Ginger infused whiskey with brown sugar, honey and vanilla.

Ingredients

1 ½ cups Whiskey

2 tablespoons Honey

2 ½ tablespoons Brown sugar

3 inches Fresh ginger

3 teaspoons Granulated sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla bean flavoring (coffee flavoring)

Directions

Using the mason jar as a measuring tool, pour your whiskey to the 1-1/4c (10oz) line.

In a small saucepan, heat the whiskey on medium low (don’t boil). Once it’s warmed, drizzle in honey. I did not measure, but just drizzled in a circular motion, stirring as I went. Maybe about a tablespoon or two, but use whatever feels right.

Add 3-4 loose handfuls of brown sugar, continue to stir until melted. Keep on medium low for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Take off heat and let cool for about 20 minutes. After about 5 minutes or so I stuck mine in the fridge to help speed the cooling process.

While its cooling, take your piece of ginger root (about 2-3in will be fine) and peel it. I’ve found that the spoon trick works best — run the edge of a spoon down the surface of the ginger. Once peeled, slice into semi-thin strips, Not paper thin, but maybe about the width of two toothpicks. You want them thin, but large enough to separate from the whiskey after sitting for a few days.

In your mason jar, add your chopped ginger, a few spoonfuls of granulated sugar and a helpful dusting of powdered vanilla flavoring (I use a Starbucks vanilla powder, but you can find many different varieties. The easiest one to find will probably be by Coffee Mate.)

Add your (now cooled) brown sugar-honey-whiskey mixture. If there is room left in the jar, top off with more whiskey, leaving about a half inch or so from the bottom of the jar’s mouth.

Cover with band and lid. Give it a vigorous shake! Get those ginger pieces to work.

Let sit for two nights, shaking occasionally. I kept mine on the counter top, away from sunlight.

After the second night, strain out your ginger pieces using a mesh strainer. It’s okay for there to be tiny pieces of ginger left over, but if they’re bothering you THAT much you can use a coffee filter inside the mesh strainer to get them out.