Skittles

08.27.09 Skittles: Five test sizes

We used 50 skittles for 6.25 oz vodka (1/4 of 750ml bottle). We separated the skittles into their colors. We bought at 14 oz bag of skittles, and had plenty left over for all the colors...except for green, which only had 45 skittles for some reason. Poor green. :( We'll shake these up multiple times in the next day and then filter, as we want to have them ready for our vodka tasting party - Philly edition which takes place tomorrow night.

08.28.09 Filtering & Tasting

We filtered this using the mesh coffee filter and it was a pain! The skittles, when fully "dissolved," leave a gross white greasy residue (think crisco) in the filter. These each had to be filtered at least 3 times to get out the gunk. Even then, not all of it is able to be filtered and it eventually settles into a layer.

These are very pretty little infusions. They definitely taste like skittles and the individual flavors can be told apart. They're pretty good.

12.31.09 Skittle color decay

Somewhere along the way, L noticed that there were 4 red skittle vodkas in the liquor cabinet at E's house, when we had only made 2. Strange. Upon closer inspection, we found that the purple skittle vodka had decayed into red. Now the only way to tell red and purple apart is to taste test.

Caramel

07.18.09 Caramel test size - the easy way

We purchased small containers to small batch tests so we can scale it later.

2 cubes of Kraft caramel. 6.25 oz Fris vodka (1/4 bottle). Shaken vigorously. (Mad Scientists used 8 cubes for 750 ml vodka.)

07.19.09 Taste Test

Here's the caramel infusion before the two cubes are fully dissolved:

12 hours later the two caramel cubes are dissolved. Taste test.

L: moderate caramel flavor, all vodka at the end.

E: agrees.

Added one more cube of caramel.

~24 hours after the original infusion, we tasted the 3 caramel cube version and declared it to be done.

Tastes sweet and caramel at the beginning but still has vodka burn at the end.

08.16.09 Tweaking the infusion

We still had a lot of the test size left, and Emilio was unhappy with it. So we added one more cube of caramel.

Recipe - the inferior version

750 ml vodka

12+ cubes of Kraft caramel

Approximately 12 hours 'infusion' time, with occasional vigorous shaking to mix




12.12.09 Caramel - the right way

L's friend Anne is a frequent cat-sitter, and L said she'd make her a vodka as a thank you gift. Anne requested caramel, but made by caramelizing sugar. L & E tried to make the caramel. We had no idea what we were doing. E found a helpful website: How to Make the Perfect Caramel We followed the instructions there and, given that L is a klutz, E made her wear full protective gear, apron and oven mitts (see pic). In an attempt to get "just past" the point where it starts to smoke, we left the first batch on for ~10 seconds too long. The caramel burned. It was clear it had burned so we threw it out right away.

The next time we had better success. We were experimenting with 12.5 oz vodka, and we used 1/2 c sugar. We got the caramel quite dark, and the vodka had a nice rich, almost buttery taste. L thought there was a hint of burnt caramel flavor. E declared that one a success. The best part about the caramel is how cool it looks when it is poured into the vodka, it bubbles up and forms solid structures within the vodka.

Note: Later that week, E decided that he could taste a teeny bit of burnt caramel flavor in that vodka, so L doctored it up ad added another 1/2c of caramel, which helped. 

The caramel solidifies within minutes, but before that it's still hot, so if you're going to taste test, be careful!






A few days later, L moved onto making the version for Anne. This was 750 ml Fris with 1 cup sugar. After several rounds of taste testing, the final formula that Anne and L determined was 2c caramelized sugar for 750 ml vodka. The caramel does add volume but not the full volume. The hard carmel can be shaken when poured into the vodka, but in general it will dissolve within 8 hours, if left unshaken.

Our caramel making tips: We really like the website linked above. However, for our purposes, we say the caramel is done the instance it shows any sign of smoking. We find the flavor just fine, and are significantly less likely to run the risk of burning it. 

Here's what the finished Caramel vodka looks like:

Recipe

750 ml vodka
2 cups caramelized sugar

Spiced Cider

10.10.09 Spiced Cider

We decided it was time to do a seasonal flavor to welcome in the fall, and to try out at our upcoming CT vodka tasting party. We debated between a Pumpkin Spice vodka and a Spiced Cider, and decided that the Spiced Cider would be much more versatile and we should go with that one.

We did minimal research on this and decided to stick with the recipe for the Mad Scientists' spiced cider infused vodka, and to more-or-less follow their methods.

We took one apple, cored it, sliced it thinly, and added it to 750 ml Fris vodka. We also dropped in a cinnamon stick.

10.16.09 First apple replacement

Emilio took out the apple slices and replaced them with new ones.

10.21.09 Second apple replacement

Again, replace old apple slices with new apple slices.

10.22.09 Adding the spices

Emilio removed the cinnamon stick...because the directions say so. We set it aside to add back in later, should that be necessary. He also peeled an orange and put two orange wedges in the infusion, after tearing the wedges in half, to help provide surface area for the alcohol to access the orange. Three nutmeg seeds were also added at this point. Emilio was wondering if the nutmeg should be whole or not, given that it seems like it would be difficult to extract the flavor from the seed while it is still whole. We threw them in and decided we'd make changes later, if needed.

10.25.09 More spices

We tasted this one today and it was good! A good apple flavor. However, not as complex as a spiced cider. Hopefully the additions today will help! We added 20 whole all spice berries (~3g) and 24 cloves (~3g). Our digital scale wasn't very reliable with the weights, but they're in the correct ballpark. From the Mad Scientists recipes, we expect this one to be done in a day or two.

10.26.09 Needs another day

E did a taste test. The cinnamon needs to get put back in; there is almost no cinnamon flavor. The cloves etc, may be ready to come out tomorrow. The orange-to-apple balance is fine. There is still not much of a nutmeg taste. It currently tastes like apple juice, so we need more time for the spices to infuse. The cinnamon stick was put back in. E will taste test again in a day or two.

10.27.09 Almost done

E tasted it, and decided it was nearly done. He says it has much more of the holiday spice right at the front and fades into a apple cider. No vodka burn what so ever. L can't wait to try it. E thinks that it needs more cinnamon, so he's removing everything but the cinnamon stick. He'll test it again tomorrow.

The cloves and nutmeg are soft. The nutmeg seeds that weren't split are at the bottom.

11.22.09 Let's do it again!

We like the spiced cider so much that we decided to make a lot more of it. We divided a 1.75L bottle of Fris between 2 containers. We decided to use 3 different apples for the infusion, like we did for the previous version. Also, we decided to use 3 tangerine wedges instead of 2 orange wedges to increase the sweetness.

For each container:

875 ml Fris vodka, one thinly sliced Rome apple.

11.27.09

For each container: Removed old apple slices. Put in one thinly sliced Macintosh apple and a cinnamon stick.

12.02.09

For each container: Removed old apple slices. Put in one thinly sliced Golden delicious apple. Put in 3 nutmeg seeds, cut in half. Also added 3 tangerine wedges, with a slice in the wedge to aid in the infusing. E said he will taste test more often now as we're doing something different with the nutmeg and the cinnamon might be reaching its max. E said he's going to taste it tomorrow so it doesn't get "too cinnamoninized."

12.03.09

E removed the cinnamon stick.