Hawthorn Schnapps

Hawthorn schnapps is a very delicious schnapps. Soft, round and aromatic. It's based on the hawthorn berries, also known as haws or thorn apples.

Serve the schnapps with smoked venison, salmon, trout, wild duck, pork, paté, terrine, desserts, cheese and cheese cakes.

Or add it to jellies, chutneys, fruit sauces, desserts, marmalades or jams - hedgerow jam, for instance.

Excellent as appetizer.

Hawthorn schnapps blends very well with crabapple schnapps.

Also, see how you can easily...
turn your hawthorn schnapps into a liqueur.

Singleseed Hawthorn

Crataegus monogyna

There is a great number of species in the genus Crataegus.

And also a great number of varieties and hybrids.

One of the best known species is the singleseed hawthorn - also known as May or Whitethorn.

It's a small, deciduous tree or shrub with sharp-thorned branches.

It grows in almost any type of soil.

It has dark green and deeply loped leaves - and lots of white, highly scented blossoms in spring.

Small, red, apple-shaped berries appear in autumn. Both leaves, blossoms and berries are edible.

The berries are sweet-acid and astringent. Rich in vitamin C and antioxidants and an important source of food for birds and animals.

Hawthorn is used in the making of marmalades, jams and jellies.

It's also used in liqueur and wine making - and in anti-aging products, herbal remedies and dietary supplements.

The hawthorn wood is hard and excellent as firewood. Also very good for turning and carving.

For Bonsai making, the hawthorn is a very fine tree.

Singleseed hawthorn is very common in Denmark, where it grows in hedges, windbreaks, wood edges, beach shrubs and sandy areas.

Recipe

For best result, use freshly picked and fully ripe berries.

You can use almost any species or variety - so start with your favourite one, then try some others.

However, the singleseed hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) and also the English hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata) are two species that are highly recommended.

Direction:

• Rinse the hawthorn berries and leave them to dry in the shadow - on paper towel.
• Fill 2/3 of a clean glass jar with berries.
• Cover well with clear, unflavoured vodka - 40% alcohol content (80 proof).
• Close the jar with a tight-fitting lid.
• Let the berries steep for 5-6 weeks - in a dark place at room temperature, 18-20°C (64-68°F).
• Shake lightly and taste it from time to time.
• Strain and filter your infusion into a clean glass bottle or jar with tight-fitting lid.
• Store (age) it for a couple of months in a dark place at room temperature before serving.

Note: If for some reason you are not satisfied with your infusion, there are ways to adjust both taste and flavours - click here to see how.

Serve your hawthorn schnapps at room temperature in suitable glasses. And remember to keep your schnapps bottle tightly closed and in a dark place before and between servings.




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