1lb of fruit (frozen is cheaper but fresh is better)
Any berry type fruit can be used and Raspberrys were absolutely wonderful for this !
16 oz s of Sugar
1 pint of water
1/2 bottle of vodka (cheap is perfect for this )
vanilla extract is optional
Boil fruit,water and sugar untill totally cooked and mushy then strain with a sieve. Leave to cool totally and then mix liquid with Vodka and then bottle into sterilised bottles.
We experimented here using chocolate instead of fruit and if you replace half the water with a can of condensed milk and use 12 ozs of sugar it works really really well. We used a 80 % chocolate bar which meant we had solid cocoa bits that needed straining but wow was it chocolaty !!!!
Lady Lesley's Scrimping and Scrumping blog 
Lovely Lesley i wish i could be like you and know for sure what to pick from the wild garden like you and John from RIVER COTTAGE DOSE
will try liquer
Once made, how long do you need to leave before drinking? Thanks.
3 weeks is ideal but its perfectly drinkable straight after making. If left for 3 weeks the vodka regenerates.
Hello, once made how long will the liqueur keep for?
It depends on how much Vodka is in it. If its fruity less time or it will ferment but more alcohol will keep it sterile and the fridge helps
hi what kind of bottle needs to be used for this or can i use any ?? Thanks
Any its not fizzy
hi ladylesley many many thanks for your recipies in the middle of making the berry wine keep up the good work wish i could live as you do very eye opening but very interesting Thanks
You are very welcome Norma,have a lovely Christmas
Hi Lady Lesley, I made your Blackberry Liquer using blackberries I had scrumped in the Autumn then frozen. It turned out excellent, I even gave a bottle as a Christmas present. I am now going to try out the chocolate liquer with the other half bottle of vodka.
Thank you and a Happy New year
Carolyn
Good Im really glad. Im sure you will enjoy the chocolate one too
I made this with raspberries – it lasted 3 days. Totally irresistible!
Lol Good Im glad.
Look out for the new Superscrimpers series. If anyone would like to do a masterclass on wine or liquer making Im happy to speak to Endemol
I would really love to learn to make wine and liquer. This recipe looks really easy so we will give it a try. However, for the very (VERY) beginners what equipment would you suggest getting to start with? What kind of yeast do you buy for wine making? ( can you use bread yeast?) and what kind of fruit do you use for cooking (to add to the wine)? (is it the very ripe one?). Sorry, too many questions and the very VERY basic ones. Thanks for all the good advice.
You can buy demijohns at carboots and air locks too. You need a plastic pipe to syphon. Some stuff like cider doesn’t need yeast. There is enough on the skins. I actually buy 48 hour vodka yeast. It works on everything, even in the cold and you get a quality wine that clears easily at the end. Its possible to make alcohol out of sugar , water and yeast. Its the flavouring that is fun. I once used coke and yeast just to prove the theory. Unfortunately all the sugar turns to alcohol so doesn’t taste like coke but you can sweeten it back. If you want to make sparkling wine then syphon wine off live without killing the yeast. Use plastic 2 litre lemonade bottles. before putting the top on just put a teaspoon or two of sugar in to start the fermentation off again and then in a month or two you will have very sparkling wine. You can get most of the equipment very nearly free and I won 1st prize at our local show with wine I made from supermarkets grape juice from a carton.
Just finished following this recipe using the one you have on the superscrimpers site which is slightly different to the one on here ie you boil blackberrys in the water on here but on superscrimpers it tells you to add at the end with the vodka fingers x it’s ok!!
Its fine either way but you will get more flavour by boiling the blackberries with water and if you need to top the bottle up do so from the kettle.
Cant wait!!!! So going to try this
Hi Ladylesley, I was wondering why you have to sterilize the bottle even if it’s the vodka bottle, and if you top the water up why does it need to be boiled? X
you dont have to if you dont want to but its better to be safe than sorry. If its sterilised or boiled theres no germs
Hi I’m very tempted to make this as presents for Christmas and I already has 500ml bottles I can use to store it, but how following this recipe exact what volume of liqueur do you end up with? Wondering so I buy in enough ingredients
People love home made gifts. I find that if I use the vodka bottle and a wine bottle and have half the vodka in each then with sugar, fruit and water there is normally just enough to fill a glass left at the end
hi, i just wondered if i can use gin instead of Vodka for you blackberry liquer? and possibly cranberries?
p.s i love this!!
Don’t see why not. Gin has Junipers in any way so Cranberries would work well.
How does the vodka regenerate?
its the sugar and fruit that does the regeneration. Vodka is simply wine that as been run through a still and flavoured
Oh and what type of lid should you use?
Lid on what ? If you are using sterilised bottles, choose screwtops
Hi Ladylesley. Thinking of making this for the family this year. Some of them don’t like vodka though. Is it possible to use Bacardi, for instance, instead?
who wouldn’t like Vodka ??? It doesn’t have much of a taste. Yes you can use Bacardi but one of the reasons Vodka is used is because its sterile due to alcohol content. Check the percentage of the Bacardi. Melon tastes good in Bacardi
Hi lesley, I’ve just made this recipe the blackberry and raspberry liqueur, ive decanted into bottles but I have a lot of stuff floating at the top, I’m wondering if my filtering was not very good, ive read somewhere coffee filters might help, any info would be great? Thanks!
(Tastes good tho)
Yes you do need to filter it. A clean tea towel works well. I live in an old farm house and I have a collection of Victorian kitchenalia. I guess because big houses 100 years ago made all their own wine and drink for every day consumption, Victorian kitchen gadgets work far better than new stuff. I often find items to add to my bizarre collection at car boots