Why it works: Brandy and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 19% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,939 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Raspberry Brandy
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Hull and pick over the raspberries, then bruise them.
Place the raspberries in a jar or wide bottle and pour the brandy over them.
Seal the jar tightly and let the berries steep in the brandy for two weeks.
Make the syrup
In a saucepan, combine the sugar and cold water, then boil until it forms a medium consistency syrup, skimming off any scum.
Blend and bottle
Mix the syrup with the fruit and brandy, then strain the mixture through a jelly bag.
Bottle the liquid and cork the bottles, storing them in a cool, dark place for another two weeks.
After two weeks, filter the liquid again, carefully pouring it to avoid disturbing the sediment, then bottle it for use.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Brandy + sugartop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together11,939 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Brandy and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 11,939 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Raspberries
- Provide the main fruit flavour and colour that the brandy extracts over time.
- Brandy
- Acts as the solvent that extracts flavour from the fruit and preserves the liquid.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the liquid and balances the strong alcohol and fruit acidity.
The step that matters
Skimming the syrup. Boiling sugar and water draws impurities to the surface as scum. Removing it keeps the syrup clear and prevents off flavours and cloudiness in the finished liquor.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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