Make Your Own Falernum

Falernum is one of those secret ingredients that oftentimes falls into the too-hard-to-make category, so you end up skipping over those recipes or using one of the commercially made products that isn't all that good. But what if Falernum was simple to make, only took 10 minutes, and tasted like pure exotic glory?

Well it is, and it does. And if you make it for the first time, you could win a year's supply of homemade falernum courtesy of Kaiser Penguin. Check out the rules:

http://www.kaiserpenguin.com/make-your-own-falernum/

[ Edited by: kaiserpenguin 2013-01-07 09:52 ]

Hmm, I really like that do-it-yourself options for obtaining falernum are coming about.

However, what concerns me is that this article is airing what the author believes is their favorite version. And as good as it may be, it does us no good to deviate from a recipe which all the classic cocktails call for. Can anyone confirm how "classic" this brew is?

On 2009-03-04 07:23, DJ HawaiianShirt wrote:
... Can anyone confirm how "classic" this brew is?

Very!

And, the simplicity of the recipe makes it very easy for you to add or subtract the flavors to suit your taste. For example, I use less clove and add pistachios to the mix. Very yummy!

Thanks for the post. I live in an area devoid of falernum. What is the shelf life of the recipe and should it be put in the frig? Thanks again.

I'd put it in the fridge to extend the shelf life. Making sure your bottles are ultra clean and have been run under very hot water before filling will extend the life as well. You should be good for two or three months.

As KP says, definitely do not add lime juice to your bottled falernum if you want it to last long. If your recipe calls for 1/2 oz falernum, pour maybe 1/3 into your measuring cup and top off with fresh lime juice. My falernum (with this recipe) lasts several months in the fridge. For some of you, it'd be gone long before that. But I'm not naming names.

EDIT: PS - I make mine with toasted almonds instead of almond extract. Mmmmmmm.

[ Edited by: gatorrob 2009-03-04 14:36 ]

O.K. Got all of the ingredients but I have a couple of questions for you folks who have used the recipe. Stick with me as the questions maybe a bit dumb. First, do I toast the whole nutmeg nut or do I need to crack it? And for the sugar can I use Demerara granulated cane sugar or should it be white sugar? I thought the Demerara sugar would go well with the Lemon Hart. Thanks for your help.

uncle trav,

Nutmeg is up to you. Experiment.

I'd go with the Demerara sugar for sure.

On 2009-03-23 12:34, uncle trav wrote:
nd for the sugar can I use Demerara granulated cane sugar or should it be white sugar?

I use the Demerara and think it adds a wonderful bit of flavor to the mix.

But!The Demerara sugar makes for a much darker brew. I mean like the kind of dark where you are going to wonder if you did it right..... fair warning.

I finally made a batch of Kaiserpenguin's falernum. Great recipe and very easy to make. I used Lemon Hart 151 for the base rum. I also cut back on the cloves from fifty to forty. The sugar was Demerara. The rum and sugar make a dark fragrant brew. I must admit never remembering having falernum in a cocktail it may take some getting used to. What would you folks recommend as a good cocktail to best use falernum in? Here's a pic of the potion... mysterious...:D

"Anyone who has ever seen them is thereafter haunted as if by a feverish dream" Karl Woermann

[ Edited by: uncle trav 2009-04-15 05:28 ]

The "Test Pilot" from the Grog Log is a great drink for falernum.

I've also been making a concoction that goes like this:

Old Jack's Fizz

1 oz. Bermuda/Jamaican/Cuban gold rum
1 oz. Laird Apple jack
1 oz. (or to taste depending upon recipe) of Falernum
1 dash Peychaud bitters

Severely shaken with cracked ice until shaker is frosty
poured into a double rocks glass
Top off with soda or mineral water stir to mix
garnish with cherry and lime wedge squeezed in drink

On 2009-04-15 05:23, uncle trav wrote:
What would you folks recommend as a good cocktail to best use falernum in?

1934 Zombie and Jet Pilot (both in Sippin' Safari). Also the War God, which is essentially the Jet Pilot, but with slightly different proportions and sub simple syrup for the cinnamon syrup.

Or try this tasty little doo-dad:
2 oz Demerara rum
1/2 oz lime juice
1/2 oz falernum
2 dashes orange bitters (or Fee's Whiskey Barrel Aged Bitters)

Stir with ice and strain into chilled cocktail glass.

Cheers!

A Falernum Favorite for me is the Hawaiian Eye.

Got the recipe from the now defunct Vegas Vic's podcast--he claimed it was invented for the cast while they were filming in HI.

2oz. Gold Rum
1oz. White Rum
1oz. Fresh Lime Juice
1oz. Falernum
1oz. Sweet and Sour (home made is best).

Shake all in a cocktail shaker over cracked ice, and strain into a Tiki Mug over ice. Yum!!

So, new poster here, but wanted to add my very first falernum recipe that I just bottled up. I used the 'base' recipe from Colonel Tiki's site, but added zest of 6 limes instead of 9, 1 Tsp of the smaller greenish cardamom seeds, toasted the almonds, one cinnamon stick, and split a vanilla bean, and ginger. All with the Lemon Hart rum. While The Colonel's recipe calls for lime juice as part of the finishing step, why are some saying not to use it? I like the suggestion of just adding the fresh at the time of the mixing, so, just curious.

I'll let know know how it turns out, but I also have to say I've never had a drink with falernum in it...so, nothing to base it on. Kinda fun though!!

On 2010-01-02 14:55, tonupyank wrote:
While The Colonel's recipe calls for lime juice as part of the finishing step, why are some saying not to use it? I like the suggestion of just adding the fresh at the time of the mixing, so, just curious.

The lime juice in the mix has a potential for spoilage. If you skip the lime juice and just use the lime zest you are getting the oils, not the juice and sugars.... thus lower/no chance of it turning on you.

If you use Falernum a lot there's no problem because your going to use it up. If your like me, a fifth of Falernum will last you three or more months meaning you have to keep an eye on it. My current bottle is just about five months old and its starting to worry me... the color is getting darker and the aroma is getting sweet. I think its time to start a new batch

Thanks for the headsup on the spoilage potential! Would hate to have my first attempt end in a mess!

I've also been making a special concoction that goes like this:
its ingredient
1 oz. Bermuda/Jamaican/Cuban gold rum
1 oz. Laird Apple jack

and i used the 'base' recipe from Colonel Tiki's site, but added zest of 6 limes instead of 9 that is my amazing ingredient.

vending machines

[ Edited by: alexx_2010 2010-01-06 05:49 ]

Yeah! Vending machines are cool....
How do you kick spammers?

Best
Mark

On 2010-01-06 05:47, alexx_2010 wrote:
I've also been making a special concoction that goes like this:
its ingredient
1 oz. Bermuda/Jamaican/Cuban gold rum
1 oz. Laird Apple jack

and i used the 'base' recipe from Colonel Tiki's site, but added zest of 6 limes instead of 9 that is my amazing ingredient.

---

vending machines

[ Edited by: alexx_2010 2010-01-06 05:49 ]

Well it's done! I strained all the goodness and mixed in the 3 cups simple syrup. Then off to the bottles. I ended up filling the 750ml bottle, and probably about a pint more. Now, it smelled pretty darn good when I poured it in the bottles. I then made my very first 'real' Mai Tai! Since I'm here in WA rum is a rather limited off the shelf selection, so I used an ounce of Mt Gay Eclipse, ounce of Appletons, 1.5 ounces of fresh lime juice, .5 ounce orgeat, .25 falernum.

Wow! I was thinking it was going to be rather strong, but it was tart and tasty. Now that I think about it, I would switch the falerum and orgeat amounts. Maybe the rums I used weren't the best because I didn't taste much rum flavor, but this isn't about my rum selection.

I did a sip of the falernum raw, on ice. It was very very 'clovey'. I think the 2 tablespoons of cloves I used was probably to much. So, that's the first recipe down. Time to use it up!

If any one is interested I could send a sample.

I then made my very first 'real' Mai Tai!

Not with falernum, you didn't.

On 2010-01-06 21:53, tonupyank wrote:
I did a sip of the falernum raw, on ice. It was very very 'clovey'. I think the 2 tablespoons of cloves I used was probably to much. So, that's the first recipe down. Time to use it up!

If any one is interested I could send a sample.

Whole cloves?

I am up to version 9 now and have reduced my clove level down to about 10 whole cloves that I crack up a bit (a couple of good whacks with a bar spoon). That is to my tastes, there are many others who tell me I need more clove. I garnish their drinks with a clove and that seems to make them happy.

I suggest you have a few friends over for cocktails and serve drinks that feature your newly made Falernum. And you can bottle up some for them to take home. That gives you some more opinions on your recipe as well as reduces your inventory a bit faster so you can start on your version 2.

Sorry Atomic, but i'd rather drink than eat.Liquid nourishment.

Hey Rumballs, what do you mean I didn't make a Mai tai with falernum? I've two recipes that call for it. So now I'm really confused, and I hate to be confused, but I'm getting used to it.

As far as the cloves, tonight I made another Mai Tai, but added a half ounce of grand marnier, and it's MIGHTY 'clovey'. So I think the idea of dispensing it is wonderful. Appreciate all the advice on this, it's pretty fun to concoct stuff. My wife is cracking up over watching me create this stuff! So that can't be a bad thing, hey!?!

[ Edited by: Tonupyank 2010-01-07 20:14 ]

The recipe for the classic/"real" Mai Tai does not include falernum. That's all I'm sayin'. Obviously, there are a lot of Mai Tai recipes out there, but the original Trader Vic Mai Tai that tiki folks go by doesn't use falernum.

Aaahhhh yes, I went back and read through some of the recipes and in the 'original' recipe thar tain't no durn falernum!

Damn you falernumers,falernumites,falernumish or what ever you call yourselves just damn you!

what about falernuminians???

Anything but food.

On 2010-01-02 14:55, tonupyank wrote:
While The Colonel's recipe calls for lime juice as part of the finishing step, why are some saying not to use it? I like the suggestion of just adding the fresh at the time of the mixing, so, just curious.

Chip and Andy wrote:
The lime juice in the mix has a potential for spoilage. If you skip the lime juice and just use the lime zest you are getting the oils, not the juice and sugars.... thus lower/no chance of it turning on you.

I myself have stopped adding lime juice for spoilage. I make about a gallon at time so I need that shelf life.

You might want to experiment with how I avoid the early spoilage problem. In place of fresh lime juice and zest, I use - for a one liter batch - about 3 tsp citric acid crystals and 1½ tsp pure lime oil (Boyajian brand). It still has a good lime flavor and aroma, and it's easier to be consistent, from one batch to the next (fresh limes certainly can vary). The oil tends to float to the top, and is a darkish, olive green color. I shake it up into an emulsion, before using (like Italian dressing); it re-separates, after a while. And it lasts for a long time in the fridge.

Also, I should mention: instead of fresh ginger, I use about 10 oz. of D&G Ginger Beer (lime and strong natural ginger flavor) as a base. I make my own clove extract, but use store-bought almond extract.

Good results with Paul Clarke's Falernum #9 recipe (available on the web).

My wife and I had good results this weekend with Paul Clarke's Falernum recipe using the following variations:

1. Used 3.5 ounces of Everclear 190 proof grain spirits (to maximize extraction) and 2.5 ounces of Bacardi White Rum. This resulted in a very flavorful extraction of the ingredients (rich in clove flavor but with strong notes of lime and ginger).

2. We did not add lime juice as a number of people report that their Falernum has gone bad relatively quickly when lime juice is added. The solution is to add in the fresh lime juice component when using the Falernum in a drink.

3. Used Demerara sugar to make the simple syrup in a ratio of 1.5 parts sugar to 1 part water.

We made "Test Pilots" (from Jeff Berry's Beachbum Berry Remixed) using the Falernum and substituting Absinthe for the Pernod. The drink was complex with layered flavors. Thanks Mssrs. Clarke & Berry for your work.

After being continually unimpressed with Taylor's Velvet Falernum, I finally made my first batch of homemade falernum using Kaiser Penguin's recipe. Many mahaloz, KP. Can't wait to taste it tomorrow night!

The ingredients were given the once over by my VP of Falernum Operations, Chase:

I can now declare that KP's homemade falernum is far superior to the store-bought stuff, IMHO. Awesomely intense flavors and a complex finish not found in Mr. Taylor's product. Now...on to the drinks!

I've got a batch in process right now, going from Paul Clarke's Falernum #9 recipe as printed in Jeff Berry's book. It's soaking right now, with about 6 hours to go before I liberate the liquids from the solids and invite the syrup to the party...

I'm very happy to see folks suggesting and endorsing a Demerara sugar syrup in this, as I was having a hankerin' for doing so but needed validation before taking the leap!

Will post here when it's finished. Looking forward to a Golden Wave and a Hawaiian Eye with the homemade stuff!

In the meantime, here's a pic of my proto-falernum!

EDIT: Update -- it's done, mixed with Demerara syrup, and it's TASTY! Also, keeping it Lime juice free and will add juice as I add it to drinks, in keeping with the good advice I've read above.

Seems a lot stronger than the Fee Bros.' version, so I'm looking forward to seeing its effect on cocktails...

[ Edited by: Sir Richard 2012-07-21 17:39 ]

I just made my second batch. I have tasted vintage Sazerac falernum. I do not think you should put allspice and nutmeg in it. If you want allspice, use allspice dram. I think the Falernum #8 recipe is more traditional and clean. No lime juice. Syrup is syrup in many ways except color. The sugars are different in how they feel in your mouth and work in terms of dissolving. I use any high proof alcohol. PGA works. You must realize you are cutting it and so the result will be at half the proof. I prefer not to use a rum with any flavor as I want to taste the falernum, not rum. I used it without the syrup some for just pure flavor, but sugar is also a preservative.

First batch bottled... here's a shot(with custom label)... The demerara sugar indeed made it quite dark and added some molasses notes to the brew. I've tried it in a Hawaiian Eye to great effect, as well as with soda -- refreshing! Here's a pic of batch #1 in its Sunday best :)

I've completed a second batch (using plain old granulated sugar this time) and I dropped the clove count a bit. I was also extra careful with the limes, making sure to get absolutely no white pith with the zest. The verdict? It is good. Still spicy, still tangy, still bitter, but more 'pleasantly' bitter now. A dark and light batch for dark and light moods... To chemistry!

I love homemade falernum and you've all made me want to kock up a fresh batch. Thanks for the inspiration.

I just made 2 batches. I had strained out th efirst and though, why not use this to make another batch now? So, I put more overproof in there and made a second round. Worked fine and now I have a nice full bottle that will ast a while.

What a great idea Swanky! Wish I'd heard about that a couple if days ago :)

So, how long was your first extraction? 24 hours? And how long did you leave the second batch to soak?
And the flavors were as strong as the first?

This is really a fantastic idea, thanks again for sharing it!

On 2012-07-25 08:49, Sir Richard wrote:
What a great idea Swanky! Wish I'd heard about that a couple if days ago :)

So, how long was your first extraction? 24 hours? And how long did you leave the second batch to soak?
And the flavors were as strong as the first?

This is really a fantastic idea, thanks again for sharing it!

Yes, 24 hours first batch and maybe 28 for the second. Saved a lot of hassle. I can't say the flavor was exact on the second run compared to the first, but I then mixed the 2 in one bottle and what it made was good.

I use a vegetable peeler to prep my ginger. It is very thin slivers rather than long french fry shaped chunks as in the picture above. I also get the muddler out and work it a bit, but mainly I want to mash everything down so that it is all covered by the liquid.

I do not add lime juice and I store it in the fridge, even though it has alcohol and sugar as a preservative.

I also reuse my allspice for my dram. But since it makes a lot, I keep the alcohol soaked allspice berries in the freezer until I need more and then pour in more liquor.

Mai-Kai Memories Series Custom ceramic mugs!

[ Edited by: Swanky 2012-07-25 12:33 ]

[ Edited by: Swanky 2012-07-25 12:39 ]

I'm making another batch tonight so I'll try the double extraction this time and report back. I'm also going to try the peeler for the ginger, that's a good suggestion Swanky, thanks!

EDIT - First extraction of the new batch came out GREAT! Pulp is back in some overproof and will be liberated later tomorrow morning. Looking nice and green already... :)

[ Edited by: Sir Richard 2012-07-27 13:43 ]

On 2012-07-25 07:15, Swanky wrote:
I just made 2 batches. I had strained out th efirst and though, why not use this to make another batch now? So, I put more overproof in there and made a second round. Worked fine and now I have a nice full bottle that will ast a while.

Update on making a double batch with the same stock.

My assumption was that I needed to let it steep longer as maybe the flavor was out of the stuff on the second batch. I the opposite is true! I just made the first cocktails with the new stuff last night and it was totally dominate! I made a Jet Pilot and it was just Falernum. So, I think the truth is, once that mix of stuff was saturated, it was primed to give flavor and I should have steeped it less and not more.

I am going to try halving the Falernum in a recipe and see if that works. I may have to toss this stuff actually. It may be unworkable...

Interesting... I liberated my second extraction after just about 24 hours, after giving it a smell and deeming it good to go. Haven't used it in a cocktail yet though...

22 hours to go until my first batch of Falernum #9 is ready. Just drank a Jet Pilot with Fee Bros. Falernum...strictly for comparison purposes, doncha know.

Don the Beachcomber's Jet Pilot made with Falernum #9, from Beachbum Berry's Remixed.

The homemade falernum was a revelation.

Ugh. Why didn't I see this thread before I overpaid for Falernum last week? DAMMMMIIIITTTTT!

On 2012-11-27 07:33, Hale Tiki wrote:
Ugh. Why didn't I see this thread before I overpaid for Falernum last week? DAMMMMIIIITTTTT!

There's nothing quite like homemade falernum. It's always a labor of love and always worth the effort. I haven't found any store-bought falernum that even comes close to home-made falernum. I get together with another friend and we each make a batch at the same time. I use mine for tiki cocktails, and he uses his for sipping on-the-rocks or neat when friends come over. He's not a tikiphile yet, but he dabbles on the periphery...

On 2012-11-27 07:43, AceExplorer wrote:
I get together with another friend and we each make a batch at the same time. I use mine for tiki cocktails, and he uses his for sipping on-the-rocks or neat when friends come over.

Your friend has the right idea. It really is quite good straight up. I also recommend adding a tablespoon to a standard Caipirinha recipe. It mixes very well with Cachaça.