Not all cherry liqueurs are created equal, and never all cherry liqueurs are Cherry Heering. Cherry Heering is a sort of cherry liqueur and a Scandinavian spirit with a particular spiced cherry jam taste. Followers and bartenders flip to Heering for an accessibly fruity, strong, vivid, candy, spherical, intense taste delivered in a ruby crimson hue. Heering’s pronounced cherry style would not sacrifice advanced dimensionality for one-note sweetness — however this is only one kind of cherry liqueur.

The cherry liqueur umbrella class additionally encompasses maraschino liqueur, unsweetened German kirsch made out of fermented cherry pits, and cherry fortified wines with brandy- or port-like full-bodied richness. Totally different cherry liqueur manufacturers can vary from candy and dessert-like to bitter and natural relying on the fruit and botanicals from which they’re made, and relying on their processing strategies. Past style, totally different liqueurs additionally pack totally different boozy strengths. Heering falls on the low finish at 24% ABV, whereas fortified cherry brandy clocks in towards the 40% ABV mark. 

Nonetheless, Cherry Heering is extra than simply one other model. The title carries spectacular status as a class pioneer. As Heering’s Instagram account bio boasts: “The primary and most awarded cherry liqueur. Exploring the world since 1818.” Certainly, this centuries-old liqueur debuted in Copenhagen, the place, in keeping with the official Cherry Heering web site, it was the primary cherry liqueur on the planet. Final yr alone, Cherry Heering received Double Gold on the prestigious Worldwide Spirits Problem and was named the class champion for liqueurs on the Bartenders Model Awards.

Within the mixology world, cherry liqueur stands firmly on the intersection of cocktails and desserts. The spirit could be loved on the rocks as an aperitif or used as an impactful cocktail ingredient. Choices inside the class can vary from bittersweet and natural, like Kirsch, to syrupy, viscous, woody, almond-forward, and even to a cloying medicinal cough syrup “cherry” style. Any spirit made out of an alcohol base (whether or not a impartial grain spirit, cognac, or in any other case) and infused with cherries could be categorized as a cherry liqueur. On the palate, Cherry Heering is markedly sweeter than each maraschino liqueur and cherry brandy.

Cherry liqueurs are mostly used to make the blood & sand and Singapore sling cocktails. It can be used as a shortcut ingredient to make flavorful chocolate lined cherry brandy outdated fashioneds for a crowd. Cherry liqueurs are likely to fall inside the 25%-40% ABV vary, a large span suited to myriad makes use of. These totally different tastes and potencies make totally different liqueurs higher suited to govern the profile of various cocktails. Some cherry liqueurs run clear, whereas others are darkish crimson and extremely pigmented, which will even impression a craft beverage’s presentation.

We suggest serving sweeter cherry liqueurs neat alongside a slice of black forest cake as a knockout banquet dessert. On the drier aspect, Cherry Grand Marnier is a French liqueur that melds Griottes cherries with cognac and orange. Or bartender-favorite Luxardo maraschino liqueur tames bitter marasca cherries right into a spherical almond tasting profile.

Cherry Heering is the cherry liqueur that put the class on the map. This intrepid spirit first hit the market again in 1818. Per the lore, inventor Peter F. Heering bought the recipe from a former boss’s spouse; Heering had been working in a grocery retailer identified for its cherry liqueur. The story goes that Heering noticed profitable potential within the Copenhagen harbor as a hotspot for worldwide commerce, and his liqueur rapidly sailed to ports round Europe and Asia, gaining reputation and a spread-out fanbase. The friendly-yet-refined sipper was particularly common amongst Nineteenth-century European the Aristocracy.

As far and large because it has travelled, Cherry Heering has remained true to its Scandinavian roots. The model’s proprietary liqueur is made out of “actual cherries and botanicals to create its wealthy taste,” and at this time, “stays true to its unique household recipe,” per the Heering web site. Cherry Heering is produced in Denmark utilizing dark-hued, wild-growing, intensely-aromatic Danish Stevens cherries, which get crushed, soaked in spices, and cask-aged for 3 to 5 years. Distillation consultants theorize that Heering’s nice almond tones are because of the cherry stones being included within the fruit’s maceration and soaking course of. Cherry Heering additionally contains nuts someplace within the combine, because the Heering web site declares nuts as an allergen. Regardless of the specifics, followers do know that, on this household recipe, Danish Stevens cherries get blended with spices and impartial grain spirit, yielding a ruby-hued spirit that is as simple and as it’s efficient and timeless.