Lakka

Lakka (Finnish Cloudberry Liqueur)

Lakka is a traditional Finnish liqueur made by steeping ripe cloudberries with honey and a cinnamon stick in vodka. It is served ice-cold in small chilled glasses as a digestif, and is considered a classic homemade gift in Finland.

Prep

15 min

Total

15 min

Serves

Yields about 700 ml (24 fl oz) liqueur; serves 12 as a diges

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •500 g (1 lb 2 oz) fresh or frozen cloudberries (lakka), see substitution note below for non-Finnish kitchens
• •250 ml (1 cup) clear Finnish vodka (or other neutral spirit, 40% ABV), traditionally Koskenkorva or similar Finnish vodka; do not use flavoured vodka
• •100 g (¼ cup plus 1 tbsp) runny Finnish honey, Finnish honey is mild and floral; mild wildflower honey is the closest substitute
• •1 whole cinnamon stick (Finnish kanelitanko), use true Ceylon-type cinnamon if possible; cassia makes the liqueur noticeably sharper
• •60 ml (¼ cup) cold water
• •15 g (1 tbsp) caster sugar, optional, only if berries are quite tart

Steps

1. 1 Inspect the cloudberries and discard any mouldy ones. If using frozen berries, thaw them in a colander set over a bowl and reserve the juice that runs off — it carries a lot of flavour. Gently rinse fresh berries under cool water and drain well.
2. 2 Sterilise a 1-litre (about 1 quart) glass jar or bottle with a tight-fitting lid by washing it in hot soapy water, rinsing, and then drying in a low oven (110 °C / 225 °F) for 10 minutes. Let it cool completely before use.
3. 3 Put the cloudberries (and any reserved juice) into the jar. Add the honey, the cinnamon stick, the cold water and the vodka. Stir gently with a clean long-handled spoon for about 30 seconds so the honey begins to dissolve.
4. 4 Seal the jar and store it in a cool, dark place (around 15–18 °C / 59–64 °F) for 2 to 3 weeks. Give the jar a gentle shake once every 2–3 days; do not open it. The vodka will turn a deep amber-gold colour as the berries macerate.
5. 5 After 2 weeks, taste a small spoonful. If you want a stronger berry flavour, leave it another week. If you want it sweeter, dissolve the optional caster sugar into 30 ml (2 tbsp) of the liqueur in a small pan over low heat, then stir back into the jar and let it rest 2 more days.
6. 6 Strain the liqueur through a fine-mesh sieve lined with a layer of rinsed, squeezed muslin (cheesecloth) into a clean bowl. Do not press the berries — pressing makes the liqueur cloudy. Discard the spent berries (or stir them into yogurt).
7. 7 Funnel the strained liqueur into sterilised 500 ml or 750 ml bottles, seal tightly, and store in a cool dark place. Lakka is ready to drink once strained, but the flavour rounds off and improves after another 1 to 2 weeks of resting.
8. 8 To serve, chill the bottle in the freezer for at least 4 hours (Finns traditionally keep lakka in the freezer). Pour into small chilled shot glasses or pony glasses and serve straight from the freezer. The proper serving size is about 40–60 ml (1.5–2 fl oz) per person as a digestif.
9. 9 Note on cloudberries outside Finland: cloudberries (Rubus chamaemorus) grow in Nordic bogs and are not widely available elsewhere. If you cannot source them, the closest stand-ins are golden raspberries, which share the honey-amber colour and tart-honey flavour profile; the result will taste different but in the same family. Do not substitute strawberries or blueberries — the character of lakka depends on the unique cloudberry taste.
10. 10 Safety and storage note: Because the finished liqueur is roughly 25–28% ABV, it is shelf-stable and keeps for 2–3 years in a cool dark place. There is no raw-egg or fermentation step in this recipe, and no food-safety risk once the alcohol is in contact with the berries.