Kirschwasser: 2 recipes at home

Kirschwasser (Kirschwasser, from German. Kirsche "cherry" and Wasser "water", literally "cherry water") is a strong alcoholic drink made from black sweet cherries.

In simpler terms, it is a cherry (cherry) brandy, but many people call it vodka, moonshine, or tincture.

Kirschwasser simple recipe

Ingredients

1. Black cherry - 900 g

2. Vodka - 375 ml

3. Water - 300 ml

4. Granulated sugar - 450 g

Method of preparation

1. Cherries must be washed, dried and made small cuts with a knife or pierced with a toothpick in 3-5 places.

2. Put the prepared berries in a saucepan, add water and sugar.

3. Bring the mixture to a boil over low heat and then boil for another 5-6 minutes (until the granulated sugar is completely dissolved).

4. As soon as the syrup with cherries has cooled to room temperature, it should be mixed with vodka and poured into a glass container.

5. Then leave the drink for 1 month in a dark place.

6. After the specified time, Kirschwasser must be filtered and then filtered.

7. Pour the finished drink into a glass bottle of a suitable volume and you can start tasting only after cooling the cherry vodka.

Kirschwasser original recipe

Ingredients

1. Black cherries - 8 kg

2. Water - 10 liters

3. Granulated sugar - 2 kg

4. Yeast - 48 g dry or 240 g pressed

The method of preparation

1. Mash the cherries a little with your hands or do it with a wooden spatula.

2. Then pour in water, add white sugar and yeast, mix thoroughly and install a water seal.

3. Every day you need to knock off the cap from the pulp, and mix the wort itself well to enrich it with oxygen. This stage takes from 7 to 10 days.

4. As soon as fermentation is over, we send the wort for distillation.

5. The first distillation is done with steam, without adding dry. Dilute the resulting raw alcohol to 18-20 degrees and put it back into the cube.

6. During the second distillation, heads and tails should be separated. The body of cherry moonshine is selected at a strength of 51-56 degrees. Select the main fraction up to 40-41 degrees.

7. From 8 kg of berries, you will get about 500 ml of distillate, with a strength of 53-56 degrees.

The resulting Kirschwasser is quite sharp and does not have a pronounced cherry flavor, but it has almond notes and even a woody aftertaste. You can also do the following with the finished drink:

1. Age in cork bottles for 2-3 months.

2. Age for 2-3 months in an oak barrel or on oak chips.

3. Add a little fructose to soften the cherry moonshine.

The shelf life of the drink does not exceed 2.5-3 years, store in the basement or refrigerator. It is recommended to serve the drink only chilled.

Update: 27.12.2017

Category: Brandy and Cognac