Help! I want to make a coffee-infused Japanese plum wine cocktail!
March 5, 2011 5:34 PM Subscribe
Contender for world's yummiest cocktail -- Japanese plum wine infused with coffee beans! Can any alcoholically inclined MeFites help me make a home version?
At a Japanese izakawa, I recently had a special cocktail -- Japanese plum wine infused with coffee beans, served over ice in a tumbler with beans still floating in it. It was so good my teetotaler friend guzzled one down himself.
Sure, I could go back to the place and try to get them to tell me how it was made, but I'm 1) lazy and 2) impatient.
How would you make this drink? Just go buy some plum wine and throw a bunch of coffee beans in it? I'm curious if more experienced peeps would have a clue how much to put in and for how long.
(Seriously, this cocktail was EPIC.)
At a Japanese izakawa, I recently had a special cocktail -- Japanese plum wine infused with coffee beans, served over ice in a tumbler with beans still floating in it. It was so good my teetotaler friend guzzled one down himself.
Sure, I could go back to the place and try to get them to tell me how it was made, but I'm 1) lazy and 2) impatient.
How would you make this drink? Just go buy some plum wine and throw a bunch of coffee beans in it? I'm curious if more experienced peeps would have a clue how much to put in and for how long.
(Seriously, this cocktail was EPIC.)
I don't know a whole lot about plum wine, guessing it has a similar ABV as traditional wine?
Did the served drink have a strong coffee overtone?
For more intense coffee flavor I would start with something like 1:5 ration of coffee beans to wine. crack the beans (don't grind). Spread them on a cookie tray in the oven ~150 and slightly toast them (this will bring the oils to the surface). Put beans in a airtight container cover with wine/seal up, shake. Let sit for 1/2 hour, strain. The serve over ice with a few whole beans thrown on for garnish.
Try this with a small amount at first. If the coffee flavor is too overwhelming reduce sitting time, don't crack the beans, reduce the ratio, or don't roast them, or get a milder flavor bean.
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Alternatively, or in addition too, you can also heat the wine (think mulled wine temperatures) with the beans in. Before serving.
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The serving over ice serves to diminish the taste a little, either to make the wine taste less sweet, or the coffee less bitter.
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Essentially think heat + cracking the beans + coffee ratio + soak time will increase coffee flavor, decrease these factors to diminish it. Always taste chilled/over ice because that will influence the taste significantly.
So, sorry not a real definitive answer, but perhaps some pointers to get going in the right direction.
posted by edgeways at 6:28 PM on March 5, 2011 [2 favorites]
Did the served drink have a strong coffee overtone?
For more intense coffee flavor I would start with something like 1:5 ration of coffee beans to wine. crack the beans (don't grind). Spread them on a cookie tray in the oven ~150 and slightly toast them (this will bring the oils to the surface). Put beans in a airtight container cover with wine/seal up, shake. Let sit for 1/2 hour, strain. The serve over ice with a few whole beans thrown on for garnish.
Try this with a small amount at first. If the coffee flavor is too overwhelming reduce sitting time, don't crack the beans, reduce the ratio, or don't roast them, or get a milder flavor bean.
----
Alternatively, or in addition too, you can also heat the wine (think mulled wine temperatures) with the beans in. Before serving.
----
The serving over ice serves to diminish the taste a little, either to make the wine taste less sweet, or the coffee less bitter.
---
Essentially think heat + cracking the beans + coffee ratio + soak time will increase coffee flavor, decrease these factors to diminish it. Always taste chilled/over ice because that will influence the taste significantly.
So, sorry not a real definitive answer, but perhaps some pointers to get going in the right direction.
posted by edgeways at 6:28 PM on March 5, 2011 [2 favorites]
I'm also intrigued and might try this. If you live in Japan, you could also try it with your own homemade plum wine. Most grocery stores sell the stuff to make it, especially in summer.
posted by p3t3 at 7:23 PM on March 5, 2011
posted by p3t3 at 7:23 PM on March 5, 2011
I'd follow this recipe swapping a decent plum wine for the vodka, but leave out the sugar. (Plum wine should have enough.) I'd taste it every day or two make sure its not getting bitter. If you over-infuse it without it getting bitter simply add more plum wine.
Sounds delicious!
posted by Ookseer at 10:35 PM on March 5, 2011
Sounds delicious!
posted by Ookseer at 10:35 PM on March 5, 2011
The only thing I will say regarding mimicking the vodka route is.. this is the process for making extracts, and it relies on the high level of alcohol for the extraction. I make vanilla extract every year or so and 45% abv is almost ideal for this process. Looking online it says plum wine is 15% - 20% abv, which is significantly too low for the extract process.
What you want is an infusion process, and something that is going to be relatively quick. I suspect plum wine is susceptible to the same oxidation as regular wine? If so you don't want to decant it and store it (even in an airtight container) for too long. Hours yes, days.. eh maybe. Weeks, nope.
The more I think about it the more I think simmering the wine with some amount of cracked toasted beans is the direction to explore. Think: crockpot, 1 bottle wine set to medium, Put 3/4 C dark roast coffee beans in a cloth bag (or in plastic bag between towels), smack that right good with a rolling pin or other suitable heavy item a few times, pour on cookie sheet toast for 5 mins. If you are feeling up to it get some disposable muslin bags from a home brewing supplier store and pour beans in that, tie off and dump in heated wine (or just dump the beans in directly and strain after). Simmer 10 mins. Pour a small bit over crushed ice and taste, keep doing this every 10 mins until you have something great or you're too drunk to continue.
Please report back with results of the experiments.
posted by edgeways at 11:41 PM on March 5, 2011
What you want is an infusion process, and something that is going to be relatively quick. I suspect plum wine is susceptible to the same oxidation as regular wine? If so you don't want to decant it and store it (even in an airtight container) for too long. Hours yes, days.. eh maybe. Weeks, nope.
The more I think about it the more I think simmering the wine with some amount of cracked toasted beans is the direction to explore. Think: crockpot, 1 bottle wine set to medium, Put 3/4 C dark roast coffee beans in a cloth bag (or in plastic bag between towels), smack that right good with a rolling pin or other suitable heavy item a few times, pour on cookie sheet toast for 5 mins. If you are feeling up to it get some disposable muslin bags from a home brewing supplier store and pour beans in that, tie off and dump in heated wine (or just dump the beans in directly and strain after). Simmer 10 mins. Pour a small bit over crushed ice and taste, keep doing this every 10 mins until you have something great or you're too drunk to continue.
Please report back with results of the experiments.
posted by edgeways at 11:41 PM on March 5, 2011
If *I* were doing it?
a) Use a cream whipper for rapid infusion (and rapid iterations)
-or much more likely-
b) Buy some Kahlua, and use the beans as garnish.
posted by danny the boy at 2:34 AM on March 6, 2011
a) Use a cream whipper for rapid infusion (and rapid iterations)
-or much more likely-
b) Buy some Kahlua, and use the beans as garnish.
posted by danny the boy at 2:34 AM on March 6, 2011
Yeah, I see problems with infusing wine because of oxidation. It sounds like what you had might have been one of those cocktails made with wine or sake + something stronger.
How about, put coffee beans in a jar with neutral spirits or nearly neutral spirits. (Vodka, shochu or something; just make sure it's high alcohol.) Let those infuse for a couple of days. To make the cocktail, drop a few beans in each glass and you can tip some of the liquid from the infusion in too.
posted by BibiRose at 3:58 AM on March 6, 2011
How about, put coffee beans in a jar with neutral spirits or nearly neutral spirits. (Vodka, shochu or something; just make sure it's high alcohol.) Let those infuse for a couple of days. To make the cocktail, drop a few beans in each glass and you can tip some of the liquid from the infusion in too.
posted by BibiRose at 3:58 AM on March 6, 2011
It being sunday morning, the perfect time for cocktail experimentation, and me having plum wine in the house, I decided to give this a go.
Since I only had ground coffee, and not whole beans, that is what I used. I took an undetermined amount of plum wine, and threw an equally undetermined amount of ground coffee (espresso roast) in and let it sit for a few hours. I then strained it through multiple layers of cheese cloth.
What I now have is a dark brown liquid that tastes very much like sweetened espresso with a hint of plum after taste. I'm guessing that if I had let it rest for less time the plum flavor would stand out more.
If you could answer a few questions, it might make it easier for people to help solve this dilemma: what color was your drink? Was it only the infused plum wine or was there a mixer? What restaurant did you have it in? Was the flavor more coffee tasting, or plum tasting?
**okay, just added a splash of un-infused plum wine, and now it's lighter brown and tastes like plum wine with hint of coffee flavor. It's surprising how well these flavors mesh, but I'm not sure I would call it best drink ever material, so not sure if this is what you're after.
posted by newpotato at 8:18 AM on March 6, 2011
Since I only had ground coffee, and not whole beans, that is what I used. I took an undetermined amount of plum wine, and threw an equally undetermined amount of ground coffee (espresso roast) in and let it sit for a few hours. I then strained it through multiple layers of cheese cloth.
What I now have is a dark brown liquid that tastes very much like sweetened espresso with a hint of plum after taste. I'm guessing that if I had let it rest for less time the plum flavor would stand out more.
If you could answer a few questions, it might make it easier for people to help solve this dilemma: what color was your drink? Was it only the infused plum wine or was there a mixer? What restaurant did you have it in? Was the flavor more coffee tasting, or plum tasting?
**okay, just added a splash of un-infused plum wine, and now it's lighter brown and tastes like plum wine with hint of coffee flavor. It's surprising how well these flavors mesh, but I'm not sure I would call it best drink ever material, so not sure if this is what you're after.
posted by newpotato at 8:18 AM on March 6, 2011
Response by poster: Wow, some great responses! I knew I came to the right place.
@newpotato - the drink was totally clear, like a gin and tonic. The taste was very balanced -- you have the plummy fruity taste with a very light hint of sourness, balanced with the coffee taste, but not extreme coffee, which event out the fruity part. It's very push-pull, fruity-sour vs. a light espresso-ish coffee note. Am I making any sense LOL? Thank you for experimenting -- I think you have a coffee drink with plum, as opposed to what I had, which was plum wine with a hint of coffee. It wasn't opaque.
I don't think there was a mixer, but there could have been... maybe some vodka? Plum wine on its own is just wine, and this had a kick. (I'm now determined to go back and analyze it again, oh poor me.)
I wouldn't say it's best drink ever, but I hope you give it another shot when I get the recipe right.
@edgeways -- thank you VERY much for your in-depth responses. I wish I could answer some of the issues you raise.
I now have my marching orders -- I'm going to go back to the restaurant and ask how they made it. In the meantime, I urge people to experiment with these flavors. They really are quite nice. =)
posted by teedee2000 at 4:05 PM on March 6, 2011
@newpotato - the drink was totally clear, like a gin and tonic. The taste was very balanced -- you have the plummy fruity taste with a very light hint of sourness, balanced with the coffee taste, but not extreme coffee, which event out the fruity part. It's very push-pull, fruity-sour vs. a light espresso-ish coffee note. Am I making any sense LOL? Thank you for experimenting -- I think you have a coffee drink with plum, as opposed to what I had, which was plum wine with a hint of coffee. It wasn't opaque.
I don't think there was a mixer, but there could have been... maybe some vodka? Plum wine on its own is just wine, and this had a kick. (I'm now determined to go back and analyze it again, oh poor me.)
I wouldn't say it's best drink ever, but I hope you give it another shot when I get the recipe right.
@edgeways -- thank you VERY much for your in-depth responses. I wish I could answer some of the issues you raise.
I now have my marching orders -- I'm going to go back to the restaurant and ask how they made it. In the meantime, I urge people to experiment with these flavors. They really are quite nice. =)
posted by teedee2000 at 4:05 PM on March 6, 2011
For what it's worth, umeshu is not "wine" per se, but rather a liqueur made from steeping ume in grain alcohol (shochu).
Therefore, it stands to reason that infusing grain alcohol with both ume and coffee beans would produce the desired result.
posted by armage at 4:18 PM on March 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
Therefore, it stands to reason that infusing grain alcohol with both ume and coffee beans would produce the desired result.
posted by armage at 4:18 PM on March 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
teedee2000, your profile doesn't reveal where you are, but there is a bar in Sydney that makes its own shochu. The stuff is sitting on the shelves in the bar for all to see - if you are, by some random chance, in Sydney, go check out this place: Tokonoma
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:15 PM on March 6, 2011
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:15 PM on March 6, 2011
You don't need high alcohol content to infuse the coffee. Remember, you can cold-brew coffee in water in the fridge, and you get a wonderful coffee flavor without the bitterness that comes with normal hot brewing.
So, the low alcohol content of plum wine may actually be a benefit - I'd try basically just cold-brewing coffee in plum wine, with my guess being that it'll take overnight (same as with water), or just a few hours if you want a lighter coffee taste.
This sounds really tasty! I want to try it now.
posted by Eshkol at 7:05 AM on March 7, 2011
So, the low alcohol content of plum wine may actually be a benefit - I'd try basically just cold-brewing coffee in plum wine, with my guess being that it'll take overnight (same as with water), or just a few hours if you want a lighter coffee taste.
This sounds really tasty! I want to try it now.
posted by Eshkol at 7:05 AM on March 7, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
What I would do is infuse different amounts of coffee beans in a static amount of plum wine, and then taste it after 24 hours, 3 days, 1 week, etc. until it tastes the same as the cocktail. Check into recipes that infuse coffee beans in other types of alcohol and use that as a rough estimate of amounts.
It would probably go a little faster if you called the place and asked...that would remove some of the trial-and-error time.
If you figure out the formula, let us know!
posted by corey flood at 6:05 PM on March 5, 2011 [1 favorite]