DIY Ginger Liqueur Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How long does homemade ginger liqueur last? ›

Store as you would any liqueur—no refrigeration is required. This should keep for a year, but if it develops off flavors or a cloudy appearance, discard it.

It is very easy to make and requires very few ingredients: ginger root obviously, alcohol, water and sugar. Like with any good liquor, a lengthy maceration and resting time is necessary, so that all the flavors are absorbed and for it to become nice and golden in color.

When you want to lighten up the alcohol content of your ginger co*cktails, replace the ginger liqueur with ginger-infused syrup. It's easy to make at home and has a similar sweetness and ginger flavoring, but without the liquor base.

Pair It with Citrus

One of Alling's favorite citrus-ginger co*cktails is the Speightstown Punch. In a glass, mix 1-ounce rum, ¾-ounce fresh grapefruit juice, ¾-ounce ginger liqueur and 1.5-ounce mint green tea. Serve over ice. Morton also suggests adding an ounce of ginger liqueur to a classic mimosa or margarita.

Bailey's says its product has a shelf life of two years. The problem with an older bottle would be the fat in the cream going rancid.

Most liqueur should be used within 6 months to a year after opening. While stable liquors mainly lose their potency and flavor after their seal is broken, liqueurs can spoil and grow bacteria over time. The more sugar in the beverage, the faster it will spoil.

Liqueurs (spirits which are flavored and sweetened) don't usually need to be refrigerated either. Not even cream or egg liqueurs. They are pasteurized, have sufficient alcohol content and enough sugar content, to be save for… ever.

Brewers would boil ginger, add sugar to the liquid, and then allow the resulting liquid to ferment, resulting in a beverage (ginger beer) with about an 11 percent alcohol content. That's high! Today's ginger beer is rarely fermented, however, so you'll note on the label that it is completely alcohol free.

If you're brewing homemade ginger ale using a ginger bug starter, then yes! Your ginger ale does in fact contain alcohol. The trick is, depending on how long you ferment your ginger beer and how much sugar you start with, the alcohol content can vary a lot.

While Domaine De Canton prides itself on being the original and is the most widely known ginger liqueur, it isn't the only on worth trying.

What does ginger liqueur taste like? ›

So how does it taste? The honey-colored liqueur has a good dose of ginger in the aroma, but when you take a sip you get hit by a syrupy sweetness first, and then the spiciness of the ginger only kicks in after a beat or two.

The King's Ginger is made using a grain spirit base, lemon, ginger, sugar syrup and water. The recipe was altered when the bottle was redesigned into this beauty, though it remains a liqueur emphatically flavoured with ginger and lemon.

Most opened (and well-sealed) liqueurs should last for six months to a year (or even longer), depending on the alcohol content and preservatives. Once you notice sugar crystallizing on the bottom, discoloration, curdling, or other changes, throw the bottle away.

Freelance writer and co*cktail book author Colleen Graham is a seasoned mixologist who loves sharing her knowledge of spirits and passion for preparing drinks. Domaine de Canton is a popular brandy-based ginger liqueur with a brilliant sweet and spicy flavor accented by vanilla and honey.

The liqueurs will have the best flavor after a few months of sitting on the shelf (aging). They will begin to lose their bright color and some flavor after one year but they will not “go bad” because the alcohol is the preservative. I usually have no problem using them up within one year.

Generally, the only thing that will spoil a liqueur is oxygen, so you just need to be sure your bottle has a tight seal if you plan to store it for a long time. The exception is cream liqueurs; most websites recommend storing homemade cream liqueurs for only 1 month and keeping it in the fridge.