Liqueur de fraises (Strawberry liqueur) - Untested

From a book but I lost the title: (also see https://www.1001cocktails.com/recettes/recette_liqueur-de-fraises_357802.aspx)

250g (9oz) ripe strawberries

1 litre/1 3/4 pints rosé wine

225g/8oz castor sugar

300ml(1/2 pint) alcohol 80%

Pick over the fruit, r...

in a large earthenw...

cover and leave to i...

wine and fruit int...

pan, stir in the sug...

and stirring const...

enough to finish d...

allow to approach...

Allow to cool...

fine sieve, then f...

paper, add the...

Cork tightly an...

at least 2 month...

1. Pour deux bouteilles. Faire chauffer le vin à feu doux. A ébullition, l'arrêter et verser sur les fraises entières. Couvrir d'un torchon et laisser reposer 48 heures. Filtrer le jus à l'aide d'un torchon, pour cela, verser le tout sur un torchon au dessus d'un saladier, puis presser le torchon de façon à sortir le jus des fraises. Mettre à chauffer le jus et quand il arrive à ébullition, verser le sucre dedans et éteindre le feu puis remuer pour dissoudre le sucre. Ensuite, porter à ébullition l'eau de vie (de façon à lui enlever son goût, si possible prendre de l'eau de vie jeune) pendant 30 secondes. Verser l'eau de vie dans le mélange jus-sucre et remuer de temps en temps pour refroidir. Mettre en bouteilles.

Plum Basil Gin Fizz - Untested

https://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Plum-Basil-Gin-Fizz/

1 ripe plum, pitted, half diced and half sliced

5 large basil leaves

2 oz. gin

1 oz. simple syrup

Seltzer, to top drink

Lime wedge, for garnish

1. In a cocktail shaker, muddle the diced plum and basil leaves. Fill the shaker with ice; add the gin & simple syrup. Place on the shaker lid and shake for 1 minute. Pour into a glass filled the sliced plum. Fill glass to the top with seltzer and garnish with lime wedge.

Ratafia aux petits fruits - Untested

0 - I can't remember where this recipe came from. Someone's book, somewhere.

1 kg (2 lb) black cherries
1 kg (2 lb) ripe raspberries
1 kg (2 lb) red currants
450g (1lb) blackberries (optional)
alcohol 80 proof
1 stick cinnamon
Sugar

Pick over the fruit, wash and dry them, discard any that are bruised, and remove the stalks. Stone half of them, crush the stones, put them into a large earthenware crock and add all the fruits. Crush it all with the end of a bottle, cover and leave to infuse for 3 days at room temperature.
Strain the contents of the crock through a pieces of old linen into another earthenware crock. Measure the juice and for every litre (1 3/4 pints), add an equal volume of alcohol and 150g (5oz) of sugar.
Stir well, add stick of cinnamon, cover and leave to infuse for 6 weeks. Strain through a coffee filter into bottles, cork, seal and allow to mature for at least 2 months before serving.

Ratafia de cerises - Untested

0 - I can't remember where this recipe came from. Someone's book, somewhere.

about 1.5 kg (3 lb) black cherries
1 litre (1 3/4 pints) alcohol 80 proof
1 stick cinnamon
3 or 4 grains coriander
350 g (12 oz) sugar

1. Weigh 500g (1lb) cherries, wash and dry them, discard any that are bruised, and remove the stalks. Stone half of them, crush the stones, put them into a large earthenware crock and add the fruit. Crusy it all with the end of a bottle, add the alcohol, cinnamon and coriander, cover and leave to infuse for 15 days at room temperature. Wash and dry another kg (2 lbs) cherries and cut the stalks down to 1 cm (1/2"). Place them in layers with the sugar in a wide topped glass jar.
2. Strain the contents of the crock through a pieces of old linen into a bowl and pour this liquid over the cherries to fill the jar. Cork tightly, seal and leave to infuse for at least 2 months before serving.

Testing - Homemade Sherries

https://jamesbonfieldrecipes.wordpress.com/2010/11/27/plum-liqueur-plum-gin/
https://www.growforagecookferment.com/conifer-infused-vodka/
https://gathervictoria.com/2015/12/01/perfect-yuletide-drink-emily-hans-douglas-fir-liqueur/

I think this is the recipe I based last Christmas' plum sherry on, but I did a shoddy job of recording it. Here it is again, possibly... maybe...hopefully with what were likely the same alterations I effected last year! (Although, I must admit I likely used more sugar last year, and I know I used gin, not vodka.) We have such a wealth of plums on the property! Last year I used large Italian plums, while this year I'm starting with Victory plums.

1 - It would appear that Gin is preferable over Vodka. The liquor from the plums soaked in vodka have a taste of prune which, while not bad, is not the excellent sherry I made last winter when I used gin.
2 - 2017: I'm trying different things - blackberries with bay laurel; crabapple; little wild plums; golden plums; Douglas fir needles. We had a strange spring and barely any Damson and Italian Prune plums formed, along with very few apples and pears.
3 - Different ingredients appear to require different steeping periods. NOTE: If infusing needles/leaves in 750ml, is 75g of sugar enough?

800g 400g Plums  stone fruit, or a hefty handful of leaves/needles/flowers or
200g 75g white sugar
70cl 275-300 ml 1 cup Spirit enough to cover or for leaves/needles/flowers, a 750ml bottle of spirit (reasonable quality vodka or gin, 37.5% ABV min)

(Try this:2 large handfuls conifer tips or needles, roughly chopped
1⁄2 cup (60 g) dried hawthorn berries or 1 cup (100 g) fresh
2 whole allspice berries
1 bottle (750 ml, or 31⁄4 cups) vodka
1/2 cup sugar
Leave to steep for 2 weeks, decant and let sit for one week before drinking)

Place the plums on a board and stab with a fork

1. For stone fruit, pierce each plum fruit with a fork in two places. For soft fruit, small fruit and leaves/needles, a good handful for every 3 cups of spirit.
2. In a sterilized Kilner Jar, jar that will just fit all the plums, add the plums and sugar. (Nigel Slater says only half-fill with plums (fruit) and then fill with gin)
3. Pour over the spirit. Seal the jar and shake well.
4. Over the next 2-3 days, shake periodically until the sugar has dissolved, then store the jar in a dark cupboard. For stone fruit, leave to steep for 3 months;for soft fruit, 2-3 weeks; for leaves/needles/flowers for 1 week to 2 months.
5. Strain the mixture through a muslin and check the sweetness – bottle up and add extra sugar if required. DON’T DISCARD THE PLUMSFRUIT! You can use them for baking/jam/jelly-making etc.
6. Store for another month or more before drinking.