Oak schnapps

Oak schnapps - based on fresh, small oak branches - is a wonderful schnapps with a delightful whiskey like taste and rich flavours.

It has a beautiful dark reddish brown colour.

Enjoy the schnapps on its own as an aperitif before a meal, or an after-dinner drink.

Or serve with smoked salmon, roast pork, strong cheese, poultry, soup, fish, lamb, seafood, red meat, spicy dishes, chocolate and chocolate desserts.

Can also be added to soups, sauces, stews, and dishes, where you would normally use a little sherry or whiskey.

Common oak

Common oak is also known as English oak or Irish dair.

It's a large, deciduous tree with a wide spreading crown and deeply fissured grey-brown bark.

Common oak is one of about 600 species of the genus Quercus.

The tree has green, oblong and very short-stemmed leaves with rounded lobes.

Both male and female flowers are found on the same tree.

The green-yellow male flowers are hanging catkins. The pale brown female flowers are inconspicuous and arranged in short, stiff spikes.

The fruits - oval shaped acorns - are 2-4 centimeters long, with a cup that covers one third of the nut.

The acorns are light brown maturing to a chestnut brown colour.

The tree is native to Europe, north Africa and western Asia. It's a long-living species - can be more than 1000 years old.

Common oak grows in almost any type of soil, but thrives best in moist, clayey soil. Grows everywhere throughout Denmark.

Common oak wood is used in hardwood flooring and furniture making, for sculpture carving and wood turning, and in the making of barrels for storing wines and spirits during aging, giving the wines and spirits their distinctive colours and flavours.

The bark is used in dietary supplements - and to tan leather.

Grated or grounded acorns can be roasted and used as a coffee substitute.

More information about the common oak tree

Recipe

Use fresh, small oak branches (2-3 centimeters in diameter).

Direction:

• Chop the branches into smaller pieces - 2-3 centimeters long. Leave the bark on.
• Use a clean glass jar with tight-fitting lid.
• Fill 2/3 of the jar with branch pieces.
• Cover completely with clear, unflavoured vodka - 40% alcohol content (80 proof).
• Let steep for 1 year or more 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) for at least 6 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 oak 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.