Rose Petal Vodka

This vibrantly hued and delicately scented rose petal vodka looks like a luxe craft cocktail concoction, but it’s actually super easy to make yourself at home. Just infuse, strain, and enjoy. Use in place of regular vodka to give a romantic rosy fragrance and rich red hue to your favorite mixed drinks, or experiment and create your own new house cocktails.

Ingredients

  • 1 standard 750 ml bottle of vodka
  • edible rose petals (at least 1/2 cup, packed)

Instructions

  1. Wash rose petals, and gently pat dry or air dry.
  2. Place rose petals into a large resealable container (such as a large jar or pitcher).
  3. Light muddle rose petals (a long wooden spoon works well), and pour in vodka.
  4. Seal, and let sit in a cool, dark place until infusion has reached the desired flavor and color. (Infuse at least one day, and up to 3-5 days. If infusing longer than one day, shake the container daily to ensure even infusion.)
  5. Strain, bottle, and store in your refrigerator or freezer.

Cook’s Notes:

A double batch of rose petal vodka being made

Ideally, you should use organic or homegrown roses for this infusion. However, this isn’t a realistic option for everyone, so you can use conventionally grown roses, provided you wash the petals thoroughly to remove any pesticides (a good produce rinse helps). I recommend using roses with deep, saturated colors like red or a vivid pink for the best color, preferably from a highly fragrant variety. You should strain the infusion once the petals have imparted all of their color- one day is usually sufficient, any longer and the rose petals start to turn a most unappealing shade of brown, and the delicate scent of fresh roses starts to get muddied with the manky smell of mushy old petals. If you let the mixture sit for too long, the alcohol will actually begin to dissolve the petals- you don’t want this to happen, so keep an eye on your infusion, and strain the petals once you’ve extracted their color and fragrance. If you want to deepen the color or intensify the fragrance further, you can infuse the vodka again, using more fresh rose petals. Alternatively, you could also add a splash of culinary rose water to enhance the fragrance (just don’t get too heavy-handed or you’ll dilute your finished product too much).

You can also sweeten the finished rose petal vodka by adding in some simple syrup. Arose simple syrup would be ideal- you can use a store-bought version, or make your own. Depending on how sweet you make this, the end result can vary from barely sweet (just enough to mute the taste of the liquor) to a syrupy liqueur akin to liquid Turkish delight.

I do not recommend using dried rose petals or dried rosebuds in this recipe, as the flavor and fragrance will not be as good; additionally, many commercially available dried rose petals and rose buds are treated using dyes and chemical fragrances which will yield poor results and may be unsafe to drink.