Bacon Vodka

[Redweasel]

I dunno about bacon vodka, but I did make myself a bacontini the other day.

4 parts Jack Daniels
1 part SoCo
Splash of pepper vodka
Garnish with Bacon

What you see below is a Pan American Bacontini. It has American and Canadian Bacon. You can also make a standard or "American" Bacontini with only regular bacon, but what can I say? I like to be a little flashy...

Oh man, that looks sooo good yet sooo wrong.

 

[Cregar]

While at olllllo yesterday, we got the pleasure of trying his bacon vodka. I had to say, I enjoyed it alot. Im not a hard liqueur drinking, but I might make a batch to have when friends come over.

thanks
olllllo

 

[Desert Monkey]

I have to second Cregar on the bacon vodka - that stuff was fantastic at olllllo's - pure gold.

 

[Brandon O]

I will 3rd the notion. Here's the deal, I wouldn't think about taking a shot of this vodka but it's great as a sipper. It's way too powerful in flavor to be shot. olllllo did this one right. I would love a nice cracke barrell breakfast with a bloodly mary made from this.

 

[Aubie Stout]

Bacon really does make everything better......

 

[Redweasel]

The fact that this thread keeps being resurected is very disturbing.

 

[KingBrianI]

i remember reading through this thread when it was being actively discussed and came up with a hypothesis on why the first guy who made it seemed to dislike it and when ollllo made it everyone seems to like it. the first guy is in england and over there what they call bacon is completely different from what we call bacon in the US. it is more like what we call country style ham or canadian bacon. could be the difference?

 

[Orfy]

We got the lot baby.

Let's get some bacon terminology sorted first. Here in Scotland and across the UK bacon comes in three forms - streaky, back and middle.
Streaky Bacon

Streaky bacon is made from the belly of the pig and as such has a higher proportion of fat than back bacon. It makes the perfect crispy bacon but is probably less popular for bacon butties (sandwiches) and rolls. If you just ask for "bacon" in the USA you're highly likely to get streaky bacon.

A whole belly from a side of a pig is too large for most of us to make into bacon in one piece. We have our butcher cut ours into pieces about 30cm square, which make them easy to handle and a good size for curing.
Back Bacon

Back bacon is made from the loin of the pig. It's got a good bit more meat on it, is leaner than streaky, and is perfect for bacon rolls and butties. In the USA this may be described as "Canadian bacon", but that term covers a multitude of sins of pork product, so be more precise if you're looking for back bacon across the pond.

As with the belly, a whole loin from a side of a mature pig is too large to handle comfortably, so cut it to a reasonable size.
Middle Bacon

Middle bacon is basically streaky and back together in a single cut. It's becoming difficult to come by in supermarkets in the UK, and less common in butchers too.

One thing all bacon has in common is that it is cured.

 

[Sir Humpsalot]

Oh my goodness!!! Middle Bacon??!!! Who knew such a thing existed?? :drool:

 

[Brandon O]

That is some good looking pork.

 

[Shaggy]

So much bacon.
So little time.

 

[olllllo]

i remember reading through this thread when it was being actively discussed and came up with a hypothesis on why the first guy who made it seemed to dislike it and when ollllo made it everyone seems to like it. the first guy is in england and over there what they call bacon is completely different from what we call bacon in the US. it is more like what we call country style ham or canadian bacon. could be the difference?

I'm not sure if Danek ever revealed the base vodka that he used, his method or if he solicited anyone else's opinion. I used to be a vodka drinker (pre-beer era) and appreciate sipping liquors.

 

[Desert Monkey]

I obtained some very strong, clear liquid - let's call it "soonmhine" - it's about 80 proof.

Think I can throw some bacon in there and get the same effect you get using Vodka?

 

[olllllo]

It has to be somewhat pleasing on it's own. Bacon is a lover, not a fighter. It can smooth out some of the rough edges, but it won't turn a wife-beater into a prince charming.

 

[Brakeman_Brewing]

It has to be somewhat pleasing on it's own. Bacon is a lover, not a fighter. It can smooth out some of the rough edges, but it won't turn a wife-beater into a prince charming.

Best quote ever.

 

[Desert Monkey]

It has to be somewhat pleasing on it's own. Bacon is a lover, not a fighter. It can smooth out some of the rough edges, but it won't turn a wife-beater into a prince charming.

That's pure gold right there.

Pure Gold.

 

[Empty_One]

I'm not sure if Danek ever revealed the base vodka that he used, his method or if he solicited anyone else's opinion. I used to be a vodka drinker (pre-beer era) and appreciate sipping liquors.

Do you think storing your in the fridge for 3 weeks, as opposed to a dark cabinet had an effect?

For some reason, I really want to try this.

 

[Danek]

I'm not sure if Danek ever revealed the base vodka that he used, his method or if he solicited anyone else's opinion. I used to be a vodka drinker (pre-beer era) and appreciate sipping liquors.

I used Smirnoff vodka (as it was all I had), and three rashers of bacon (that's the streaky bacon as shown in Orfy's excellent guide to pigs). The bacon was fried until crispy and crumbled into the vodka, and then left in the dark for three weeks. TBH I'm not the world's biggest fan of vodka, but even so, the stuff I made was much too salty for my palate.

Actually, I still have it in my freezer so perhaps I'll try another snifter now. It's only 9 in the morning, but what the hell - this is important.

OK, it's a little better than I remember (though I seem to remember throwing up in my mouth a little, so that doesn't say much). It still tastes like vodka with salt added, and there's nothing that's particularly bacony in it, which seems to defeat the purpose a little. My guess is that the streaky bacon I used was probably cheap and nasty; and perhaps using back bacon would have worked better. As olllllo says, making sure that all your ingredients are delicious in their own right is probably a wise first step. Nevertheless, I still think this would work well in a Bloody Mary.

 

[toastermm]

What about the leftover bacon? How did that taste?

I'm assuming that you tried it, no man can ever throw away bacon in any form. Especially since it was laced with vodka.

 

[Danek]

What about the leftover bacon? How did that taste?

It tasted a bit like shoe.

 

[sirsloop]

BACK FROM THE DEAD!!!

All of this talk about Bacon Vodka and being salty... and what not... nobody thought to make bacon tequila? I'm gonna make bacon whiskey too...

 

[olllllo]

Do It! 10 Chars

BACK FROM THE DEAD!!!

All of this talk about Bacon Vodka and being salty... and what not... nobody thought to make bacon tequila? I'm gonna make bacon whiskey too...

 

[sirsloop]

well.. tequila will have to wait... NBF... not a big fan. Anyways I got a 750 of heaven hill bourbon and smirnoff... i'll probably do a half batch of each with whatever bottles I have laying around. I have some bacardi... I could do some of that as well. I guess tequila can come later from a flask or something.


btw, I'm using LOW SODIUM BACON!

 

[nibiyabi]

Do -NOT- make bacon whisky. We tried it with perfectly-cooked bacon from Trader Joe's and a fabulous whisky, and it somehow tasted like the entrails of a dung-eating maggot. Avoid.

 

[Denny's Evil Concoctions]

I think you need age that whiskey 50 years.

 

[BakerStreetBeers]

Do -NOT- make bacon whisky. We tried it with perfectly-cooked bacon from Trader Joe's and a fabulous whisky, and it somehow tasted like the entrails of a dung-eating maggot. Avoid.

New York magazine and an east village mixologist disagree

(Actually it doesn't mention how it tastes, so maybe a cacophagic larvae is the flavor achieved. His entrails I mean.)

It does say to make infuse the bacon flavor into the bourbon with the fat alone.

 

[blizzard]

Despite its age, this is hands-down my favorite thread on HBT. I had some commercially-made bacon vodka that was God awful.

 

[Sigafoos]

After far too long, my friend and I finally made a batch of this today. It looks friggin gross already, so I can't imagine how it'll taste in three weeks.

 

[choptop]

A friend of a friend in Durham makes flavored spirits and I tried some of his bacon vodka a couple weeks ago. By itself it was atrocious, but it made the most amazing bloody mary I've ever had.

 

[CrankyOldLibrarian]

I made something like this (not my blog) a while back. I used a cheap bourbon (E&J), and I tied a few drinks with it. It ended up in the drain. I was sad to pour it out, but it was far from enjoyable:

http://www.theagitator.com/2008/08/16/how-to-baconify-your-bourbon/