Cherries are generally categorized as either sweet or tart. The former predominates and are what most maraschino cherries are derived from, while the more rare sour varietals are what are mainly used in cooking.

For our cherry liqueur, we use the very finest Montmorency tart cherries from the Northern reaches of Michigan. These tart cherries are prized the world over, and yet no one else in the world produces a liqueur with these perfect little stone-fruits.

We start by destoning the fruit using a special hand held masher, collecting all the rich juices. We then add our eaux-de vie, and a pinch of cane sugar to balance out the tart cherry flavor. The liqueur is then moved to glass demijohns, where the flavors and spirit slowly blend together. 

Unlike other cherry liqueur which are often made with artificial flavors that take on the likeness of a maraschino cherry, our cherry liqueur maintains a balance between slightly tart, and a twinge of sweetness that can only come from real Montmorency cherries. As a result, it is brilliant in many turn of the century cocktails like the Cherry Cricket, and is also a welcome addition to a hot stack of pancakes.

Todd Leopold finds that just a ¼ ounce of the Michigan Cherry Liqueur is the perfect replacement of the customary lime in a Gin and Tonic. We invite you to try it in one of our favorite recipes.