Pastis

[Brewtrog]

Looking forward to this one, recipe is a modification of the one found here http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012 ... ecipe.html
My recipe is
70cl bottle Morrison's "The Best Vodka"
20 star anise stars
1tsp fennel seeds
1tsp aniseed seeds
~125g sugar
2tbsp liquorice root
1/2 tsp coriander seeds

Sterilise a large kilner jar, add the vodka and sugar.
put other ingredients into a mortar and bash a bit, then add to kilner jar
Shake daily for a week (or until sugar dissolves, whichever is last)

I've not actually added the liquorice or coriander yet as the supply I thought I had for both didn't work out. I'll be buying them tomorrow to add tomorrow.

Here's hoping this works.

 

[calumscott]

I love pastis!

I'm going to have a go at this - do you know if this recipe is supposed to do the cloudy thing when you add ice or water?

 

[aamcle]

I like the stuff to, please let us know how it turns out.


Atb. Aamcle

 

[Brewtrog]

Turns out I'll be waiting five days, the sugar has already dissolved.

do you know if this recipe is supposed to do the cloudy thing when you add ice or water?

The recipe on the website says that it won't louche, but they add water, I didn't add any water in my version in the hope that it will. I'll tell you within a few days.

 

[Moley]

The recipe on the website says that it won't louche

Thanks for that, I've just learned two new words, but I had to look them up.

Louche (verb), To become cloudy when mixed with water, due to the presence of anethole.
Anethole (noun) (organic chemistry), A particular aromatic compound found in anise.
And it's known as the Ouzo effect.

I like all anise flavoured drinks so I might give this a try myself, but I've never thought to look up why they go cloudy, and I like learning new stuff :thumb:

 

[Hawks]

I like the sound of this, let us all know how it turns out... :thumb:

 

[Fil]

any clue to the dose of wormwood needed for that green fairy effect

 

[Tim_Crowhurst]

None. The traditional method of making absinthe destroys virtually all the thujone. It's possible to get absinthe which has had thujone added, but that's not traditional and in some countries is actually illegal. The two main sources are artemisias (wormwood, yarrow, etc.) and common sage (confusingly, diviner's sage, which is a powerful hallucinatory drug, contains little or no thujone). EU limits on thujone in food and drink mean that you could (in theory) consume more from a Lincolnshire sausage than a shot of absinthe. The USA bans thujone entirely from any food or drink prepared using artemisias, but has no limit for sage, or even for sage oil, which can be 50% thujone.

 

[Brewtrog]

As Tim says the amount of thujone in absinthe is negligible. Also interesting to note is that it is actually unknown if absinthe ever was truly a hallucinogenic (I've personally never tripped off absinthe and I tend to make sure I have a bottle in). I have been tempted to look up a recipe for absinthe, but I've never been at a point where I could be bothered finding a supplier of wormwood (or going looking for it) even online.

Back to the recipe, I've not been able to get proper liquorice root (not even from H&B) so ended up getting ground stuff in a capsule for (from H&B says it's just ground liquorice in a gelatine capsule) so will break enough open to make it, though at £10 for a bottle (quite large), I've probably spent as much as a cheap bottle of pastis for all the various bits and bobs (except admittedly I can make a few bottles).

 

[Macca]

I am a bit disappointed with this post as i read it as pasties, i was looking forward to a ginsters recipe..... now im going to have to try yet another different brew....... :)

 

[Brewtrog]

Turns out it takes 20 of the H&B liquorice capsules for 2tbsp. 100 in a pack means you could make 5 batches, or find something else to do with the other 80, so the £10 price tag is a bit better than I first thought.

 

[Brewtrog]

This recipe doesn't need a week to steep, I've just tasted mine (3 days in) and it already tastes very good. I'm actually going to strain it off tomorrow hopefully. Sadly it does not louche, but still is very good (if I do say so myself).

 

[Pjam]

Having used star anise in cooking I know how strong a flavour they have and wondered if 20 was a bit much ..... I then noticed the original recipe has 10

 

[Brewtrog]

Having used star anise in cooking I know how strong a flavour they have and wondered if 20 was a bit much ..... I then noticed the original recipe has 10

for half the volume, all my ingredients are doubled as I used a full bottle of vodka

 

[Fil]

rather than vodka for a base how about Polish Rectified spirits or 'Spititus' its something like 160% proof and intended for flavoring and dillution.

afaik the higher the alcohol content the better the flavor absorbtion??

 

[Moley]

it is actually unknown if absinthe ever was truly a hallucinogenic (I've personally never tripped off absinthe and I tend to make sure I have a bottle in).

I don't know about tripping, but I lost 2 days of a holiday to Lanzarote some years ago due to a bottle of that stuff :drunk:

 

[Tim_Crowhurst]

it is actually unknown if absinthe ever was truly a hallucinogenic (I've personally never tripped off absinthe and I tend to make sure I have a bottle in).

I don't know about tripping, but I lost 2 days of a holiday to Lanzarote some years ago due to a bottle of that stuff :drunk:

Clarissa Dickson Wright, the celebrity chef, lost over three months to alcohol during 1982. She "woke up" in the middle of June and had to ask what all the celebrations were about. (We'd just won the Falklands War.)

 

[Brewtrog]

rather than vodka for a base how about Polish Rectified spirits or 'Spititus' its something like 160% proof and intended for flavoring and dillution.

afaik the higher the alcohol content the better the flavor absorbtion??

At 80%abv I'm going to guess it wouldn't be cheap. Half the point of my trying this was it should be cheaper than buying a bottle of Pernod (it is, just about).
So saying the higher abv might let the anethole dissolve and so allowing a louche, which would be good.

 

[aamcle]

Tried Brewtrogs Pastis - a big well Done!

Aamcle

 

[aneray]

I am a bit disappointed with this post as i read it as pasties, i was looking forward to a ginsters recipe..... now im going to have to try yet another different brew....... :)

Have you ever tried Gingsters, there hanging.

Looks a very interesting recipe though, keep us informed on the results.