Whiskey infused with wild black cherries (Prunus serotina) is one of the best alcohol infusions I’ve made. To sweeten the deal, not only does it taste stronger than any cherry flavored booze I've had, but it’s inspired by an actual, documented experience that happened, oh, 200 years ago.
I’m a sucker for a good for a good audio book, and this year I managed to listen through the Journals of Lewis and Clarke about 3 times through.
The first time I listened to the whole journal, I was just enjoying the scenery, so to speak. The second time, I started taking notes. There’s a lot of stuff in the journals, interesting accounts, fascinating descriptions, especially when Lewis’s prose is concerned, but the things I hungered for (and feverishly re-winded to jot down) were the nuggets of culinary gold sprinkled throughout.
Sometimes the references are long descriptions, like the extensive visceral account of the raw communal consumption of an elk by the party along with members of Shoshone tribe, others are brief and to the point, like cherry whiskey.
Somewhere in Chapter 3
The passage in question comes from chapter 3. It's actually not from Lewis and Clark, but from one of the other men, Whitehouse, who has some comical observations over the course of the journey.
Thursday 19th Got on under way the Morning was Clear passd. 4 Islands to our Stabourd as we came along Shore there was two large Cat fish had hold of Each other Could not get off one of the french men Shot the two the first Shot. On the W. Shore at Butter run, the men pulld a Great Quantity of wild Cherrys put them in the Barrel of whisky. Roed. 12 Miles Campd. on an Island neer the River Calld. the Crying Water—
See the full entry, and others at the Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
I know I get excited when I find a tree bursting with fruit, but I can only imagine what it would have been like back then. When you think about it, preserving cherries by tossing them in with the whiskey is pure genius, but especially in a situation where the men were moving over the countryside and didn’t have time to process and dehydrate the fruit, a common Native American practice still used to this day by some of my friends to make wojape, a sort of sauce usually made from chokecherries.
Alcohol naturally preserves the fruit, but more importantly, the cherries imbue their juice and aroma to the whiskey. Over time (you want a good month or two) the color and aroma of the whisky will change, and by the end of the maceration, it becomes a sort of cherry-whiskey concentrate. Brandied cherries would probably have been more common at the time, and the use of cherries in alcohol is evident in things like cherry bounce, which was enjoyed by George Washington.
How much cherries vs whiskey?
My cherry whisky is a little different than the explorers would have been. The explorers were lugging barrels of whiskey, so I’d assume they just tossed what they gathered into the barrels.
The cherries have such a good, alcohol-soluble flavor that just a few handfuls of fresh fruit tossed into the alcohol would have given the barrel a good flavor. But, for my black cherry whiskey, since I had the option, I went all out with equal parts whisky and black cherries by volume.
Cherry Cough Syrup for Adults
The finished product is much different than something like cassis, which includes sugar. It's hard to describe, but it tastes eerily like the good part of cherry cough syrup I remember having as a kid.
Unlike cough syrup, this is one "robodrink" (a reference to consuming Robitussin as a narcotic) I can feel good about enjoying. Here’s a few things where it would be good.
Use Ideas
- Add maple syrup or other sugar to taste and it's essentially cassis made from whiskey.
- Use it to make something like wild cherry bounce from my friend Ellen Zachos.
- Pan sauce
Use it to deglaze a pan that you cooked duck or chicken breast, thighs, etc. Sweat a little chopped shallot in the drippings, add the whisky, then a glug of stock, reducing, whisking in a knob of butter until thick. A spoonful of cherry jam or jelly will improve it, as will a shot of vinegar infused with cherries as I outlined in this post. - Use it to flavor a dessert where spirits are used, a la cherry rum baba. Or cherries jubilee.
- Mix it in the rocks with soda and simple syrup, or, even better, my cherry gastrique here using black cherries or chokecherries.
- The infused whiskey is so strong that you can use it like an extract, mixing it with others liquors for what’s known as a “compound liquor”. For example, start mixing the cherry whisky with 1:4 parts dry white wine, adding cherry gastrique, or some burnt sugar for sweetness, along with a vanilla bean and a few peels or orange rind.
- Add a splash to fruit based desserts, like a pan of cooked fruit, especially apples, or apple crisp.
Wild Cherry Whiskey
Equipment
- 1 1.5 quart mason jar or similar
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs wild cherries such as black cherries or chokecherries*
- 750 ML bottle whiskey you would normally drink
Instructions
- Combine the cherries and whiskey and allow to macerate for at least 2 months, 3 would be better.
- When it’s time to strain them, allow the cherries to drain in cheesecloth without pressing on them which would make the final product cloudy.
- When the mixture is strained, save the cherries for dehydrating and grinding into flour, or discard. Bottle and store the whiskey in a cool dry place.
Notes
Nutrition
Jordan Mastera
Foraged a modest take from a couple trees in my back yard and pitted them before realizing I had too little for jam. Decided to go the whiskey route. Cherries are currently soaking in a high proof bourbon in a decanter (with a glass stopper) but half are floating. Worried the floating cherries might mold over time, and after a couple days they don't seem to be sinking despite shaking the bottle around. Any thoughts/tips would be appreciated!
Alan Bergo
Give it some time. Even if they never sink, which I’ve never had happen personally, they would still be safe. Alcohol is a preservative in itself, just like vinegar.
Nancy
Okay, my third wild black cherry harvest is soaking in whiskey—looking forward to trying it!
Alan Bergo
It's so good. Thanks for reminding me I need to put up a batch.
Sharon Duval
Is there a recipe for chockcherry schnapps
Alan Bergo
Yes. See my recipe for rowanberry schnapps and substitute chokecherries.
Heather
Well, with the storms that came through our area last night, I was unfortunately gifted the ability to forage for wild black cherries. Normally the fruit is inaccessible to me. So being me, I went our to access the situation and found I was able to forage quite a bit. I encouraged my daughter to help and we got about 3 quarts. I'll be checking back daily to see what I can get before it becomes fire wood. I plan on making some jelly, and very possibly some black cherry whisky.* UPDATE**
Well, we only got to pick about 3lbs. of cherries because my husband quickly cut off all the small branches to get it ready to cut for firewood. He didn't realize we wanted to pick more. 😔 So, I'm goimg to make black cherry whisky, and when that's done, I'll mash the cherries and make Black Cherry whisky jelly!!! 2 for 1.
Alan Bergo
Haven't made that before, let me know how it turns out for you.
Thomas Middleton
I will definitely try this soon!
Alan Bergo
It's really good.
Dave
Thanks for the recipe! I’m making it now and am going back to forage more, to share with friends. I have a friend who will not let go of the idea that this will be a poisonous drink because I’m leaving the pits intact.
What explanation can I give to convince him it’s a safe drink ?
Thanks!
Alan Bergo
Dave, the pits aren't exposed to alcohol-only the flesh. if you ground them fresh and soaked them in booze, then drank a few cups of 80 proof alcohol you might have an issue. Drying and cooking denatures the amygdalin/problem compound. You can dry the cherries as I describe in my bird cherry cake and in my book, and then add them to liquor and they'll give it a cherry-almond combo flavor. This is very safe.
Brian
Should I remove the pits first?
Alan Bergo
No, proceed as directed.
Julie Rocco
My grandfather made this wild cherry whiskey in South Jersey .... that was 50 years ago. I have been stingy with the last little bit of it (a shot or two) since my mother (his daughter) passed. Where would I get choke cherries? I must learn and carry on his tradition. Thanks.
Alan Bergo
Julie, you're going to have a couple different species of wild cherry near you. Look for black cherries (Prunus serotina)-they should be more common near you, but I've never been to NJ so I'm speculating a bit.
Julie
Thanks Alan. I appreciate your pointers.
Missy Mayclin Murphy
General Clark was my grandpa !!! I’d like to have some of this ! I would have loved to meet him.
Jennifer Ferris
I did this with Vodka (2 750 ml bottles worth) and just sieved out the cherries. Its a gorgeous deep ruby red (my wild cherries are more red, than black here)
And I just reloaded with the last batch of cherries in a rum jug (why not)
But I didn't think of whisky!
Can you do anything with the berries, after they are liberally soused by the booze?
Love your site and insights!
Alan Bergo
Jennifer, yes, if you have my book, there is a recipe that calls specifically for dried cherries, an incredible Russian cake. I have made is successfully with boozed cherries-post infusion.
Sean
Is there any risk of the toxin (amygdalin) from the outs leeching into the whiskey?
Alan Bergo
Sean, amygdalin is concentrated in the stones. As long as you don't crush the cherries and then infuse them, you're fine. In my book I actually detail a method of extracting cherry and almond flavor into an extract for cooking, similar to the French Noyeaux, which is made with roasted stones of various Prunus.
Laura Rogers
Should mason jars be covered with their lids throughout the process? Thanks!
Alan Bergo
Yes, always unless specified.