Message 25484 of 39188 in General Discussion

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As far as style/brand of hooch goes: flavorless and high proof is where you 
wanna go.  Everclear, Gemclear, or any "overproof" vodka will do.  
Alternatively, since you're experimenting with cloves and such, a 151 rum 
might do the trick.  My guess is that Bacardi's 151, while brownish, gets it's 
hue from carmel rather than actual aging.  The high proof is important because 
it will leech the harder to leech flavors from the fruit and efficiently too.  
Perhaps a high proof gin might do?  The flavor might not be too overwhelming, 
especially something like Plymouth's Navy strength, if cost isn't much of a 
concern.

I'd steer clear of the microplane or any other grater for this operation.  
Think of it this way: while your grating the fruit, and the room fills with 
that wonderful lemonny aroma, know in your bones that none of what you smell 
will land in your booze.  Get a good vegetable peeler, one with a serrated 
edge maybe even.  That being said:

You raise an interesting proposition in your OP, namely, what about whole 
fruit?  I've yet to try this method primarily because I ain't got a vessel big 
enough to give it a go.  I remember seeing an Italian chef's cookbook not too 
long ago, his name still escapes me, but he had a recipe for an orangecello 
where he suspended oranges in cheese cloth above vodka in a sealed container.  
Somehow the infusion worked. 

Have you considered diversifying the fruit a little for the infusion, maybe 
adding a lime, some Meyer lemons etc?  

There's also a fairly long thread over on eGullet re: Limoncello if you're 
willing to go that far...

myers