When you want to make your refreshing drinks and cocktails or crave hot and cold coffee, your drinking experience will be incomplete without adding a tiny quantity or even a teaspoon of heavily fragrant, fruity, or floral, and glorious cocktail syrup. These natural flavor enhancers elevate your savory and sweet showstoppers.
If you already have your simple syrups at home, you can try endless combinations such as vanilla beans, ginger, peppercorns, rosemary, thyme, lavender, rose, lemon, apple, orange, basil, pomegranate, and a thousand more choices. Any fruit, herb, spice, and edible leaves can be infused in your syrup.
Cocktail Syrup Trivia
- Adding fresh mint leaves and citrus rinds in the simple syrup may lead to spoilage and can shorten its life span. That doesn’t mean to say that it’s highly discouraging. It’s best to make syrups in small batches to avoid wastage.
- In serving cocktails infused with syrups, a simple cinnamon stick garnish or rosemary sprig immediately doubles or triples the retail price.
Cocktail Syrup Buying Guide
Most syrups are available in your grocery stores, department aisles, cocktail bars, and even specialty stores. There are thousands of alcoholic and non-alcoholic, plain, and spiked syrups that you can choose based on your needs.
However, it’s best to buy syrups from your local suppliers with all-natural ingredients sourced from your local farms and suppliers. You can also ask someone to make specific syrups for you.
With that, family-owned farms, small candy manufacturers, bakeries, and café’s support each other through healthy, honest, and profitable businesses relationships.
Cocktail Syrup Production & Farming in Texas
Custom, home-made cocktail syrups are the magic liquid ingredients to your food fare.
Plain Cocktail Syrups can be easily bought but it’s also very easy to make. Just boil equal parts sugar and water to make your simple syrup. However, even the basics need tweaking. It’s also easy to infuse simple syrup with fruit and herb extracts and spices, whichever is the most appropriate for your bartending needs.
Fruit, Herb, & Tea Syrups are commonly sold in the liquor aisles of malls and convenience stores. There are thousands of flavor combinations to choose from. To keep it all-natural, it’s best to make your syrup by infusing your simple syrup with fresh fruits, naturally derived fruit juices, fruit slices, tea leaves, and even fresh herbs.
Spice, Orgeat, and other Advanced Cocktail Syrups are available at specialty stores.
By making your own simple syrups, you are ensured that you only use the best, natural, and healthy ingredients for your concoctions. Controlling the ingredients and helps in preserving the natural health benefits of the syrup.
Preservatives and Chemicals
Much has been said about the dangers of chemicals and preservatives in mass-produced goods. Cocktail syrups contain colorings, preservatives, flavor enhancers, and other components that have a toxic impact on a person’s physical and mental well-being.
Cocktail syrups contain food coloring to enhance its signature vibrant hues. The shiny and luscious chocolate syrup contains brown food color to enhance its appearance and preservatives to extend its shelf life. Colorings are known to be highly carcinogenic and bans must be imposed to avoid risking the health of consumers.
Food additives have been known culprit for several behavioral problems. Excessive consumption among children can disrupt their normal behavior and lead them to develop ADHD. Additive mixes also lead to a psychological diagnosis.
Packaging
Cocktail syrup should be stored in an airtight container and must be refrigerated until it’s ready to use. Basic simple syrup can last up to four weeks but flavored syrups last only a week or two.
Enjoying Cocktail Syrups
Cocktail syrup is best enjoyed by mixing it with your favorite alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails. Berry-flavored syrups are great paired in both alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails. Herb and mint syrups are a great wake-me-up treat. Ginger-Cardamom syrups are the life of your party, it’s best to grate the ginger and crack the cardamom pods to maximize heat and flavor. Mix this syrup with sparkling water and serve chilled.
Storage
Cocktail syrups are made from sugar and preservatives. It should not be difficult to store. Store the syrup in sterilized, airtight containers. However, cocktail syrup can also spoil. Check for white, floating sediments and an acidic smell. If the smell is no longer pleasing, then it’s time to toss the syrup.
Cooking
All cocktail syrups start with the basic simple syrup. It’s very easy to make and it only takes 1 minute to complete this recipe. Once you have mastered making your simple syrup, you can extract it to transform it into a cocktail syrup.
SIMPLE SYRUP
Ingredients:
1 cup white sugar
1 cup water
Procedure:
In a medium saucepan combine sugar and water. Bring to a boil, stirring, until sugar has dissolved. Allow to cool.
