I'll be upfront: this is essentially the same recipe as last month's strawberry syrup. Literally the exact same thing. Same method. Same ratios even... it's just a different berry.
I almost didn't post this for that reason. But then I made a batch and put it in a drink and it was just so friggin good, I felt like I had to post it anyway. So here we are. Let's call it a "bonus post" okay? Next syrup is coming very soon... this is just a detour worth taking while blackberries are around.
What You'll Need:
- 200g fresh blackberries
- 250g cane sugar (roughly 1.25 cups)
- 120ml water (roughly ½ cup)
- ½ oz vodka or neutral spirit (optional, for preservation)
Instructions:
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Macerate the berries. Add the blackberries and sugar to a bowl and mix thoroughly, breaking down the berries as you stir. You want them releasing juice. Let this sit at room temperature for an hour or two. By the time you come back there'll be a good amount of liquid pooling at the bottom and the sugar will be mostly dissolved.
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Warm the water. Heat the water until it's just warm (around 150–160°F), or warm enough that you'd be comfortable putting your finger in it. Not boiling.
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Combine. Pour the warm water over the macerated berries and stir until the sugar is fully dissolved. Let it cool to room temperature, about 20–30 minutes.
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Strain. Pour through a fine mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth. Press gently on the berries to get as much liquid out as possible without squeezing so hard that pulp comes through and makes things cloudy.
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Fortify (optional). Stir in the vodka or neutral spirit. Keeps it fresh longer. Without it, you're looking at about 10 days. With it, closer to 2 weeks.
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Bottle and refrigerate.
A Note on Blackberries
Same rule as strawberries: taste one first. If it's good, the syrup will be good. Blackberries can vary a lot depending on where you get them and how ripe they are. Wild blackberries (if you can find them in your region) tend to be smaller and more intensely flavored than what you'll find in most grocery stores. Worth seeking out if you have access.
How to Use It
- Blackberry Whiskey Sour: 2 oz bourbon, ¾ oz fresh lemon juice, ½ oz blackberry syrup, optional eggwhite. Shake, strain, ice.
- Blackberry Basil Smash: gin, fresh lemon or lime, blackberry syrup, muddled basil. Shake and strain over ice.
- Sparkling Blackberry Lemonade: blackberry syrup, fresh lemon juice, sparkling water. Easy zero-proof option.
- Blackberry Old Fashioned: a small measure in place of simple syrup with a good rye or bourbon.
Final Pour
Same method as last month. Genuinely different result. Blackberries have their own thing going on ya know? Dark and mysterious, and maybe a bit more serious than a strawberry... they're the bad boy berry. I don't know if that's true actually, I'm starting to get weird up in here because some a$$holes on Reddit think I use AI.
Regardless, make it while blackberries are good and before a data center crushes all the farmland in your area.
If you're making berry syrups and want somewhere to share what you're mixing them into, the Cocktail Club is where that conversation is happening. It's a paid platform ($27 a month) but it's been a truly wonderful experience these last couple months. No follower counts, algorthms, or ads, it's become a really great space to connect and share with fellow "boozy nerds." Try it out and cancel anytime.
Anway, more coming very soon. Thanks for being here.
Jordan
High-Proof Preacher
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