I thought for a moment that I would step outside of the beer brewing and mead making to do something different.  I was inspired by two things.  First, I wanted something that would be relevant to the arts within the Society for Creative Anachronism; a medieval re-creationist group I play with.  Second, this fig and blackberry tart that a wonderful pastry chef friend of mine packaged with a great catering package at one of our recent video shoots.

The flavors danced so well together that I just went on a fig kick.  I put figs in everything for weeks, finally soaking some in brandy.

Making cordials is pretty simple.  I let the liquor soak up the flavoring agents for 2-3 weeks, then strain and add a mixture of simple syrup to taste and let it sit for a few months to let heat of the alcohol settle and blend.

1.75 L Brandy VS
3 pints blackberries
17 oz. dried figs
1 cup simple syrup

The results were amazing.  It takes everything in me to save the bottles I need for competition.  I just might have to do this one again.  I got some great feedback from the recent competition.  It was a lot more fig than blackberry.  I didn’t mind this so much, but if I am to call it a fig and blackberry cordial, I should have removed some figs for more blackberries.