All the flavor, none of the umph
July 20, 2010 1:21 PM Subscribe
Do you have any advise on how to make a cocktail taste like rum, vodka, or other liquor without actually using an alcohol? I have a friend whose be diagnosed with a disease that makes drinking alcohol a no-no, but misses cocktails. I'm looking for some rum/vodka/other booze flavored substitute I can use to make her the drinks she's missing.
There are non-alcoholic versions of Kahlua meant to flavor coffee. I have no idea if it is good.
posted by mmascolino at 1:37 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by mmascolino at 1:37 PM on July 20, 2010
The taste of quinine in tonic water is strongly associated in some people (like me) with the taste of vodka or gin, and might be a good addition. Same with bitters.
posted by seventyfour at 1:39 PM on July 20, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by seventyfour at 1:39 PM on July 20, 2010 [2 favorites]
In Sweden one could buy little bottles of rum, brandy, gin, essences, etc., that one could add to ones own moonshine (or cheap vodka): these people stock a number of them and offer international shipping. Alternatively, brandy and rum flavorings used in baking might be worth a try.
posted by misteraitch at 1:40 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by misteraitch at 1:40 PM on July 20, 2010
@Celsius1414: fdrrecipes.com/magazine/new-deal/188-alcohol-burns-off-during-cooking.html
posted by pjaust at 1:40 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by pjaust at 1:40 PM on July 20, 2010
Can't drink, eh? Neither can pregnant ladies.
I think fruity cocktails will be the easiest to make sans booze, but I also like a dash of bitters (celery bitters is very nice) over ice with seltzer. There is an eensy weensy tiny bit of alcohol in bitters, but not so much that they can't sell it in places with no liquor license. Not sure how total her ban is.
posted by hungrybruno at 1:42 PM on July 20, 2010
I think fruity cocktails will be the easiest to make sans booze, but I also like a dash of bitters (celery bitters is very nice) over ice with seltzer. There is an eensy weensy tiny bit of alcohol in bitters, but not so much that they can't sell it in places with no liquor license. Not sure how total her ban is.
posted by hungrybruno at 1:42 PM on July 20, 2010
I would guess that Brandy and Rum flavorings, like the ones linked to, are mostly alcohol.
posted by seventyfour at 1:42 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by seventyfour at 1:42 PM on July 20, 2010
is there a homebrew shop near you? if so you might be able to make your own substitutes. the store near me sells flavor kits for rum, whiskey, gin, etc. i think your supposed to add the flavors to grain alcohol, but water might work too.
posted by phil at 1:42 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by phil at 1:42 PM on July 20, 2010
@pjaust, from your link:
If you're trying to burn off as much alcohol as possible and going just for the flavor, your best bet is a lengthy simmer. Leave the pan or pot uncovered so you don't interfere with the evaporative process and let the alcohol go.posted by Celsius1414 at 1:43 PM on July 20, 2010
Candy flavoring oils might be an interesting avenue to explore. And Celsius' idea is a good one for booze that has some flavor of its own (i.e. Cointreau, ouzo, dark rums), but I'm not sure how much flavor would be left in vodka once the good stuff was burned off, unfortunately.
posted by julthumbscrew at 1:43 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by julthumbscrew at 1:43 PM on July 20, 2010
One of my favorite virgin drinks is soda water on the rocks with a splash or two of Rose's Lime Juice. Per seventyfour's suggestion, I bet this would be even better with a shot of quinine water added.
posted by marsha56 at 1:47 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by marsha56 at 1:47 PM on July 20, 2010
Sorry, as pointed out above, the rum & brandy flavorings I mentioned are not alcohol free. 'Liquor-Quik' appears to be the North-American version of the Swedish essences I linked to: I always assumed these were alcohol-free, but, thinking about it now, I'm not 100% sure.
posted by misteraitch at 1:57 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by misteraitch at 1:57 PM on July 20, 2010
Tonic and lime juice can be pleasant in a G&T sort of way.
posted by The corpse in the library at 2:01 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by The corpse in the library at 2:01 PM on July 20, 2010
Not sure about vodka, but rum is basically just made out of sugar cane, right? Bourbon has hints of oak and a touch of vanilla or even orange rind. You could steep some of that stuff and mix it with soda water, and get pretty close to what you're looking for, I bet.
posted by Gilbert at 2:02 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by Gilbert at 2:02 PM on July 20, 2010
My favourite pregnancy drink of the moment is tonic water with a splash of elderflower cordial. Tastes very grown up in a Campari kind of way.
posted by dogsbody at 2:24 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by dogsbody at 2:24 PM on July 20, 2010
Check any bitters that you're thinking of adding. Many of them are in themselves alcoholic, as much as 45%.
posted by komara at 2:25 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by komara at 2:25 PM on July 20, 2010
Extracts can have more alcohol than the booze you're replacing. Also, crazy expensive. You can make something that sort of tastes like rum by mixing a little molasses into pineapple juice...but it really only sort of tastes like rum.
There are a wide variety of drink syrups available that do not contain any alcohol; World Market carries a bunch, and any Arabic market will carry a variety of them as well. They won't taste like a rum and coke, but they make for lovely refreshing drinks that respond well to both carbonation and still waters. (I like peach syrup and club soda, or club soda and orange blossom syrup. Yum)
In other words, there are lots of ways to make drinks that don't have booze, but not many ways to make them taste as though they *were* booze.
posted by SecretAgentSockpuppet at 2:51 PM on July 20, 2010
There are a wide variety of drink syrups available that do not contain any alcohol; World Market carries a bunch, and any Arabic market will carry a variety of them as well. They won't taste like a rum and coke, but they make for lovely refreshing drinks that respond well to both carbonation and still waters. (I like peach syrup and club soda, or club soda and orange blossom syrup. Yum)
In other words, there are lots of ways to make drinks that don't have booze, but not many ways to make them taste as though they *were* booze.
posted by SecretAgentSockpuppet at 2:51 PM on July 20, 2010
Experiment with grenadine/lime juice/soda water or ginger ale. There's no booze in grenadine.
posted by vincele at 3:14 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by vincele at 3:14 PM on July 20, 2010
Try going to a really good cocktail bar near you and experiment there with the bartenders help. They should know some non-alcoholic substitutions.
posted by jacalata at 3:43 PM on July 20, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by jacalata at 3:43 PM on July 20, 2010 [1 favorite]
Dale DeGroff, noted cocktail expert, has some mocktail recipes on his site and Julie Reiner of Clover Club gave some non-alcoholic recipes to the New York Times.
As others have mentioned, if your friend can have soda with a dash or two of bitters and not be affected by the trace amount of alcohol in that sort of drink, that opens up a lot more possibilities, particularly with the large number of bitters on the market now (Fee's, Bitter Truth, Regan's, Peychaud's, Scrappy's, Urban Moonshine).
posted by kathryn at 4:01 PM on July 20, 2010 [1 favorite]
As others have mentioned, if your friend can have soda with a dash or two of bitters and not be affected by the trace amount of alcohol in that sort of drink, that opens up a lot more possibilities, particularly with the large number of bitters on the market now (Fee's, Bitter Truth, Regan's, Peychaud's, Scrappy's, Urban Moonshine).
posted by kathryn at 4:01 PM on July 20, 2010 [1 favorite]
Oh, and you might want to experiment with some sodas made with syrups like those produced by Trader Tiki or Small Hand Foods.
posted by kathryn at 4:07 PM on July 20, 2010
posted by kathryn at 4:07 PM on July 20, 2010
My mixed drink for the non-drinkers is sour cherry syrup, fresh lime juice and soda water, with ice. I think the sourness gives some of that oomph that might otherwise come from alcohol, and it tastes 'sophisticated' (not sure if that's quite the right thing), rather than like a flavoured soda or children's drink.
The sour cherry syrup I buy is from my local Middle Eastern grocery, though I think the syrup is actually from Eastern Europe.
posted by AnnaRat at 3:57 AM on July 21, 2010
The sour cherry syrup I buy is from my local Middle Eastern grocery, though I think the syrup is actually from Eastern Europe.
posted by AnnaRat at 3:57 AM on July 21, 2010
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posted by Celsius1414 at 1:36 PM on July 20, 2010