Real Pomegranate Grenadine

Before you start

Grenadine takes its name from the French word for pomegranate, and the real thing is a tart, wine-colored pomegranate syrup. Most supermarket versions are corn syrup with red dye and no fruit at all. Making your own takes about ten minutes and transforms a Jack Rose, a Tequila Sunrise, a Shirley Temple or a Ward Eight.

This recipe starts with bottled 100 percent pomegranate juice, which is consistent and easy to find, and adds a spoonful of pomegranate molasses for depth. Equal parts juice and sugar by weight give a syrup that pours like simple syrup. Gentle heat is enough; boiling darkens the color toward brown and dulls the fresh, tannic edge. A few drops of orange flower water are traditional in many recipes and lift the aroma without making it taste perfumed.

Ingredients

• 250 ml (1 cup) 100% pomegranate juice — unsweetened, not a juice blend
• 250 g (1¼ cups) granulated sugar
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) pomegranate molasses — optional, for a deeper, tangier syrup
• ¼ tsp orange flower water — add drop by drop to taste

Method

1. Pour the pomegranate juice into a small saucepan and add the sugar. Stir to moisten all the sugar before turning on the heat.
2. Warm over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the liquid looks clear and jewel-toned, about 4 minutes. Do not let it boil.
3. Take the pan off the heat and whisk in the pomegranate molasses until no streaks remain.
4. Let the syrup cool for about 30 minutes. Add the orange flower water a few drops at a time, tasting as you go; stop when you can smell it faintly. Too much tastes soapy.
5. Funnel into a clean bottle, seal, date and refrigerate. Shake before using, since the molasses can settle slightly.

Tips for success

• Press fresh pomegranate arils through a sieve if you want to make the juice yourself. Three large fruit yield roughly 250 ml.
• Use it with restraint. Real grenadine is tarter than the bottled kind, so a Shirley Temple may need 5 ml more than you are used to.
• Orange flower water varies widely in strength between brands. Always add it after cooling and in small amounts.

Substitutions

Pomegranate molasses

Leave it out for a lighter, fruitier syrup, or add a pinch of citric acid for tartness without the molasses depth.

Granulated sugar

Raw cane sugar adds a slight caramel note and darkens the syrup a little. Cutting sugar to 200 g makes it tarter but shortens fridge life.

Orange flower water

A strip of orange zest steeped in the warm syrup for 10 minutes gives a citrus lift instead of a floral one.

Troubleshooting

The grenadine turned brownish

It boiled or cooked too long. Heat only until the sugar dissolves and store it cold and dark.

It tastes like perfume

Too much orange flower water. Dilute by mixing in fresh juice-and-sugar syrup made without it.

It is barely red in a drink

Real grenadine colors gently. For a sunrise effect, pour it slowly down the inside of the glass so it sinks in a layer.

Storage

Refrigerate in a sealed bottle and use within about 3 weeks. Discard it if it becomes cloudy, fizzy or smells fermented, or if mold appears at the neck of the bottle.