Your Guide To Milk Punch And Cocktail Clarification
How to make milk punch and clarify cocktails using milk clarification.
Milk punch is the latest trend with bartenders and cocktail enthusiast from all walks of life. For those who are yet to hear about this trend, let me just “clarify” things...
What is a Milk Punch
Milk punch is a way of pre-batching cocktails which pulls out most of the colour leading to a velvety smooth texture and clarification (Get that clarify pun now?). If done correctly and with enough patience, you can get crystal clear liquid.
Trends in Cocktails
It seems like only yesterday when bartenders were obsessed with black cocktails. Remember the days of adding activated charcoal to every cocktail in sight? Black Negronis and Daiquiri Noirs? Who can forget them classic times of having one to many charcoal cocktails then popping to the loo only to realise your teeth, tongue and lips were black.
Those were the days. Not to mention it was meant to be healthy right? Apart from the clumping in your stomach, constipation and dangers for anyone taking medication.
Anyway, I digress. That was last year, this year we are on the opposite side of the scale. From complete blackness in cocktails to complete clarity. Taking cocktails that should be dark or vibrant in colour, such as pineapple based drinks and coffee cocktails and making them crystal clear.
Personally, I love milk punches. I first discovered this technique 5, maybe 6 years ago when I used it to clarify a White Russian. A cocktail that's usually a cloudy mix of black coffee and white cream.
Using the milk punch technique I was able to transform that drink into an almost crystal clear cocktail that had the look of a Martini but the taste of, you guessed it, a White Russian. That cocktail successfully got me a one way flight (train) to the UK final of the luxurious and prestigious cocktail competition that is Beluga Signature competition. One of my proudest bartending experiences to date.
Different types of Milk Punch
Milk punch is simply put, a combination of alcohol and milk to create a punch, made for sharing.
Usually, this is made with eggs, brandy, rum and vanilla with a sprinkling of nutmeg on top. This is the milk punch we know as eggnog. The Christmas classic.
However, we are not going to learn about that kind of milk punch today. If you do want to learn about eggnog you can do so here. However, this article is all about the clarification techniques of milk punch. A different type of milk punch all together.
How does milk punch clarification work?
In this method, we mix different liquids that when mixed with milk has a tendency to curdle. Such as citrus. Once the milk is added, the drinks separate into curds, leaving the whey protein in the drink. Those curds will filter the cocktail, pulling out any heavy particles - in which the colour of a liquid is usually held.
When filtered out through something such as muslin cloth or coffee filters. The curds stay behind holding on to the heavy particles and what you are left with is a clear clarified liquid.
On top of this, because of the whey that separates from the milk. It gives the liquid a super velvety mouth-feel.
Another thing we are seeing a lot of in bars (when they’re open) is milk washed spirits. This is essentially the same thing as a milk punch. But instead of using the milk to wash a full cocktail, you use it on a single product. This won’t clarify the spirit but the whey still changes the texture. Making the milk washed spirit silky in mouth-feel.
Texture and aesthetics are something that has a massive impact on flavour. So having a technique like milk punch up your sleeve where you can both change the mouth-feel AND look of a cocktail is something that's great to know.
Notice the Ph strips on the above photo. That’s how when I’m creating new milk punches, I can test whether or not it’s sour enough to curdle.
How long does a Milk Punch last?
As if milk punch clarification couldn't get any better, there’s one more benefit I'm yet to talk about. And that’s preservation. Because of the whey in your end punch. It preserves the liquid.
For example: A regular rum, pineapple and lime punch would last maybe 2 or 3 days refrigerated. A rum, pineapple and lime milk punch will last months refrigerated, maybe even years! The power of preservation.
Perks of Clarifying Drinks With Milk Punch…
So, just to recap - The perks of a milk punch cocktail clarification are as follow;
Cocktail Clarification
Mouth-feel and texture
Ease of a pre-batched cocktail
Preservation
Equipment for Milk Punch Clarification
As for the equipment, you can use any jug and filtering system you want. The tighter your straining system, the clearer the liquid. And what I mean by that is using coffee filters will be better then a fine strainer.
My set up is pretty much always;
A Jug: to mix the punch
A strainer: To strain any large curdles
A coffee filter: For the actual liquid straining. This makes the biggest difference.
A funnel: for bottling
A bottle: for, well, holding the cocktail.
The dream equipment is the chemex set. It’s made for pour over coffee but works absolute wonders when it comes to milk punches.
The Chemex
This is it. Made for coffee but works so so good when it comes to the perfect milk punch.
Don’t forget to pick up coffee filters.
History of Milk Punch
Now for a quick history lesson before we get onto the milk punch recipe.
Although milk punch clarification is something still relatively new to a lot of bartenders and home bartenders alike. This technique actually goes back centuries.
The first known recipe for milk punch clarification dates back to 1711, found in a cookbook by housewife Mary Rockett. Back then, England was filled with low quality and harsh spirits. Another thing they lacked was refrigeration. Imagine a time with no fridges to preserve food. Oh the horror!
Mary Rocketts recipe for a milk washed punch solved both those issues. It softened the harsh spirits with juices and gave that end punch a shelf life without the need for refrigeration. Her recipe was as follows;
Add two gallons of hot milk to a gallon of brandy, five quarts of water, eight lemons, and two pounds of sugar. Let the mixture sit for an hour, then strain it through a flannel bag. The result? A clear, silky-smooth, shelf-stable elixir that lasted for months. No refrigerator necessary.
Another fan of the milk punch was none other than Benjamin Franklin. In 1763 he enclosed his very own recipe for milk punch in a letter to the governor of Massachusetts.
Fun Fact: Over a century later, bottles of milk punch were found in Charles Dickens wine cellar. Dickens may have died but the milk punch was still good. Allegedly
Clarified Milk Punch Recipe
Clarified Milk Punch
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a jug, mix everything together apart from the milk.
- In a saucepan, bring the milk to a simmer. It doesn’t need to be boiling hot, just warmer then everything else. A Lot of people skip this step and instead add cold milk, insisting temperature doesn’t help the process. It still works but personally I’ve found more success with using milk at a differing temperature.
- Slowly pour the milk into the jug of punch. This should curdle right away. I’m warning you now, it wont look good. Currently it probably looks like an undrinkable, curdled, sicky mess. Hang in there! It's going to be beautiful!
- Cover the jug and let it sit for at least 1 hour and up to 24 hours. I normally shoot for around 5 hours for a crystal clear punch.
- Strain out your punch over a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth. Then do a second strain over a coffee filter. Allow your punch to sit. It should now be crystal clear with a slight yellow hue, If it’s still cloudy. Strain again over another coffee filter. The straining process will take anywhere from 1 to 3 hours so be patient. Don’t force the straining, let gravity do its work.
- Store your milk punch in the fridge and serve over a block of clear ice and garnish with nutmeg and pineapple leaves. The huge block of clear ice really helps the cocktail look even clearer if you don’t have a completely clear milk punch.
Notes
How to make the spices sugar syrup
To make the spiced sugar syrup that I use in the above punch is easy as it gets.
First, mix 500grams of white sugar and 500ml of water in a saucepan on medium/high heat. Stir continuously and once the sugar has dissolved add 1 cinnamon stick, 4 cloves and 2 star anise.
Lower the heat and simmer for 10/15 minutes. Strain out the spices and refrigerate.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
340.55Fat
0.8 gSat. Fat
0.43 gCarbs
58.1 gFiber
0.18 gNet carbs
57.92 gSugar
56.27 gProtein
0.83 gSodium
52.47 mgCholesterol
2.32 mgThe nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Adding the warm milk to a milk punch.
Straining a iced tea milk punch over a coffee filter and bottling.
Milk Punch Variations
As long as you have citrus in the mix, then the milk will curdle. And as long as your punch curdles, you can make milk punch. The possibilities are endless. Some punches will be more clear then others depending on what you use. But I've seen successful clarification with even the darkest liquids such as coffee.
So experiment and see what you come up with. Recently and one of my favourites has been a clarified Paloma which I top with soda. The soda not only lengthens the tequila based cocktail but clears it up even more. I swapped out the lime juice in my Paloma milk punch for a simple citric acid mix so the only colour in my punch that needed to be clarified was the grapefruit juice. This meant the end product was almost completely crystal clear.
Jam Donut Milk Punch
For an interesting cocktail that utilizes the milk punch technique, check out this Jam Donut Milk Punch Negroni.
Clarified Tequila Paloma Milk Punch Recipe
Ingredients
500ml Tequila Blanco
250ml Citric acid solution
500ml Pink grapefruit Juice
300ml Sugar syrup
100ml Milk
Method
Step one
Follow the same steps as the above milk punch recipe. Once it comes to serving leave a 50ml Gap at the top of your glass and top with soda water.
Step two
Garnish with a pink grapefruit peel.
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