If you’re looking to make the most dazzling and magical cocktail recipes with the most simple little trick, then you’re going to LOVE this Homemade Shimmery Liqueur Recipe!
Here I share all the instructions and tips on how to make shimmery liqueur (homemade Viniq) to make your own magic potion. Perfect for Halloween cocktails and other celebratory events.
Today I’m sharing with you guys a super cool discovery that I made recently! Have you heard of VINIQ before? (Note: Viniq has since been discontinued since 2019/2020). According to their website, Viniq is a “delicious combination of Premium Vodka, Moscato, Natural Fruit Flavors, and a one-of-a-kind shimmer”!
It truly is one of a kind. So much so that it has got to be the most mesmerizing liqueur on the planet right now. All because of that colour and that incredible shimmer!
You can now also make fruit infused flavored shimmery liqueur! How amazing is that??
Ever since I came across this liqueur in the vodka section in our local liquor store, I am drawn to it like a magnet every time I go there.
It comes in a slender, tall bottle with a purple liquid inside (it also comes in yellow and red, but purple seems to be the most common).
It’ll look fairly plain at first, but do not be fooled. Just pick it up and give it a shake or two. Magical shimmery swirls will bedazzle you! It’s beyond cool and Mr K has to prod and nudge me away from that bottle every time we go there. 🙂
Get the recipe for this infused flavored shimmery liqueur here.
How to make homemade shimmery liqueur (homemade Viniq)
But what if you don’t have access to Viniq? What if you too could have shimmery liqueur regardless? What if you could replicate that shimmer at home?
I had no idea how Viniq did it before this post, so curiosity and fascination got the better of me and I wanted to figure out how to make shimmery cocktails myself. And I did! 🙂
The secret to homemade shimmery liqueur
All you need to make homemade shimmery liqueur is one special ingredient – Luster Petal Dust (or Luster Dust)! 🙂 Don’t worry, this is very easy to find in your local cake store or online. I found mine in a local cake equipment and decorating supplies store, but I have also bought some previously from Amazon.
And the best thing about this is that you can make shimmery cocktails in pretty much any color you want! Viniq is apparently the world’s first shimmery liqueur. But now, for the VERY FIRST TIME – you can make your own homemade Viniq too!
How to change the colors of your homemade shimmery liqueur
You can change the colors of the homemade viniq simply by changing the color of the luster petal dust. Here are some suggestions for colors.
- Gold petal dust – Yellow liqueur (like I’ve done here)
- Green petal dust – Green liqueur
- Blue petal dust – Blue liqueur
- Red petal dust – Dark pink liqueur
- Pink petal dust – Pink liqueur
- Silver petal dust – Grey liqueur (I wouldn’t recommend using this alone. You’re better off combining it with blue or green that would give a darker colour with a silver sheen. Very cool!)
- Pearl petal dust – This dust is pearly and opaque and leaves ONLY the shimmery swirls and no color! It’s perfect if you don’t want to add any color and only want the shimmery swirls.
Tip about mixing colors
When you mix two bright colors, you will get beautiful shimmery swirls at first, but eventually the two colors will mix to give you something more dull.
For example, when I mix yellow and purple together for a cocktail, I get a beautiful blend of the two at first. But after a little while, it turns into a dull dark yellow. Not good. You do still get the shimmer though.
You don’t have to worry about any color change with just one color though. It’ll stay beautiful and shimmery throughout (once you shake it!).
Making the shimmery liqueur is easy
All you need is your favorite flavored vodka, a simple syrup, and petal dust in your favorite color. 🙂 I used peach flavored vodka in this recipe, but you can use any flavor you like. Or combine a few to get a more intense, fruitier liqueur.
To make classic Viniq, just mix a fruity, sweet wine, with vodka and luster petal dust. If you want you can add some extra simple syrup to make it sweeter.
How can I make flavored homemade shimmery liqueur?
Just follow the recipe here to make fruit infused shimmery liqueur!
You can now make COLOR CHANGING SHIMMERY LIQUEUR too!
Thanks to another simple ingredient, in this case butterfly pea flowers, you can make color changing alcohol, and color changing cocktails too! Just infuse the vodka (or gin or tequila) with butterfly pea flowers and proceed to make the liqueur by adding some simple syrup!
You can make fin Halloween cocktails like this The Phoenix Cocktail!
How and why shimmery liqueur works
I have tried this luster petal dust trick with a few other liquids to see if I can replicate the same effect that I see with alcohol. I used it with water, apple juice, oil and golden syrup. From what I have noticed, the viscosity and density of the solution seem to be the main reasons for this shimmering effect.
Liquids with high viscosity and less density than water like alcohol and oil (not that you’re ever going to drink oil, but I just wanted to test my hypothesis) work very well because those two properties enable the kind of light refraction you need to see that beautiful shimmery effect.
And the moment I add water to dilute these two solutions, I can see how it sort of breaks up the shimmers because it changes the viscosity/density. On the other hand, golden syrup (which is more dense and more viscous than water) gave me an intermediate effect. So to sum up, while all the liquids I tested produced some shimmery effect, alcohol produced the most desirable shimmers.
Cocktails that use shimmery liqueur to dazzling effect
The following cocktails that I have shared on the blog utilize luster petal dust and its shimmery effect to create some mesmerizing cocktails that you’ll love! 🙂
- The phoenix cocktail (floral and sweet gin and elderflower cocktail)
- Gold shimmery champagne cocktail (perfect as New Year’s cocktail or celebratory drink)
- Flaming dragon’s blood cocktail (a show-stopping thyme and raspberry daiquiri cocktail)
Now that you know how to make shimmery liqueur, what would you make first?
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Recipe
How to make Shimmery Liqueur (like Viniq)
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results whenever available.
Common Measurement ConversionsIngredients:
- 1 cup vodka or your favorite flavored vodkas
- ⅓ cup white wine Moscato or Riesling is preferred
- ⅓ cup of simple syrup add more or less according to your preference. I add ¼ cup with a sweeter white wine.
- A little less than 1/4 tsp of petal luster dust in your favorite color (I used gold)
Instructions:
- Mix the vodka, wine and simple syrup until well combined.1 cup vodka, ⅓ cup of simple syrup, ⅓ cup white wine
- Stir in the petal luster dust.A little less than 1/4 tsp of petal luster dust
- Swirl the liqueur just before use, as the luster dust will settle to the bottom after a while.
- Chill until needed.
- You can find all the fruit-infused flavored shimmery liqueur recipes in the linked post.
Recipe Notes
Recipe notes
- Try not to use too much shimmery luster dust. Some luster dust is marked as edible, and some are marked as non toxic.
- I try not use more than 1/4 tsp per cup of liqueur or spirit (vodka, tequila or gin). Just enough to give it a shimmer and light swirls. If needed I might add just a pinch more to a drink after I’ve made it.
- Adding a teaspoon or more of the luster dust PER DRINK is not advised, so only add just enough to create swirls in a CLEAR cocktail (which will show the best results).
Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
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