Cocktails with Maraschino liqueur
Maraschino liqueur is a clear cherry liqueur distilled from Marasca cherries and their crushed pits, rather than macerated in spirit like most cherry liqueurs.
ABV32%Both Luxardo and Maraska, the two producers that matter, bottle at exactly that.
Substitutes for Maraschino liqueur
There is no exact substitute. Kirsch comes nearest in flavor, but it is dry and stronger. Use a little less, and add about a barspoon of 2:1 sugar syrup for every 15 ml (½ oz). A red cherry liqueur such as Cherry Heering goes in one for one. It brings cherry with a hint of almond, but it colors the drink red. The syrup from a jar of cocktail cherries will not do: it adds sugar and dye, not the liqueur's flavor.
Maraschino cherries (the jar)
Fruit kept in syrup and usually dyed; the name is all it shares with the liqueur.
Cherry brandy / macerated cherry liqueur
The fruit is steeped in spirit and sweetened. Such liqueurs are weaker: around 24%, against 32% for maraschino.
Kirschwasser
Clear, dry cherry spirit distilled with the pits, usually 40% or more. EU rules allow it no more than 18 g of sugar per liter, against at least 250 for maraschino.
