Making your own Raspberry Syrup is an easy a delicious way to add a fruity layer of flavor to your cocktails.
It has the perfect combination of bright red fruit and darker jammy flavor which makes for an incredible cocktail.
There are several techniques you could use such as boiling a syrup with the berries or just letting the berries infuse the syrup overnight. However, I don't think either of those methods gives you the best results.
How to make your own Raspberry Syrup
- Mash raspberries and sugar together and let sit for 2 hours
- Add water to the berry sugar mixture
- Heat on the stove for about 5 minutes
- Strain and store in the fridge
Easy as that.
Why this way?
When fruit sits covered in sugar it coaxes out more of the liquid, think back to high school chemistry and water moving across cell walls. By using the sugar to help pull out the fruit's liquid you will end up with a more flavorful syrup than if you only added the berries to a simple syrup while it was cooking.
After the maceration (sitting covered in sugar) there is one more step.
To develop a hint jammy fruit flavor the syrup is cooked on the stove for about 3-5 minutes. You don't want to boil it or cook it to the point that it becomes really thick, we are just looking to dissolve all the sugar and create a touch of cooked fruit flavor.
Then strain the syrup into a clean glass bottle and add a splash of high proof neutral alcohol to lengthen the storage life. It should keep in the refrigerator for up to a month, but the flavor may become less bright and fruity over time.
A quick note on ingredients
Whenever I am adding sugar to a cocktail I think it's best to use cane sugar instead of the typical white sugar. Can sugar is less refined and will contribute a little bit of extra flavor whereas white sugar simply adds sweetness. I use the Wholesome Sweeteners brand whenever I need cane sugar.
If you need some you can find it HERE on Amazon (affiliate).
For the berries use the freshest ones you can. Also be sure to give them a good cold rinse before making them into syrup.
Cocktails with raspberry syrup
You can use raspberry syrup as a substitute for just about any sweetener if you think it would go well with the other ingredients of the drink.
Try starting off really simple like stirring a 1/3 oz of it with some bitters and gin to make a an Old Fashioned style cocktail.
Experimentation aside there are a few classic recipes that call for Raspberry Syrup.
My favorite of the three because of its' similarity to a dark rum Daiquiri. The sweet raspberry works so well with tart lime and nice aged rum.
An extremely simple old cocktail that only uses grapefruit and rye whiskey in addition to the homemade raspberry syrup. Super bright and refreshing.
Certainly the most classic of the three listed here it is essentially a raspberry lemon gin sour, so it's not difficult to see why it has gained such popularity.
You can also use this raspberry syrup on pancakes, pouring it into soda water, or make a killer raspberry ice cream sundae.
Raspberry Syrup Recipe
Ingredients
- 200 g Fresh Raspberries
- 150 g Cane Sugar
- 150 g Water
- 1/2 oz Everclear - (optional)
Instructions
- Add the raspberries to a saucepan and pour the sugar over top of them.
- Muddle until it forms a raspberry pulp and then let it rest for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Add the water and heat gently for about 3 minutes but do not boil.
- Let cool then strain into a bottle for storing.
- Add a splash of neutral alcohol to help preserve. (optional)
Notes
Share This Recipe
When it comes to fruit syrups in cocktails I think you should just about always make your own. The real raspberry flavor is so much better than the artificially flavored corn syrup that you'll buy at the grocery store.
More Delicious Things!
FRUIT SHRUB
Make the Perfect Pimm’s Cup Cocktail
Make This Easy Gomme Syrup Recipe for Super Silky Drinks