Quinces have a very unique fragrance, and bowls of them have been scenting our kitchen for weeks.
Soaking the quinces in brandy should capture some of that smell in a drinkable form and enable us to enjoy it all over again in the depths of winter.

This recipe is adapted from one by Nigella Lawson, via the Not Without Salt blog, there are other variations around using spices such as ginger, or adding sugar, or using vodka instead of brandy.

  See here for the quince brandy recipe in more detail.

Recipe Costs

£2.00 500g quinces (cost from the market, mine were free)
£8.99 70 cl brandy
£0.03 1 cinnamon stick
£0.05 2 star anise
£0.02 5 cloves

£11.09 Total

£15.84 per litre of brandy

The quinces are washed and dried, then quartered ( a very sharp knife is useful here), 500g is about 4 small quinces or 2 large ones.
The selection of spices is down to personal taste, and I shall be interested to see how mine turns out, I'll taste it in a few weeks to check that the spices aren't overpowering, in which case I'll remove them.

The quinces are packed in a kilner jar, the spices added and the jar filled to the brim with brandy, I bought a cheap bottle from the supermarket.

This will now be left in a cool dark cupboard (along with the sloe gin and damson gin) and should be ready in six weeks.

I shall crack it open around Christmas, it'll be ideal for warming up after a long walk.

Recipe Timings

10mins Preparation
10 minutes Bottling