Literary references to this liquor going back to the Middle Ages describe how people would collect wild herbs in the summers to make Ratafía. The oldest written recipes are from the 19th century and the details vary: they can include carnations, berries or even green walnuts. But the drink is always a product of its surroundings. Josep Roca, sommelier at Celler de can Roca, calls it "a forest in a bottle".
1 bunch
1 bunch
1 bunch
1 bunch
1 bunch
1 bunch
a pinch
1 bunch
1 bunch
1 bunch
3 pods
5
1/2
1 bunch
4
2 sticks
from half an orange
from half a lemon
to taste
1/2 litre, 50% alcohol by volume
6 tablespoons of sugar per 1/2 litre of water, to sweeten and dilute the recipe to about 25% alcohol by volume.
Use a knife to score the green walnuts
Put the rest of the ingredients in a sealable glass bottle or jar. Cover the ingredients with the liquor.
Add the simple syrup.
Leave to macerate 40 days and 40 nights.
El nuevo licorista is an 1847 collection of recipes for making all sorts of liquors, vinegars, confections, conserves, syrups and artificial wines. All we know about the compiler are his or her initials: J. A. H. de C.
See the book
