Why it works: Peach and apricot match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 342 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Ratafia
Ingredients
Directions
Infuse
Blanch the peach and apricot kernels, then bruise them and place in a bottle.
Fill the bottle nearly to the top with brandy.
Let it stand for a month, then strain off the kernels.
Sweeten and bottle
Dissolve the sugar candy in cold water and add to the brandy.
Filter through paper and bottle 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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Peach + apricottop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together342 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Apricot + brandytop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together513 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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Peach + brandytop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together339 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Peach + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,308 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Apricot + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,630 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Peach kernels
- Provide the characteristic nutty, almond-like aroma as their flavour compounds steep into the brandy.
- Apricot kernels
- Add further nutty, almond-like aroma and flavour as they steep in the spirit.
- Brandy
- Acts as the solvent that extracts flavour from the kernels and preserves the liquor.
- White sugar candy
- Adds sweetness that rounds out the bitterness of the kernels and balances the spirit.
- Cold water
- Dissolves the sugar candy so it blends evenly into the brandy without heat.
The step that matters
Bruising the kernels before infusing. Bruising breaks the kernel cell walls so flavour compounds are released into the brandy more fully during the month of steeping.
Swap the peach
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (apricot, brandy, sugar):
- Vanillafits better
- Peachthe original
- Figfits about as well
- Plumfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against apricot, brandy, sugar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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