Has anyone tried to make clarified cocktails at home?
I just finished of making a clarified margarita using coconut cream instead of whole milk to give it a more summer feel.

We will be trying it out this weekend... interested to hear yall's experience with this.

never heard of this. seems like a needlessly complicated thing to do. ill pass.

Furlock Bones said:

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never heard of this. seems like a needlessly complicated thing to do. ill pass.

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Agreed. After looking up what it is, I'm not sure why you would want to go through the trouble.

I'm guessing none of you all have had milk punch?

HTownAg98 said:

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I'm guessing none of you all have had milk punch?

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I drink one every year at the rodeo. But it's pretty much milk and bourbon. A margarita with milk sounds like vomit city.

It changes the profile of your traditional cocktail. It gives you a more enhanced, smoother, less acidic cocktail. You don't taste the milk at all. Here is the marg clarified with coconut milk.

I've clarified butter before. Does that count? It's made from milk

I've also clarified soup stock using egg whites ......

Furlock Bones said:

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never heard of this. seems like a needlessly complicated thing to do. ill pass.

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Missing out then. It isn't complicated at all but it does take a hot minute to do. Not something you would do for a single cocktail, but if you want to batch something, the juice is definitely worth the squeeze(see what I did there?)

A, it changes the mouth feel. Think a plain broth vs a bone broth/stock. One is thin, the other has a viscosity/mouth feel.

Two, it brings out different flavors while muting others. The Citrus doesn't take over, so you'll get more or even different whisky/gin/tequila notes you wouldn't otherwise.

And D, it actually makes any carbonation you add, like tonic or soda, more carbonated. The bubbles stick around longer since the sugar (I think) doesn't break down the carbonation as much bc of the clarification process.

It's not complicated" ......says the guy with the 25 letter handle .......

I gave it a try last night on a quick whiskey sour. Definitely a headache for a single drink, and I probably should have waited longer. But the mouthfeel was different and cool, and I generally enjoyed it.

My wife wouldn't touch it though. I shouldn't have told her anything about it

I like the home alone layout of your point.

What am I missing? A margarita doesn't have milk or coconut milk anywhere in the same zip code.

Mathguy64 said:

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What am I missing? A margarita doesn't have milk or coconut milk anywhere in the same zip code.

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You add the milk to the drink after the fact with an extra dose of acid like lemon juice. The acid curdles the milk which pulls out the colors and other stuff

Scriffer said:

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Mathguy64 said:

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What am I missing? A margarita doesn't have milk or coconut milk anywhere in the same zip code.

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You add the milk to the drink after the fact with an extra dose of acid like lemon juice. The acid curdles the milk which pulls out the colors and other stuff

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I get the acid curdles the milk and what it does. But that's not a margarita.

I'm definitely intrigued because it seems interesting and different. A fun way to jazz up cocktails you make at home.

I get a slight chuckle that people in this forum make their eggnog 9 months before Christmas but think this is too much trouble.

I haven't made it but I've tried it at The Grey Hen RX in Phoenix. Tastes like a tangy punch and is wild knowing it started as milk. You'd never know otherwise and assume you were being lied to if you didn't know it's a real thing.

Here's an article explaining it. Pic on the far right is the result.

Milk punch

I first heard of these last year via this Atlas Obscura article.

Have done a couple batches of whiskey sour. Definitely changes the mouthfeel and flavor profile, but results have been very good. Didn't last long once my friends tried them.

One other benefit is after the milk wash, the cocktail becomes shelf stable and can be kept long term. Great for making a batch and keeping in the door of the fridge or travel cooler for ready to pour cocktails.

Shaggie 05 said:

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Have done a couple batches of whiskey sour. Definitely changes the mouthfeel and flavor profile, but results have been very good. Didn't last long once my friends tried them.

One other benefit is after the milk wash, the cocktail becomes shelf stable and can be kept long term. Great for making a batch and keeping in the door of the fridge or travel cooler for ready to pour cocktails.

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That sounds good! Can you share the recipe? I want to try the milk punch but that seems like a fall drink. Whiskey sours are good all year round.

jrichgent said:

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It changes the profile of your traditional cocktail. It gives you a more enhanced, smoother, less acidic cocktail. You don't taste the milk at all. Here is the marg clarified with coconut milk.

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Hmm, I didn't know coconut milk could curdle. A quick check on google confirms that it will curdle if enough acid is used. That's interesting especially if turning tiki cocktails into punch.

Sure thing, here you go:

- 4 Cups of Bourbon (I use 100 proof stuff so the whiskey still comes through a bit)
- 1.5 Cups of Lemon juice
- 1.5 Cups of Simple Syrup
- 3/4oz of Bitters
- 1 Cup of whole milk

- Mix the cocktail ingredients first, then pour in your milk.
- Let sit 2-4 hours.
- Filter.

The first few ounces through will likely be a little cloudy as the curds are settling into a sort of filter bed. Once the liquid is coming through clear, pull the cloudy liquid and add it back into the filter. From there it's just wait until all the liquid is through. This is a slow process, but has been worth it.

I use a large fine mesh strainer with a couple layers of paper towels. Seems to do the trick. I've had a buddy have good luck with a hand pour coffee filter.

Amazing I am going to try that - same process with the marg? Just mix your normal marg ingredients then do milk or coconut cream then sit in fridge a few hrs then filter ? Can you use regular paper coffee filter ?

Wait why do you have 1.5 cup bitters and then 3/4 bitters. Is that a typo ?

1.5 cups of bitters had to be a typo? Because that's a mind numbing volume of bitters.

Yes, bitters twice was a typo and that would be a ton of bitters.

Edited it with simple syrup there instead.

Max Power said:

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jrichgent said:

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It changes the profile of your traditional cocktail. It gives you a more enhanced, smoother, less acidic cocktail. You don't taste the milk at all. Here is the marg clarified with coconut milk.

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Hmm, I didn't know coconut milk could curdle. A quick check on google confirms that it will curdle if enough acid is used. That's interesting especially if turning tiki cocktails into punch.

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I used cream of coconut, I would think the higher fat content would make it more susceptible to curdling.

OP can you post your recipe/process

Been meaning to try this for awhile. Need to get on it. For those that have TikTok, look up ThirstyWhale. He has some good videos showing him making some batch clarified cocktails.

But that's just mixing and sticking it in the back of the fridge

Shaggie 05 said:

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Sure thing, here you go:

- 4 Cups of Bourbon (I use 100 proof stuff so the whiskey still comes through a bit)
- 1.5 Cups of Lemon juice
- 1.5 Cups of Simple Syrup
- 3/4oz of Bitters
- 1 Cup of whole milk

- Mix the cocktail ingredients first, then pour in your milk.
- Let sit 2-4 hours.
- Filter.

The first few ounces through will likely be a little cloudy as the curds are settling into a sort of filter bed. Once the liquid is coming through clear, pull the cloudy liquid and add it back into the filter. From there it's just wait until all the liquid is through. This is a slow process, but has been worth it.

I use a large fine mesh strainer with a couple layers of paper towels. Seems to do the trick. I've had a buddy have good luck with a hand pour coffee filter.

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I tried your recipe/process this past weekend and really liked the results. I might cut back on the simple syrup just a bit next time but overall it's a very solid drink.

It's hard to identify what but there is definitely something pleasing about drinking the clarified cocktail. Now I want to try other cocktails.

Clarifying pulls out some of the acid and tannin in the drink, which will change the mouthfeel. If you're doing that, the sugar will come through more, so cutting back on the simple syrup isn't a bad idea.

HummingbirdSaltalamacchia said:

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Furlock Bones said:

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never heard of this. seems like a needlessly complicated thing to do. ill pass.

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Missing out then. It isn't complicated at all but it does take a hot minute to do. Not something you would do for a single cocktail, but if you want to batch something, the juice is definitely worth the squeeze(see what I did there?)

A, it changes the mouth feel. Think a plain broth vs a bone broth/stock. One is thin, the other has a viscosity/mouth feel.

Two, it brings out different flavors while muting others. The Citrus doesn't take over, so you'll get more or even different whisky/gin/tequila notes you wouldn't otherwise.

And D, it actually makes any carbonation you add, like tonic or soda, more carbonated. The bubbles stick around longer since the sugar (I think) doesn't break down the carbonation as much bc of the clarification process.

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For a more mouthy feel I'll usually do a breast milk chaser straight from the tap.

Glad to hear you made and liked it. Not a bad idea to cut down on the simple. The clarifying tends to round off the whiskey "bite" as well, so my latest versions instead of cutting the simple, I've gone higher proof (125) to have the whiskey come through a bit more.

Can you clarify a Bloody Mary?