It never ceases to amaze me the clear arguments for and against any particular issue.
This weekend past, I decided I wanted to make Bitters because I had a lot of Agbalumo skins which would have gone to waste. Because a few friends who were with me at the time suggested it – yep, I have the most amazing friends.
So it was I headed to the interwebs to read up, even though I knew what it was I would do – put all the ingredients in a jar, shake and keep in a cool dark place.
The first piece I read on The Kitchn ‘How To Make Homemade Bitters’, talked about two methods. The first was similar to what I had in mind – combine all the elements but the preferred, the second was tincturing.
…The other method… is to make a separate infusion or tincture of each botanical and then blend them to taste. I prefer this method because different ingredients infuse at different rates. Tincturing them separately gives you more control over the outcome. However, if you have a good recipe, the first method might work just fine.
Hmm, I thought to myself. I’ve learnt a new thing – tincture. I like the sound of it, what I could do with it.
The next piece I read on Serious Eats, How to Make Your Own Cocktail Bitters: Krangostura was again what I had in mind. But they had something to say about tinctures…
Some people create separate tinctures of each ingredient and then blend them to create the final product. This isn’t ideal, since the flavors never really get a chance to meld together and develop during maceration, resulting in a product that deals in surface flavors only, devoid of background notes.
This two quite divergent perspectives made me very happy.
I could see the merits of both a tincture – creating a custom blend if one hasn’t done this before; and putting it all together.
The truth is – your personal experience will often determine what route, path you tread – every perspective is valid and should be respected.
And so yes, I have learnt/ reinforced very valuable lessons
- Do you
- Do you when you know more even if that means changing your mind about the you in 1.
- There will always be people opposed to one course or action you have decided on, do you still
So yes, I’ll be making my bitters, with the combine it all method, because of time and because I don’t have the required utensils for tincturing.
But someday, I will.
Peace & Love[wpurp-searchable-recipe]Bitters & Life – – – [/wpurp-searchable-recipe]
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