PaulinEger

My retired neighbour has been making palinka for many many years but his is really harsh. Very alcoholic but harsh!
The secret is in the chemistry and being very careful when cooking it. The methanol boils first at around 77*c then the ethanol boils at 78.5*c. You don't want methanol. This makes you blind so you must discard the first amount that starts dripping out. It's the ethanol that you want. The same happens at the end of the distillation process. It's so important to keep an eye on the temperature of what you're cooking.
Unfortunately for most Hungarians it's a guessing game. They do it by instinct or taste!
It also depends on exactly what you're cooking as, for example, plum or cherry stones in the mix are not good and can make it taste bitter as they contain cyanide.
How long you keep palinka after it's been distilled also makes a difference. the longer, the better. Also kept in glass not plastic bottles.

sadbrewer

[QUOTE=Rural Hungary;10263200]Hi Andy, don't think it's that we haven't had "the good stuff" more it is down to taste. It isn't for everyone whether it's homemade, supermarket bought or the most expensive in a decent restaurant. We have tried all the aforementioned and, as mentioned before, the only one I found palatable was a honey palinka which I have not found available locally - it was in an unusual shaped, bubble effect bottle - I will continue looking

Sorry if that sounded more than a little condescending,it wasn't intended to be,i should have remembered Brits living abroad,especially in a fairly unusual
country like Hungary are likely to be more adventurous in their willingness to embrace the local produce and customs than the average holiday Brit.
thanks again to all for your help
Andy Pickering

FenTiger

I feel so stupid. Last night I was chatting to my Hungarian wife about 'Palinka' and she mentioned my Hungarian brother-in-law brought over a couple of bottles of it! Also my parents-in-law make quite a lot of it too!

Rural Hungary

Not at all Andy, just some don't like the taste no matter the quality.
As the daughter of a Scottish, whisky connoisseur, I can't stand the stuff, even the best single malt

Rural Hungary

Okay, for the sake of forum research, I and the partner of another forum member (who shall remain nameless) this evening, embarked on a palinka tasting challenge. Honey palinka was requested but they had none and so we requested a high quality palinka. The options presented where peach, pear, cherry and elderberry - remembering that somebody (sorry, can't remember who at the moment) recommended pear, we opted for a shot of that. We then requested some hazi palinka but again, they didn't have any and instead, offered us a "mixed fruit" palinka which we were told was similar to a hazi palinka. Verdict : the mixed palinka was very rough - sold in a triple shot glass and equivalent to a triple scotch, it also tasted like a cheap scotch and I would not recommend to anybody. The pear palinka, served in a more expensive looking, decorative glass was indeed quite palatable and in fact as enjoyable as the honey palinka I previously enjoyed. So, I have to admit that there might well be some palinka that are actually enjoyable but require some searching.

richardmc

I have heard about this Palinka stuff, ahum! but yet to try, still getting through my Uk whisky/gin in between the Hungarian wine. Is it normal for newcomers to have alcoholic tendancies, short term I may add.