Everclear - it's not just for Darwin Award winners anymore.
Written: Feb 11 '08
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Very efficiently extracts flavors, colors, and aromas
Cons: Nasty, volatile stuff on its own.
The Bottom Line: Everclear more effectively weeds out dumb frat guys than freshman calculus. Use with extreme caution.
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| prfstars's Full Review: Everclear Vodka |
When I walked into my local liquor store to buy a bottle of Everclear last month, I felt like an underage kid with a bad fake ID. You know, I wanted to play it cool, avoid attention, and get out of there with my bottle as fast as possible. Everclear is 95% pure ethanol-- that's 190 proof. It's illegal in some states, too flammable to ship, and it's the choice drink of frat boys in the lowest sigma of the bell curve. To my horror, I couldn't find it on the shelf and I had to ask for assistance. It turns out they keep this stuff in the back, presumably to reduce emergency room visits caused by Everclear jello shot poisoning.
Everclear is bad for you. If that's not obvious from its alcohol content, please read my good friend Jonathan Kelley's account of his very scary experience with this product. To wit, don't drink Everclear on its own. Use extreme caution even if you dilute it.
Everclear is somewhat popular as a mixer because it's cheap and potent. If you use it as a mixer, keep in mind that it's an order of magnitude stronger than vodka. "Drunk" is fun. "Dead" is not.
I didn't buy Everclear for a cheap buzz. I bought it because I wanted to make homemade limoncello. I found a bounty of shockingly inexpensive organic meyer lemons at the grocery store, and looked for recipes on the internet. A lot of people use 100 proof vodka, but I consulted a friend who makes limoncello regularly. He advised me that 100 proof vodka is the "sh!t" way to do it. Even if you steep the lemon peels for months, vodka doesn't have the extractive power of pure grain alcohol. You won't get as much flavor, aroma, or color from vodka. The only way to do this properly is with a product like Everclear.
Appearance
Absolutely clear. Thin and watery. It looks strangely harmless.
The sniff
As almost pure alcohol (with a small amount of water) Everclear has no smell other than alcohol. It's more of a "fume" than an "aroma." I find it extremely unpleasant, but then again, I find 15% alcohol wines overly-alcoholic. You will never drink Everclear for its aroma.
The taste
I didn't plan to actually taste Everclear on its own, but I was curious. I took a small sip, and it's exactly what you'd expect. It burns all the way down. It doesn't have any flavor beyond that of pure alcohol. You will never drink Everclear for its flavor.
Everclear's extractive powers
I peeled ten meyer lemons with a sharp vegetable peeler, making sure to remove all traces of the bitter white pith beneath the skin. I stirred the peel into one liter of Everclear in a large mason jar. My recipe suggested steeping the skin for two or three weeks, which I did, my I watched the Everclear go from clear to pale yellow in a matter of minutes, and by the end of the first day, it was bright neon yellow-orange. By the end of three weeks, my Everclear was absolutely redolent with the sweet smell of meyer lemon oil. It's still far too potent to drink, so I diluted it with two liters of simple syrup-- almost equal parts water and sugar, boiled gently for ten minutes and then allowed to cool completely. The final product is still over 60 proof, and it's far too syrupy to enjoy on its own. We'll store it in the freezer, and then combine it with equal amounts of soda water on hot summer afternoons.
Final thoughts
Everclear is dangerous stuff. Don't drink it. I don't recommend that you use it as a mixer either unless you pay close attention to the final alcohol content of your drinks. Do not rely on your taste buds alone to determine its strength.
As an extractive, Everclear is a fantastic product. I plan to use it again soon for a batch of homemade orangcello.
Recommended:
Yes
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