opinionated alchemist

I really wanted to do some house-crafted limoncello today, for our Italian restaurant. And instead of zesting lemons, I had the idea of using whole fruits. Yes - usually zests working better - because there is far more surface. However my good friend, the sous-vide immersion circulator helped to cut the time in a fraction of traditional limoncello. The normal procedure of limoncello is: Zest [cleaned] lemons Add them into alcohol Traditionally high proof grain alcohol is used - however using vodka is just fine, if you are regarding the difference in ABV. Obviously in Italy high proof booze is used, as it is in production far cheaper than the refined product 'vodka'. Wait for several weeks [depending on the size of the zest pieces]. Strain and add sugar syrup [depending on the original occurring alcohol strength and the target strength]. Bottle and label. Now - I want to do this procedure as well - with two major differences: I want to use whole lemons - du...

In Mixology, one thing is important to remember: the drink is as good as the worst ingredient. While we will come back on liquors [wines and alike] on another occasion, one often neglected component is juice. In this post, we only want to focus on the sheer quality of the juice - not much on the respective characteristics. Lets begin - shall we? Lemon & Lime Juice:  We are starting directly in the "danger zone".  Lemon and lime juice are essential for mixology. The idea is to utilize the acidity - the taste is secondary. Unfortunately lemons & limes are extremely sensitive as soon as they are extracted out of the fruit.  Processed lemon or lime juice [out of concentrate or squeezed directly but UHT treated] is unacceptable. They taste really bad - they are bitter, metallic and you can easily ruin any beverage with it. Commercial fresh squeezed lemon or lime juices are unfortunately not much better. These juices are so sensitive that after...