How to Make Homemade Cherry Infused Vodka

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Making your own cherry infused vodka is a great way to ensure that you get the most pure, fresh fruit taste possible in your liquor.

No artificial sweeteners, artificial flavors, or artificial colors. Just tangy notes of a rich cherry full of natural flavor.

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Ingredients
How to Make Cherry Infused Vodka
Try One of These Homemade Liquor Infusions
What to Drink with Cherry Infused Vodka
Recipe Tips
More Cherry Recipes to Enjoy
FAQs and Substitutions
More Delicious Recipes You’ll Love
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Easy Homemade Cherry Vodka

This vodka recipe contains no sugar. I don't like how much sugar is in the store-bought flavored vodkas and prefer to add sugar to my cocktails when I'm making them. Using simple syrups to sweeten your drinks - instead of the liquor itself - is also a great way to add more flavor to the drink. (Try mixing homemade cherry vodka with honey simple syrup and a squeeze of lime! So good!)

Cherries are a summer fruit with a short season here in Michigan, so this recipe can also be easily made with frozen cherries from the grocery store. That also means you can make homemade cherry-flavored vodka as a Christmas gift without having to worry about cherry season being long over.

Ingredients

Sweet Cherries (fresh or frozen)
Plain Vodka

How to Make Cherry Infused Vodka

Place cherries in a pint mason jar.

Cherries being dropped into a mason jar.

Add enough vodka to fill the jar - about 12 ounces.

Place a lid tightly on the jar and gently tip it back and forth to mix the cherries and vodka together.

A hand placing a lid on a mason jar filled with cherries and vodka.

Set the jar in a cool, dark place for 3 days.

Cherry vodka at the start of infusion time.

Remove the lid and strain out the cherries.

A hand pouring cherry infused vodka through a strainer and into a mason jar.

Store your cherry vodka in a glass container at room temperature for up to 6 weeks or in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.

Enjoy!

Try One of These Homemade Liquor Infusions

A bottle of blueberry vodka being poured into a small glass. — Homemade Blueberry Infused Vodka

Apple slices being dropped in a mason jar. — Apple Cinnamon Infused Gin

What to Drink with Cherry Infused Vodka

Add 1 or 2 oz cherry infused vodka to your favorite lemonade.
Add 2 oz cherry vodka into a chocolate milkshake for a boozy treat!
Mix with Coca-Cola for a spiked Cherry Coke.
Make a boozy cherry limeade with 2 oz cherry infused vodka, 1 oz fresh lime juice, 2 oz simple syrup, and 2 oz club soda. (Pictured below.)

A hand squeezing a piece of lime over a cocktail.

Recipe Tips

If you use fresh cherries, be sure to grab a cherry pitter and pit the cherries - and remove the stems - before placing them in your jar with the vodka. Do not infuse cherries that have pits in them.
For frozen cherries, check the label to make sure they don’t have any added sugar in them.
Infuse and store your finished cherry vodka in a pint mason jar or glass bottle to prevent any flavors getting imparted into the vodka from a plastic container.
Don’t want to spend money on glass bottles? Save your old liquor bottles when they’re empty and reuse them for infusions. Paper labels will soak off easily in a bath of hot water and dish soap.

More Cherry Recipes to Enjoy

FAQs and Substitutions

Do I need to let frozen cherries thaw before I use them?

No. I tested this recipe with both frozen cherries straight from the freezer and frozen cherries that had been thawed. After 3 days there was no difference in taste or color.

Do I need to refrigerate my vodka while it’s infusing?

Nope! The vodka acts as a natural preservative, so you can leave your vodka sitting in a cupboard to infuse.

Can I keep and eat the cherries after I take them out of the vodka?

Absolutely! However, they won’t be sweet. To make sweet boozy cherries, make a small amount of simple syrup (½ cup sugar dissolved into ½ cup hot water), then add your vodka-soaked cherries to that mixture once you strain them from the vodka. Store the boozy cherries/simple syrup mixture in the refrigerator and use over vanilla ice cream or to garnish cocktails.

Can I use cheap vodka for this recipe?

You can, though my recommendation is to use whatever brand you would normally drink. I used Tito's Vodka in all of my testing and the final version of this recipe because that’s what I usually keep on hand for plain vodka drinks.

What kind of cherries should I use?

I like sweet, dark cherries or bing cherries for this infusion. They impart great cherry flavor and a natural sweetness. If you prefer tart drinks, tart cherries are an option as well.

Can I use dried cherries?

While you can use dried cherries in this recipe, they take longer and impart less flavor than fresh cherries or frozen cherries.

Do I have to strain out the cherries from the vodka?

No, but leaving them in will reduce the vodka’s shelf life. If you decide to leave the cherries in the vodka, I recommend storing your cherry vodka in the refrigerator at all times.

A mason jar of homemade cherry infused vodka.

More Delicious Recipes You’ll Love

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Easy Homemade Cherry Vodka

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Infusing liquor with fruit is an easy way to make your own flavored alcohols, with no sugar or artificial colors. Made with fresh or frozen cherries, this homemade cherry vodka is full of flavor and ideal for summer cocktails.