Cocktails with Elderflower syrup
Elderflower syrup is a sweet, non-alcoholic flavouring made from a sugar-and-water solution infused with the blossoms of the European elder, Sambucus nigra.
Taste profile
Delicately floral and aromatic, with high sugar sweetness carried on a light body and a mild citrus tartness on the finish.
How it's used
Dosed as a floral sweetener, it is added in small measures to sweeten and perfume a build; because it is usually sold as a sweetened cordial concentrate, its as-purchased sugar and intended dilution should be accounted for when balancing a drink.
Substitutes for Elderflower syrup
Where elderflower is only a light accent, a plain sugar syrup restores the sweetness and body, with a little citric acid or lemon for the tartness — but the floral elderflower aroma cannot be reproduced from an unrelated syrup, so no substitute works where that character defines the drink.
Often confused with
Elderberry syrup
Elderflower syrup is infused from the pale aromatic blossoms of Sambucus nigra and is delicate and floral; elderberry syrup is made from the dark ripe berries of the same plant, giving a deeply coloured, fruity syrup from a part that must be cooked to be safely edible.
