How to make melon liqueur and a melon spritz at home
How to make melon liqueur and a melon spritz at home
Most shop bought melon spirits taste like a lolly rather than a melon, which is a flavouring problem rather than a melon problem, and it's the main reason people end up making their own. When you build it yourself you decide how sweet it goes and how much melon character comes through, and a spritz made from it tastes like fruit instead of syrup.
What you need
- One bottle of melon liqueur essence
- 750ml of neutral vodka or a clean neutral spirit at about 40%
- One sugar base, and the Still Spirits Schnapps Base is the one the melon essence is built around
- A clean bottle and somewhere cold to put it
The licence bit, said plainly
Owning a still is lawful and selling them is lawful, and running one to actually distil spirits at home without an excise manufacturer licence from the ATO isn't, so if you're going down that road the licence is the part to sort out first. Adding an essence to a base spirit you bought is a completely different activity and it needs no licence at all. The whole thing is written up in making your own spirits at home without breaking the law.
Making it
Dissolve the sugar base into the spirit first, because it goes in far more easily before the essence is added than after. Stir until you can't feel any grit in the bottom, then add the essence and stir again. Bottle it and put it in the fridge, and leave it a day or two if you can manage the wait. That's the whole process. There's no heat and no filtering, and no equipment beyond something to stir with.
Building the spritz
- 45ml of your melon liqueur
- 60ml soda water or sparkling mineral water
- 2 or 3 cubes of ice
- A squeeze of lime
- A wedge of melon or a ribbon of cucumber to garnish
Pour everything into the glass and give it one lazy stir. The lime is the part people skip and it's the part that stops it tasting flat, because the acid is what makes the fruit read as fruit rather than as sugar.
Other things to do with it
- Melon mule. Ginger beer and lime over plenty of ice, with a bit of fresh mint if you have some.
- Over ice cream. A splash over vanilla, which sounds odd until you try it.
- Batch punch. Soda and lemonade in a jug with chopped fruit through it, for a crowd.
- As a gift. A clean bottle and a handwritten tag, and you'll be asked where you bought it.
Where people go wrong
The two common ones are rushing the sugar base and over sweetening. Undissolved base leaves a gritty mouthfeel that no amount of chilling fixes, and once a liqueur is too sweet the only way back is to dilute it with more spirit, which flattens the melon at the same time. Go under rather than over, and taste it cold rather than at room temperature so you know what you're actually judging. Add the rest later if it needs it.
Shop related products
- Still Spirits Melon Liqueur essence 50ml. The melon flavouring this whole thing is built on.
- Still Spirits Schnapps Base 300g. The sugar base that goes with it.
- Still Spirits Liqueur Base A. An alternative base if you want it drier.
- Still Spirits Butterscotch Schnapps 50ML. Another schnapps style essence made the same way.
- Still Spirits Hot Cinnamon Schnapps. For when the melon has run out and you want something warmer.
Did you know we also stock a fair bit of the homebrew range in the shop that never gets listed online, so give us a ring on (08) 8536 4333 to check what's on the shelf.
The rest of it is in the Still Spirits collection and the wider homebrew collection.
If you want a hand narrowing it down, Brewhilder is our homebrew adviser and it will walk you through it: Brewhilder.
Read next
- Making your own spirits at home without breaking the law.
- Mixing fruity cocktails at home without expensive gear.
- Turning everyday spirits into craft level infusions.
I always mean to let it sit a week and I never do.
Candeece
Follow our Facebook page: Strathalbyn H Hardware
