Hierbas

I've got my Anita's bottle still unopened. How long would it keep for? (opened and unopened). Should it be kept chilled or does it matter?
 
I've got my Anita's bottle still unopened. How long would it keep for? (opened and unopened). Should it be kept chilled or does it matter?

it'll stay good for at least two years, the taste simply might get stronger as the herbs are still in there.
no need to keep chilled, but obvs serve on ice.
 
I have (well, I had until last weekend tbh🤫) a 2019 Can Stivi hierbas, and it's still very good 😁

What base do you use for the Hierbas ? I've got a huge load of wild herbs gathered over the last few months from the South Devon coastal area and the garden, many of which have a Mediterranean origin - everything from roman wormwood and mugwort to santolina flowers, rosemary, wild fennel, alexanders, wild carrot, wild angelica, pineapple chamomile, rock samphire and many more. Thinking of making a South West UK "Hierbas" as the berry infusions already number more than I'll ever use !
 
What base do you use for the Hierbas ? I've got a huge load of wild herbs gathered over the last few months from the South Devon coastal area and the garden, many of which have a Mediterranean origin - everything from roman wormwood and mugwort to santolina flowers, rosemary, wild fennel, alexanders, wild carrot, wild angelica, pineapple chamomile, rock samphire and many more. Thinking of making a South West UK "Hierbas" as the berry infusions already number more than I'll ever use !

sweet aniseed liquor, which is produced over in mallorca. that's the base.

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Sooo ..., being unable to buy Anissat in the UK I decided to make my own version of Hierbas Casolanes from base ingredients starting with a neutral alcohol (40$ vodka) to extract the base flavour from organic grain aniseed. I've then followed the method of making a strong base "mother" maceration, which will be mixed with plain Anis to dilute the concentrated flavour and make a few bottles in the Spring from the base. I read about this method here : https://taulaposada.com/2015/05/25/licor-dherbes-casolanes/ .

This also allowed me to adjust the quantities of some core ingredients in the usual base Anisette l(more or less). Many common ingredients used in homemade hierbas ibicenas grow wild near where I live (or in the garden) and due to the mild Autumn are still in leaf or flower. I've included some others to bring the flavours of coastal South West England and the special opportunities making this in November rather than in early/mid Summer brings. I'm hoping this will turn out to be a very special hierbas to have in 2022 as soon as the hot weather returns.

Along with the usual ingredients, I've included some special extras like sea buckthorn leaves, meadowsweet (which has a vanilla-almond flavour and is reblooming in very small numbers), mature sea fennel (rock samphire) seeds and even some icelandic sea truffle, which we have locally and I collected on my last little swim/dive of the year. None of these flavours will dominate but they all come together for a rich and complex blend.

In all there are 50 different herbs / botanicals in the mix. Now I just have to wait it out and see whether it develops as well as I hope it does ! It's the jar on the right (the left one is my homemade absinthe, which is a tad stronger at 90% alcohol by volume :oops::spank::lol:)

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50 is more than the double of herbs we use. Your Hierbas Devonescas look good though! 👏

Thanks - yeah, the more I thought about it the more I found significance to herbs of mediterranean origin or brought to UK by the Romans. We have no ruta graveolens growing locally though it's found in other parts of the country. It lends a bitter backround to a spirit so I compensated with a blend of other aromatic herbs that do similar like artemisia pontica, seed of Smyrnium olusatrum and the like. Was fun to think through and put together :cool:

I also have the right name now - Hierbas Devonescas ... was wondering that haha !! It'll never get through post-Brexit customs so I'll have to keep a bottle to bring out in my hand luggage next time I come to the island :twisted:
 
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