You guys must really have some patience. I alluded to this post probably over a month ago and nary a peep from anyone about why I hadn’t posted it yet. Oh…you forgot about it too?
Never mind the formalities then, let’s just jump to the point. While doing some research during the Salted Peanut Old Fashioned Bottled Cocktails post, one of the points stressed by many was that you couldn’t do two things: bottle cocktails that contained dairy and those that contained fresh juice. Since I too can fall victim to the echo chamber here on the internet, I initially took those as solid facts that could not be defied. That is until I decided I didn’t quite believe the one about the juice.
I was fairly certain that you could bottle juice in a cocktail, what would change over time would be the quality. So, I decided I should find out what that shelf life would be.
The cocktail I chose to test was the Corpse Reviver #2. Why? Because lately this had become Christopher’s drink of choice at home and he could give a fair assessment of the changes the bottled drinks would take on over time.
A couple notes here before we start:
- I am not a scientist, although I like to pretend to be in my head.
- The experiments were not done in a controlled lab situation but in a home kitchen, like the one you have, so that’s probably a better place to test these out if YOU are making them.
- Bottles were stored in a refrigerator to help keep them climate controlled. If you leave these in your pantry your results could be different.
If you went ahead and bought some of those nifty home bottling accessories for that Old Fashioned post, you’re ready to start. If not, check the bottom of this post for links!
Bottled Corpse Reviver #2
yields 5 cocktails (or 5 bottles)
3.75 ounces gin, here I used Broker’s
3.75 ounces Cocchi Americano
3.75 ounces Cointreau
3.75 ounces freshly squeezed lemon juice, strained of pulp/seeds
5 dashes Absinthe, here I used St. George Spirits
5 ounces filtered water
Sanitize five 187 ml bottles (dishwasher works fine for this, or you can place bottles in boiling water for 10 minutes). Combine all ingredients into a large measuring glass with a pour spout. Stir to combine. Mix should total 20 ounces. Using a funnel, pour 4 ounces into each bottle. Cap the bottles and store in the refrigerator. To serve, gently shake bottle, uncap and either serve from the bottle or pour into a chilled cocktail glass.
And the results?
- Bottle #1: 24 hours later from start date. Sharp lemon flavor with strong anise notes. No compromise in quality.
- Bottle #2: 48 hours later from start date. Lemon less sharp. Mellower flavor. No noticeable compromise in quality.
- Bottle #3: 96 hours later from start date. Still no noticeable compromise in quality. Flavors still distinguishable but overall less sharp.
- Bottle #4: 10 days from start date. Drinkable but flavor is one note and muddied. Too mellow. Bland.
- Bottle #5: 15 days from start date. Not passable. Too bland. Still drank it in the name of science though.
If you’re having company or expecting people to drop by at any time, a small batch of these kept in the fridge for a week will be fine! But after that, the quality starts to drop and guests will think you mucked up the recipe. So…drink ’em up.
Product resources for bottling cocktails:Â Â Caps
Great post! I have oft wondered about this same question, and it’s nice to see a little hard science thrown at it! (OK, maybe not “hard science” but at least “boozy at-home science.”) Many of my favorite cocktails have juice in them, so it’s been a bummer to not be able to bottle them in batches for parties. Thanks to your research though, it sounds though like I could bottle some Aviations or Bicycle Thiefs a day or two ahead of time and still be OK. I’m tempted to go put together a batch right now! Thanks!
The corpse reviver #2 is my favorite cocktail, be fun to have a stock of them ready. They would likely last longer if you left less head space in the bottle (looks like they are only 2/3 full) and/or flushed the bottles with a quick squirt of CO2. Or maybe you could also try using winemaker’s acid blend instead of lemon juice.
Yes! These were meant to be one off pours but you could batch a few in a larger bottle and fill it up so there’s less air and so less oxidation. And if someone at home has CO2 then they should go ahead and use that too. I mainly wanted to focus on using a fresh juice for this since it’s a quarter of the drink, so not sure how the acid blend would taste. If you try it, let me know!
Love it.