Notes from the Galley Slave: New Traditions onboard Pirramimma: Part 2.

In my last blog post, I mentioned the Coffee and Orange Rum Liqueur the Galley Slave made for the first time in late February, 2014. And I promised you the recipe. This photo of that first batch was taken in early April, 2014. It's still in the preserving jar and is just about ready for the liqueur to be poured off the fruit and bottled up. If you're wondering, those are whole oranges and they're studded with roasted coffee beans. The recipe is courtesy of Carl Legge who gives further attributions - I'm not sure who concocted the original recipe - but it's thanks to Carl the Galley Slave tried it. 

From memory, this batch took slightly less than 5 weeks before it was ready for bottling. It was then left in the bottle until December 2014 when it made its first guest appearance on Boxing Day. It was ready to drink long before then but it was one of those bottles that lurked at the back of the drinks cupboard and consequently was forgotten. Though it's too late to start a batch in time for this coming Christmas, sadly. 

Photo: Richard Hayes.

You might be able to see that the rum has taken on a very slight orange tint from the oranges. The flavour is distinct: a quite subtle but delectable blend of coffee laced with a touch of orange. The rum provides a lovely rich base note and colour to the liqueur. 

In Carl Legge's recipe, he mentions that it is the orange oil and juice which gives the flavour to the blend. True enough. Galley Slave decided that this year, she would put her own twist on the recipe and cut each of the oranges in half once she had studded them with the coffee beans. Time will tell!! 

With that in mind, here are some photos of Galley Slave's latest batches of this liqueur.  Below, the sugar is weighed out and the coffee beans counted. Ready, steady, go...

This time, Galley Slave made three batches - two litres of rum and a third litre using cognac. The cognac batch is in the middle - you can see quite clearly the different colour of the two different alcohols. Galley Slave used Lamb's Navy Rum and Otard cognac in her brews. 

Even if you think you've managed to get all the coffee beans into the oranges, come the time you shake the brew to dissolve the sugar, you'll find some of the coffee beans will dislodge themselves. No matter: it won't be a problem to the final result. 

Here's Carl Legge's recipe. It will make about 1.2 litres of liqueur. You will definitely need a clean container that is larger than 1 litre to steep the liqueur in. And of course, a bottle or bottles to store your finished creation. (Last time, Galley Slave used a 2.5 litre preserving jar - this year the jars are 3 litre in size.) 

Ingredients:
2 large or 3 smaller oranges. 
about 80 - 100 roasted coffee beans.
300g of white granulated sugar.
1 litre of vodka, brandy or rum.

Method:
Divide the beans up equally by the number of oranges you have. If necessary, give the oranges a wash or scrub to remove any waxes or sprays. Then press the coffee beans, one by one, evenly around the orange. You may need to make a start on a hole for them with a small knife or skewer. Some of the beans will fall out. Don't worry. I think the important thing is that the orange skin is punctured to allow oils and juice to dissolve in the spirit. 

Put the bean covered oranges into your preserving container. Pop in any stray coffee beans. Add the sugar and then pour over your chosen spirit and cover. Leave for 6 weeks or more. Stir or shake your concoction every now and then to make sure the star dissolves.  Then strain off the oranges and beans. You could do this through a double layer of scalded muslin for a clearer result. (Galley Slave did this)
Bottle the spirit. Enjoy.

Galley Slave has an important addendum to the recipe: once the sugar has dissolved, it's worth making sure the oranges are completely covered by the alcohol. Otherwise you run the risk of the batch fermenting.  A small, spotlessly clean saucer might be the trick to keep them submerged. Whatever you use, make sure it really is clean.

And a final photo from Galley Slave's recent efforts... 

With Pirramimma tucked up in the winter halls, now's the perfect time to get cracking on all the goodies we'll want to be ready to take with us next season. Time too, for some serious planning for next year's cruising. And of course, there are some maintenance projects to carry out in the warmth and comfort of home. Lots to do, and hopefully, lots to look forward to. 

Let me know if you make any of the recipes in this blog post or the one before. I'd love to hear about your successes. 

Vxx