egg liqueurs , as well as egg syrups and wines, have been part of European diets for centuries. Egg liqueurs blend distilled spirits and sometimes wine; whole or separated eggs (typically from the domestic chicken); a sweetener such as sugar, honey, or condensed milk; and sometimes flavorings such as nutmeg, orange flower water, and vanilla. They may be served as pourable, drinkable liqueurs about the consistency of cream or venture into dessert territory with almost custard-like thickness. Delicious egg liqueurs may be whipped up à la minute, but most benefit from a rest to allow flavors to marry—and to allow the mixture to be chilled. Some are aged for years before serving.
German Eierlikör and Dutch advocaat for the export market are practically identical; both are pourable drinks that may be consumed chilled or mixed. The Snowball, for example, is a British Yuletide concoction of one part advocaat to two parts British lemonade (a clear, carbonated citrus soft drink, though bitter lemon is the better option). Italian zabaglione is popular, but its lesser known Venetian cousin, vov, deserves sampling; it is made with whole eggs, including shells, dissolved in lemon juice before mixing with brandy and sugar.
Fabiani, Gilbert. Élixirs et Boissons Retrouvés. Barbentene, France: Équinoxe, 1998.
Vicario, Renato. Italian Liqueurs: History and Art of a Creation. Sansepolcro, Italy: Aboca, 2011.
By: Matthew Rowley