# cherry cognac



## winemaker81 (Jul 3, 2021)

Last year we over-purchased cherries and I had a bag of overripe cherries that I was going to have to toss. Being frugal (that's being nice, realistically I'm cheap), I pitted the cherries and put them in a jar with inexpensive cognac. I let 'em steep a couple of months, strain it, diluted from 80 proof down to 60 proof with a 1:1 sugar syrup. I netted three 375 ml bottles + most of a 4th.

It came out pretty good, we finished the 4th bottle, and the other 3 have been sitting on the shelf since then. I opened one the other night and am very pleased.

Now? We did the over-buying thing again, as my wife & I got wires crossed. So on the 30th, I mixed 22 oz pitted cherries with 6-3/4 cups cognac (actually French brandy, which I like better the cheap American brandy), and started a new batch. When I was done I was concerned that I had too little fruit for the amount of cognac.

Cherries in Aldi's were very inexpensive today, so I purchased another pound. Most of the remainder of last week's purchase (12 oz) went into the mix, so the ratio is 34 oz cherries to 6-3/4 cups cognac. The color is already beautiful after 4 days of steeping, although the aroma is more cognac than cherry at this point. In a couple of months that will change.









Cherry Cognac, June 2021 – Bryan's Wine & Beer Making Site







wine.bkfazekas.com


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## Ty520 (Jul 5, 2021)

Nice. I do the same with bourbon for cocktail cherries.

Also really nice to do fruit infused gin


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## Khristyjeff (Jul 5, 2021)

winemaker81 said:


> Last year we over-purchased cherries and I had a bag of overripe cherries that I was going to have to toss. Being frugal (that's being nice, realistically I'm cheap), I pitted the cherries and put them in a jar with inexpensive cognac. I let 'em steep a couple of months, strain it, diluted from 80 proof down to 60 proof with a 1:1 sugar syrup. I netted three 375 ml bottles + most of a 4th.
> 
> It came out pretty good, we finished the 4th bottle, and the other 3 have been sitting on the shelf since then. I opened one the other night and am very pleased.
> 
> ...


Were those Bing cherries at Aldi or something else? Sounds tasty.


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## winemaker81 (Jul 5, 2021)

Ty520 said:


> Nice. I do the same with bourbon for cocktail cherries. Also really nice to do fruit infused gin


I'm debating on buying more cherries as I have most of a 1.75 liter bottle of bourbon.

Cherries in gin? Huh, hadn't considered that, but it sounds interesting. I like the Tanqueray w/lime, now I'm thinking of making my own version ....



Khristyjeff said:


> Were those Bing cherries at Aldi or something else? Sounds tasty.


All are red cherries, but I'm not 100% positive all are Bing. The first bag was from Harris Teeter, the second from CostCo, and the last from Aldi's.

@Ty520 is got me thinking about stopping at Aldi's today and getting another bag, as I have most of a 1.75 liter bottle of Evan Williams 10 yo in the cabinet ...


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## Ty520 (Jul 5, 2021)

winemaker81 said:


> I'm debating on buying more cherries as I have most of a 1.75 liter bottle of bourbon.
> 
> Cherries in gin? Huh, hadn't considered that, but it sounds interesting. I like the Tanqueray w/lime, now I'm thinking of making my own version ....
> 
> ...


Not just cherries in gin - other berries as well. Blackberry is a personal favorite


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## winemaker81 (Jan 21, 2022)

I strained the cherries the other night, running the liquid through coffee filters to remove the sediment. Last night I made 1:1 sugar syrup and blended in the ratio: 3 cups cherry-cognac with 1 cup syrup and 1 oz glycerin. I had a bit more than two 750 ml bottles of base, so I netted 5.5 split bottles. [The extra half bottle is in the cupboard, calling my name seductively!]

The flavor is quite different from the last time -- it's not as strong in the cognac flavor, which I attribute to the larger amount of cherries and the longer maceration time. I like this one better.

Next I need to print a sheet of labels. The background graphic is a chateau in Cognac.


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## MarcOlivetti (Jan 23, 2022)

Bryan, why don’t you save ~1\2 cup of those strained Cherries to mix up in Jell-O. My parents use to make Apricot, Peach, and Cherry Brandy using the fruit after straining in Jell-O. It was an Easter favorite  and really packed a punch.


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