Why Just The Tip Isn't Enough

Exotic flavors and spices never cease to amaze well seasoned tasting palettes. Cocktail consumers and creators crave ways to gain knowledge and grow their ever-expanding tasting palette.

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​Learning how to prepare and preserve unusual ingredients is essential to successful execution of new recipes with out-of the-norm components. The spruce tip is one versatile flavor that will not disappoint as long as it is prepared properly. 

Graspin' Aspen is a twist on an Old Fashioned that will make you question which Colorado Rocky you've just finished skiing.

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Flavor Profile

A spruce tip by itself will pack a powerful, almost uncomfortable, punch! Although the spruce tip flavor profile is expectedly piney, tasters might be surprised by the range of its profile. Most tips definitely offer a crisp, citrusy, and herbaceous flavor. However, most consumers fail to anticipate the slightly sweet taste this plant also has to offer. Experienced gatherers are quick to note that tip flavors vary immensely, even from tree to tree. 

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Gathering & Storing

Fresh spruce tips come in a spectrum of green to yellow hues and are in season near late spring, with later blooming in cooler climates. Tips are soft, flexible, and with a bit of resin on the branch. Often they are shedding the papery brown sheath that once encased them. A sheath still attached indicates the tip is young; the sheath should be removed before any cooking or preserving preparations. They can be stored for about one month in a cool, dry environment such as the refrigerator. Alternatively, they can be dried or processed as a syrup, but the future usage options are tremendously limited after these processes.

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Preservation & Consumption

Fresh: Spruce tips can be served in a variety of ways from completely unaltered to totally transformed. Simply adding tips to a salad (think of the potency of arugula or basil) will have an awesome and visually stunning impact, although it might be a bit too much when consumed in one whole bite. Chopping the tips will reduce the potential to overwhelm the tastebuds, but it will also lessen the way the eyes perceive the ingredient as well. 

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Fresh Preparation and Storage: Remove any debris and small brown casings from the tips. Pack fresh tips in a plastic zipper bag after wrapping them in a slightly damp paper towel. Store in refrigerator up to one month, changing the paper towel every few days.

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Dried: Dried tips can be stored up to six months in a cool, dry, airtight container and will last even longer when combined with traditional preservation methods such as sugar or salt. To produce either spruce sugar or spruce salt, finely chop fresh (still moist) spruce tips and mix with an equal part of raw sugar OR coarse salt. I allowed mine to macerate overnight (turning them several times) so the oils from the needles would absorb into the mixture. Note: The sugar will turn the mixture to a notably darker greenish-brown color. Then, spread the mixture onto a dry flat surface, occasionally stirring and breaking up any clumps. Once dry, it has been recommended to grind the mixture to a finer grain, but the choice is completely up to you.  Tips dried alone may be used for teas or infusions but this is not the best method of imparting flavor as after the moisture is removed from the tips they retain much less of their original flavor.

Dried Preparation and Storage: Allow tips (chopped or whole) to sit out until all moisture is removed. (Using a dehydrator is not recommended.) Pack dried tips in a plastic zipper bag or airtight glass container and store in cool, dry location.

The Vesperado riffs on the classic ratio of a Vesper while imparting the high octane flavor of agave spirits. Here it's rimmed with spruce tip salt to bring out the salinity and minerality of the agave spirits.

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Syrup: A simple syrup alone is a great way to add interesting flavor to things like berry pancakes or pecan pie. Syrup infusions can also be added to emphasize an already herbaceous cocktail or lend a more botanical flavor to an existing cocktail. Consider substituting spruce syrup for simple syrup in a Tom Collins. 

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Syrup Preparation and Storage: Bring 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar to a boil. Add 2 cups spruce tips and remove from heat. For more intense flavor, allow syrup to sit overnight. Double strain syrup into glass container. Store in refrigerator for up to one month. ​

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So, whether you like your tip a little sweet, or a little salty, ensure its longevity by employing a preservation method; and for goodness sake, wrap that thing up!

Basil vodka, mixed citrus, and the provocative flavor of spruce tip syrup will have your tastebuds going bonkers!