Irish Mist Honey

Homemade Irish Mist-Style Honey Liqueur

A homemade honey-and-whisky liqueur inspired by the classic Irish Mist, blended with a small amount of fortified wine for depth and warmth. This version is for the home cook who wants to capture the spirit of the bottled original, not a commercial-grade reproduction.

Prep

15 min

Cook

10 min

Total

25 min

Serves

Makes about 700 ml (24 fl oz)

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •350 g (12 oz) clear blossom honey, a mild floral honey such as clover or wildflower; not buckwheat
• •300 ml (10 fl oz) Irish whisky, a blended Irish whiskey such as Jameson or similar
• •120 ml (4 fl oz) Irish cream sherry or sweet white fortified wine, Cream sherry gives the original's herbal warmth; oloroso or amontillado will be drier
• •80 ml (⅓ cup) water, tap water is fine
• •1 tsp dried elderflowers (optional), echoes the herbal note of commercial Irish Mist; or use 1 drop orange flower water
• •1 small piece lemon peel, bright yellow part only, no white pith

Steps

1. 1 Sterilize a 750 ml glass bottle or swing-top jar by boiling it for 10 minutes or running it through a hot dishwasher cycle; let it dry fully.
2. 2 Combine the honey and water in a small saucepan over low heat. Warm gently, stirring, just until the honey dissolves — do not let the mixture boil, as boiling scorches the honey. Aim for a temperature around 70 °C (160 °F), then remove from the heat.
3. 3 Stir the lemon peel and elderflowers (if using) into the warm honey syrup. Cover and leave to steep for 20 minutes, then strain through a fine mesh sieve.
4. 4 Let the syrup cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes. Adding warm syrup to alcohol can drive off volatile aromatics.
5. 5 In a clean jug, combine the cooled honey syrup, the Irish whisky, and the sherry. Stir gently for about 30 seconds until fully blended.
6. 6 Funnel the mixture into the sterilized bottle, seal, and store in a cool dark place.
7. 7 Age for at least 2 weeks before drinking; 4 to 6 weeks gives a rounder, mellower flavour. The liqueur will keep for at least 1 year unopened; once opened, use within 6 months for best flavour. There is no raw-egg or raw-fish safety concern here, and no ingredient requires cooking to destroy toxins — honey is safe at the temperatures used.
8. 8 Serve in a small glass at room temperature, over a single large ice cube, or stirred into hot water as a toddy. Because this contains alcohol, it is not suitable for children, pregnant people, or anyone avoiding alcohol.