Liqueurs

Blackberry Liqueur

Blackberry liqueur, sold in France as crème de mûre, is made by steeping blackberries in spirit and adding sugar, usually 16 to 20% ABV. It is the dark, jammy top of a Bramble, poured over crushed ice to streak down through the glass. It is often confused with crème de cassis, which is blackcurrant: sharper, sweeter and stronger in flavour.

Quick Facts

ABV18% ABVUsually 16 to 20%; Giffard’s crème de mûre is 16% on its maker’s site.

Legal categoryLiqueur

OriginFrance (traditional fruit liqueur production)

Flavour Strengthmedium bold

SeasonYear-round (strong autumn association)

Our keeping timeYears unopened. Once opened, a year or more kept sealed and out of the light; the fruit and aromatics fade first.

Storage

We store it upright in a cool, dark place and, once opened, reseal it tightly after use. Refrigeration is optional but helps preserve freshness over extended periods.

Allergens

None of the 14 listed allergens. Recipes vary by brand: check the bottle.

The ingredient

About Blackberry Liqueur

Flavour Profile

Primary Flavours

BlackberryDark berrySoft sweetness

Tasting Notes

Ripe, cooked blackberry with a little tartness, sweet and dark purple.

Crème de mûre is blackberries, steeped and sweetened

Blackberries are left to steep in a neutral spirit, then pressed and sweetened. Giffard makes its crème de mûre from concentrated blackberry juice and bottles it at 16%. The word crème on the label is a legal promise: no less than 250g a litre of sugar.

The name causes the confusion. Mûre is blackberry and cassis is blackcurrant, and the two bottles look alike. Cassis, the blackcurrant one, is sharper, more perfumed and, by law, sweeter.

Each of our drinks puts it in a different way

How the liqueur meets the drink decides what it does. Poured last, it streaks; shaken, it tints the whole glass; in a bowl, it sets the colour of a party.

Blackberry liqueur in our recipes

Bramble

Measure: 15ml
How it goes in: Poured over crushed ice, last
Other sugar in the glass: 12.5ml simple syrup

Berry Sour

Measure: 20ml
How it goes in: Shaken with gin, lemon and egg white
Other sugar in the glass: 10ml sugar syrup

Black Widow

Measure: 20ml
How it goes in: Shaken with muddled blackberries and vodka
Other sugar in the glass: 10ml simple syrup

Rum Runner

Measure: 15ml
How it goes in: Shaken with rums, banana liqueur and juices
Other sugar in the glass: Banana liqueur and grenadine

Cauldron Punch

Measure: 250ml
How it goes in: Stirred into a bowl for a group
Other sugar in the glass: 250ml simple syrup

Drink	Measure	How it goes in	Other sugar in the glass
Bramble	15ml	Poured over crushed ice, last	12.5ml simple syrup
Berry Sour	20ml	Shaken with gin, lemon and egg white	10ml sugar syrup
Black Widow	20ml	Shaken with muddled blackberries and vodka	10ml simple syrup
Rum Runner	15ml	Shaken with rums, banana liqueur and juices	Banana liqueur and grenadine
Cauldron Punch	250ml	Stirred into a bowl for a group	250ml simple syrup

The Bramble is the reason most bottles are bought

The Bramble shakes 50ml of gin with 25ml of lemon juice and 12.5ml of syrup, strains it over crushed ice and only then adds the liqueur. The Berry Sour shakes it in with egg white, the Black Widow muddles fresh blackberries with it, and the Rum Runner leans on it for colour among pineapple and orange.

Choose one steeped from fruit

Look for blackberries in the ingredients. A liqueur built on flavouring reads as generic dark fruit, and in a Bramble the liqueur is tasted almost neat on its way down, so the difference shows. In our experience an opened bottle lasts a year or more in a dark cupboard.

Using it

Using Blackberry Liqueur

Usage

Between 15ml and 20ml a drink in our recipes: 15ml poured over the top of a Bramble or shaken into a Rum Runner, 20ml in a Berry Sour or a Black Widow. In a party bowl, the Cauldron Punch takes 250ml. It sweetens as it colours, so the syrup stays short.

Pro Tip

Heap the crushed ice proud of the rim before pouring the liqueur. A dome gives it further to travel, so the streaks run the full height of the glass, and the first sip stays sharp while the bottom of the glass turns sweet.

Top Tips

In a Bramble, pour it last, slowly and in a circle over the ice, so it streaks down instead of mixing in.
Read the label for blackberries. A liqueur flavoured rather than steeped tastes of boiled sweets.
It is not cassis: blackcurrant makes a sharper, more perfumed Bramble, which some people prefer.
Fresh blackberries on top show what the drink is made from; muddled into a Black Widow they add body.

Possible Substitutions

Crème de Cassis: Blackcurrant: tarter and more sugary; pour a touch less

Production Method

Blackberries macerated in a neutral spirit, then pressed and sweetened to the crème standard.

History & Context

Difford’s Guide, a secondary source, credits the Bramble, the drink most people buy this bottle for, to Dick Bradsell at Fred’s Club in Soho, London, in the mid-1980s. He built it as a gin, lemon and sugar sour on crushed ice with the blackberry liqueur added last, and that order still holds.

Go further

More to explore

Common Questions

What is blackberry liqueur?

A sweet liqueur made by steeping blackberries in spirit and adding sugar, usually 16 to 20% ABV. French bottles are labelled crème de mûre, and under Regulation (EC) No 110/2008 the crème label promises at least a quarter of a kilo of sugar in every litre. It is dark purple, tastes of cooked blackberries, and goes into drinks in small measures.

Is crème de mûre the same as crème de cassis?

No. Mûre is blackberry and cassis is blackcurrant. Cassis is sharper and more perfumed, and Regulation (EC) No 110/2008 sets its sugar floor higher, at 400g a litre against 250g. Exchange them and the character changes: a Bramble made with cassis is darker and tarter.

How do you pour the blackberry liqueur in a Bramble?

Last, over the top. Shake gin, lemon and sugar syrup, strain over crushed ice, heap the ice proud of the rim, then trickle 15ml of the liqueur slowly in a circle. It runs down through the ice, so the drink starts sharp and finishes sweet. Shaken in, it makes a plain purple sour.

How strong is blackberry liqueur?

Usually 16 to 20% ABV; Giffard’s crème de mûre is 16% on its maker’s site, and our recipes take it as 18%. That is less than half the strength of gin, so at 15ml it adds sugar and colour to a Bramble far more than it adds alcohol.

Does blackberry liqueur need refrigerating after opening?

In our experience it keeps without the fridge for well over a year; the sugar and spirit see to that. What fades is the fresh berry smell, leaving a flatter, sweeter liqueur. We keep a bottle we will take a year to finish in the fridge, cap tight and away from light, where it holds its fruit longer.

What can I use instead of blackberry liqueur?

Crème de cassis, poured a little short, since it is sweeter and sharper. A raspberry liqueur such as Chambord makes a softer, more perfumed drink. Without alcohol, a blackberry syrup gives the colour, but it carries more sugar, so cut the other syrup in the drink.

What drinks use blackberry liqueur?

Among our recipes, the Bramble and the Berry Sour with gin, the Black Widow with vodka and fresh blackberries, the Rum Runner with two rums and banana liqueur, and the Cauldron Punch, a Halloween bowl with dark rum and pomegranate juice. Each uses it for the dark colour as much as the fruit.

Sources.

Correct as of 16 October 2026.

Giffard, “Crème de Mûre (Blackberry)” (producer’s product page (16%; concentrated blackberry juice)).
Difford’s Guide, “Bramble” (secondary source).
legislation.gov.uk, “Regulation (EC) No 110/2008, Annex II (retained)”.

Make something

Made with Blackberry Liqueur

Featured In These Cocktails

Rum Runner Bramble Berry Sour Black Widow Cauldron Punch

Often Used With

Updated 16 October 2026

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