Melon liqueur

Basically, melon liqueur is a sweet alcoholic drink that is made from melon juice, sugar and alcohol. The most famous, probably, is Midori melon liqueur, originally from Japan, although, in addition to this brand, there are more than a dozen manufacturers of this fragrant treat on the market. By the way, interestingly, Midori liquor is rich in green, which is not at all inherent in melon liquor - this effect is deliberately achieved through the use of food dyes.

As a rule, the alcohol content in melon liquor is at least 20 °, and sometimes even more. The melon liqueur tastes rather cloying, but its sweet notes capture the distinctive flavour of this fragrant fruit.

The melon liqueur, which is made at home and features a natural light yellow colour, has a truly stunning scent. For its preparation, medium-sized melon, high-quality vodka, water and granulated sugar are used. The purified flesh of the fresh fruit is crushed and poured with an alcohol base, after which it infuses in a warm place for about a week. After that, sugar syrup is cooked, which is combined with a strained infusion - the result is an excellent taste of natural melon liquor without dyes and other harmful additives.

In its pure form, melon liquor is consumed quite rarely for the same reason - due to the cloying sweet taste of the drink. Basically, melon liqueur serves as an excellent basis for making a variety of cocktails. Moreover, the increased density of this drink and unusual color (in particular, this applies to Midori liquor) allow you to use it in the manufacture of interesting layered cocktails.

The most unusual cocktail to use melon liquor is the Spider Kiss. To prepare it, a web is drawn with chocolate syrup from the inside of the glass, after which the vessel is cooled in the refrigerator. The shaker mixes melon liquor, vodka and lemon juice, and then the mixture is poured into a chilled glass. It remains to drip a couple of drops of Grenadine red syrup into a cocktail, dip an orange slice into chocolate syrup and garnish them with the edge of a glass.

Interesting both in taste and in color, the Grasshopper cocktail, which is prepared quite simply. The shaker thoroughly mixes melon liqueur, Baileys liqueur, mint white liqueur and cream, after which the drink is poured into a cocktail glass and decorated with a sprig of mint and a berry of fresh raspberries.

Green iguana is the name of another popular melon liqueur-based cocktail. Its distinctive feature lies in the manner of serving - the edge of the glass is wetted with lemon juice and sprinkled with salt, after which tequila, melon liquor, lemon juice and sugar syrup are mixed in an ice shaker, which are poured into a decorated glass.