Walnut liqueur

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 15 walnuts, green, freshly harvested
• 600 ml alcohol, 90%
• 400 ml cherry brandy, 42%
• 1 stalk(s) cinnamon
• ½ vanilla pod(s)
• 1 pinch of mace
• 5 juniper berries, crushed
• 5 cloves
• ½ lemon(s), grated peel
• 500 g sugar
• 500 ml dry white wine

Instructions

Working time approx. 10 minutes; Total time approx. 10 minutes

Nocino. A green walnut liqueur from the region between Modena and Bologna, a home-made recipe

For this liqueur, walnuts in Italy (hence the name) are usually harvested on St. John’s Day. Here, walnuts harvested at the end of July are best. A good Nocino is bittersweet and black. It is a digestif, a liqueur, and can be enjoyed for stomach upsets, general malaise, and bad moods. It should be enjoyed in small quantities but regularly. The walnuts are wiped with a cloth, quartered, and placed in a lidded jar with alcohol, kirsch, cinnamon, vanilla, mace, juniper, cloves, and lemon. The jar is then sealed and stored in a cool, dark place for two months. Sugar is then boiled with white wine to form a syrup, and once cooled, it is poured over the nuts. The liqueur should now stand and infuse until Christmas. After that, it is filtered and placed in a small oak or chestnut barrel. Bottling is just as possible. Store for another year in a dark place at a constant temperature. The Nocino tastes best when aged for at least two years.