Fresh Cherries in Grappa

This is Italian patience in a jar. Fresh ripe cherries packed with sugar and grappa, left in the sun for a week, then stored in a cool dark place for at least three months. The result is boozy, sweet, deeply flavored preserved cherries that are worth every day of the wait.

The sunlight phase is key. Leaving the jar open in sunlight for a week jumpstarts the maceration, warming the grappa and dissolving the sugar while the cherries begin releasing their juice. After that week, the lid goes on tight and time does the rest.

Choose the largest, firmest cherries you can find and leave a bit of stem attached. The stems look beautiful in the jar and give you a natural handle when fishing out a cherry to eat.

Pro Tips

• Use a glass jar, not plastic. Grappa is strong and can leach flavors from plastic containers.
• Shake the jar gently on the first day to dissolve the sugar. After that, leave it alone.
• The cherries improve the longer they sit. Three months is the minimum, but six months or a year produces an even richer, more complex flavor.
• The infused grappa itself becomes a spectacular digestif. Don’t discard it.

Variations

• Use brandy instead of grappa for a smoother, less fiery spirit base.
• Add a cinnamon stick or a few whole cloves to the jar for a spiced version.
• Serve the cherries over vanilla gelato, alongside dark chocolate, or as a garnish for cocktails.