3 months.

Strain out the cherries and pour the liqueur into bottles.

I have finally made a cherry liqueur worth drinking. It's worth talking about. I have more to say about it but I must post this right now because I have to attend to some business. Please consider making this one next year!

If you do decide to make it but choose not to do it EXACTLY as I've told you- you have only yourself to blame for the results. You should realize that eight years of doing it wrong has really paid off for you because you can go ahead and do it right the first time.

*They really haven't been grown commercially in Sonoma County for many years so they aren't ever technically in season there. But I digress...return to the meat of the story now.

**Because the only recipe I ever tried in it sucked I ended up getting rid of it, now I wish I had it back.