How to make your own raspberry infused vodka!

You might have noticed a few infused alcohol posts on this blog. The first time I infused my own alcohol I fell in love with the simple and elegant process of taking gorgeous fresh fruit which is in season and infusing it in spirits. It is a great way to make your vodka a bit more special and personalised, and also a great way to keep enjoying seasonal fruit throughout the colder months. During December this year, when the raspberries were at their most vibrant (and cheapest!) I bought up big and not only ate (almost) my weight in them but set a few punnets aside for vodka.

It's a simple process, so instead of a recipe I'll just give you some basic instructions. Take 2 punnets of fresh raspberries. Rinse well and then pat them dry. Place them in a large jar and cover with 750ml of vodka (or as much as you can fit in the jar. Keep the empty vodka bottle so that you can put the finished product back into it.

Store the jar in a dark cupboard for at least 4 weeks, or up to 2 months. By the end the raspberries should be completely white and the vodka will be a luscious red (this photo was taken about a week into the infusing, so the raspberries are losing some of their colour and the vodka is slightly tinged pink).

After it is sufficiently infused , strain the liquid through a sieve lined with cheesecloth. You should end up to with a clear deep red liquid. Pour back into your empty vodka bottle and you're ready to go!

Even though this tastes quite strongly of raspberries, don't forget it is still straight vodka - so don't go too crazy with it. If you're the kind of person that likes doing vodka shots then you'll love these shots. If you like your vodka a little less hardcore then I highly recommend having this on ice with topped up with soda water. It's spectacular! It's also a perfect way to enjoy delicious summer fruit into the cooler months, I'm going to be drinking raspberries all winter long :)