Making your own flavored booze!

Pear Liqueur
Makes 1 1/2 quarts

3 cups sugar
2 cups water
2 pounds (about 5 medium) fresh ripe pears, stemmed and washed
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 ½ cups 100-proof vodka
1 tablespoon fruit protector (such as Fruit Fresh)

Make a simple syrup by bringing sugar and water to boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir constantly to prevent scorching. Boil 5 minutes or until syrup is clear. Remove from heat and let cool.

Quarter and core pears, then slice thinly and place in a 2-quart jar with a tight-fitting lid. Add lemon zest. Pour in cooled syrup and add vodka and fruit protector. Cover and shake lightly to mix. Let stand in a cool, dark place for 2 weeks.

Strain out solids with a fine-mesh strainer and discard. Transfer liqueur to a clean container and let stand another 2 to 3 weeks. Filter carefully into decorative bottles or decanter.

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This cordial can be served immediately, but it gets better with age. It's adapted from "Cordials From Your Kitchen."

Hazelnut Liqueur
Makes 750 milliliters or 1 fifth

½ cup sugar
¾ cup water
1 cup 100-proof vodka
½ cup brandy
¾ cup hazelnut syrup
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Make a simple syrup by bringing sugar and water to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir constantly to prevent scorching. Boil 5 minutes or until clear, remove from heat and let cool.

Pour into a clean 1-quart jar and add vodka, brandy, hazelnut syrup and vanilla.

Serve immediately or store in a cool, dark place for 1 to 2 months.

Note: Hazelnut syrup is available in the coffee aisle of the grocery store.

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Adding the optional glycerin to the cordial will impart the sweet, slightly thick texture we associate with commercially made liqueurs; adapted from "Cordials From Your Kitchen."

Fresh Mint Liqueur
Makes 750 milliliters or 1 fifth

1 cup fresh mint leaves, stems removed, loosely packed
1 cup 100-proof vodka
½ cup brandy
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
1 teaspoon glycerin (optional)
2 drops green food coloring

Wash mint leaves and dry gently with paper towels. Coarsely chop and place in a 1-quart jar. Add vodka and brandy. Cover and let stand in a cool, dark place for 1 week.

Use a fine-mesh strainer to strain out leaves. Discard. Transfer liquid to a clean jar. Make a simple syrup by bringing sugar and water to boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Boil for 5 minutes or until clear, remove from heat and let cool. Add to vodka mixture, along with glycerin, if using, and green food coloring. Let age 1 to 3 months.

Note: Vegetable glycerin is sold in the pharmacy department of drugstores.

This tasty cream liqueur, also adapted from "Cordials From Your Kitchen," can be made and served immediately. It should be kept in the refrigerator and consumed within one month

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Banana Cream Liqueur
Makes 1 quart

2 ½ cups Cream Base (see recipe)
½ cup sugar
½ cup water
1 cup 80-proof vodka
1 ½ teaspoons banana flavoring extract
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
6 drops yellow food coloring

Make Cream Base.

Make a simple syrup by bringing sugar and water to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir constantly to prevent scorching. Boil 5 minutes or until clear, remove from heat and let cool.

Combine syrup, cream base and vodka in a 1-quart jar. Shake to mix. Add flavoring, vanilla and food coloring, cover tightly and shake to mix. Store in the fridge for up to 1 month.

Cream base:
Makes about 1 1/2 quarts

1 ¼ cups sugar
1 ¼ cups water
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
1 cup whipping cream

Make a simple syrup by bringing sugar and water to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Boil 5 minutes or until clear. Remove from heat and let cool.

Combine simple syrup with remaining ingredients in a 2-quart jar and shake to mix. Store in the fridge and use as needed in cream-based liqueurs.

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This is a beautiful, clear liqueur with a lovely taste. Adding glycerin will give it a luscious mouth-feel. Unlike most liqueurs, this one does not require filtering, so you can make it and present it in the same bottle. The recipe is adapted from "Cordials From Your Kitchen."

Vanilla Bean Liqueur
Makes 750 milliliters or 1 fifth

1 ½ cups sugar
1 cup water
2 whole vanilla beans
1 teaspoon glycerin (optional)
1 ½ cups 80-proof vodka

Make a simple syrup by bringing sugar and water to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Boil 5 minutes or until clear. Remove from heat and let cool.

Pour cooled syrup into a 1-quart container or decorative bottle. Add vanilla beans, glycerin, if desired, and vodka. Cover quickly to prevent alcohol evaporation. Store in a cool, dark place for a month to allow the flavor to mature.

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Limoncello is the premier Italian after-dinner cordial. It is usually kept in the freezer for the most refreshing taste.

Limoncello can keep for several years without spoiling. It is best to use lemons that have not been waxed or sprayed with pesticides, as the liqueur gets all of its flavor from the peel.

Pure grain alcohol, such as Everclear, is illegal in many states but not Wisconsin. It comes in 151- and 190-proof versions. Both versions evaporate very quickly when exposed to air, so be sure that you have a vacuum seal on your container as your liqueur steeps. This recipe is adapted from Sur La Table's "Gifts Cooks Love" (2010, $25) by Diane Morgan.

Limoncello
Makes 4 (1-liter) bottles

15 organic lemons, well scrubbed
2 bottles (750 milliliters each) 151-proof or 190-proof alcohol, such as Everclear
4 cups sugar
9 ½ cups water (divided)

Pat lemons dry and, using a sharp vegetable peeler, remove the peel, being careful not to lift up any of the white pith, as this imparts bitterness.

Place peels in a large 4-quart jar or divide evenly between two 2-quart jars. Pour in one bottle of alcohol over peels (or divide between jars accordingly), pushing them down with a spoon to ensure they are well covered. Cover mixture tightly and let sit in a cool, dark place 3 to 4 weeks.

Add second bottle of liquor (or divide evenly accordingly).

Boil sugar and 7 ½ cups water in a large saucepan 5 to 6 minutes, stirring constantly, until liquid is clear. Remove from heat and let cool. Add to alcohol mixture. Let mixture sit another 3 to 4 weeks. Eventually liquid will absorb the flavor of the peels and turn bright yellow.

Strain liquid through a fine-mesh strainer or coffee filter. Add remaining water to mixture, using 1 2/3 cups if you used 151-proof alcohol or 2 cups if you used 190-proof. This will turn it a desirable cloudy, pale yellow.

Transfer liqueur to decorative 1-liter bottles and seal tightly.

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This recipe by Nick Kosevich and Ira Koplowitz of Milwaukee's Bittercube can be adapted for any citrus fruit.

Basic Orange Liqueur
Makes 1 gallon

10 oranges
4 cups orange juice (from oranges)
3 cups sugar
1 cup honey
6 cups vodka

Rinse off oranges and peel with a sharp vegetable peeler, being careful not to scrape any of the white pith, which imparts bitterness. Squeeze juice from peeled oranges and add extra juice, if necessary, to get 4 cups of orange juice.

In medium saucepan over medium-high heat, bring orange peel, juice, sugar and honey to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Let cool.

Pour juice mixture into a 1-gallon jug and add vodka. Let rest at least three months and agitate daily as possible.

After three months, strain off solids and bottle in decorative containers.

Pineapple Basil

2-20 oz. cans pineapple slices and juice

3 T. freshly chopped basil leaves

2 c. vodka

Steep all ingredients together in tightly sealed jar or bottle, away from direct sunlight for at least 30 days. Gently shake the mixture daily. After 30 days, strain all solids and add simple syrup to taste.

Strawberry Rosemary

4 c. chopped strawberries

1-1/2 c. white brandy

3-4 sprigs fresh rosemary

Wash, stem and use paper towel to dry the strawberries, then chop and place in jar. Pour brandy over the strawberries, and add the rosemary sprigs. Steep in covered jar for 3 months. Gently shake the mixture daily. After 3 months, strain all solids and add simple syrup to taste.

The Compleat Anachronist #60 – Alcoholic Drinks of the Middle Ages By Mark Shapiro, Published March 1992

Making Liqueurs for Gifts By Mimi Freid, Storey Publishing Bulletin A-101

Kitchen Cordials By Nancy Crosby & Sue Kenny, last published in 1996

Herbal Cookery – Herb Recipes from a Kitchen Garden By Dixie L. Stephen Hearts & Tummies Cookbook Company, ISBN 1-57166-094-1

Making Wild Wines & Meads By Pattie Vargas & Rich Gulling, Storey Books,
ISBN 1-58017-182-6

A Sip through Time – A Collection of Old Brewing Recipes By Cindy Renfrow, ISBN 0-9628598-3-4

Homemade Liqueurs By Dona and Mel Meilbach,
ISBN 0-8092-7582-1

Cordials from Your Kitchen By Pattie Vargas & Rich Gulling, Storey Publishing, ISBN 0-88266-986-9

The Madison Herb Society Cookbook Published in 1995