Inside the Factory Season 5 Episode 8 Liqueurs

Inside the Factory is a British documentary series that explores how some of the UK's most popular food and drinks are produced. In season 5 episode 8, titled "Liqueurs," viewers get a behind-the-scenes look at how sweet, flavoured alcoholic drinks are made.

The episode begins with a trip to an orchard in Kent where plums are being harvested for use in a popular plum liqueur. Viewers learn that the plums are picked at just the right moment - not too ripe, but not too hard - to ensure they have the right flavour and sweetness. The plums are then washed and sent to a distillery, where they are macerated in alcohol to extract their flavour.

The next liqueur on the production line is a coffee-flavoured one. The presenter visits a coffee roastery in Norfolk to see how the coffee beans are roasted to bring out their flavour. The roasted beans are then sent to a liqueur factory where they are combined with alcohol and sweetened with sugar to create the final product.

The show then moves on to a factory in the Midlands that produces a well-known orange liqueur. Viewers learn that the oranges used are imported from all over the world, but only the best are selected for use in the liqueur. The oranges are then chopped into small pieces and macerated in alcohol for several weeks to extract their flavour. The resulting liquid is then filtered and blended with sugar syrup before being bottled.

Finally, the episode explores the production of a popular herbal liqueur. Viewers are taken to a distillery in the Scottish Highlands where a special blend of herbs and spices is macerated in alcohol for several months. The liquid is then filtered and blended with sugar syrup and distilled water before being bottled. The presenter tries some of the herbal liqueur and notes that although it has a strong flavour, it is surprisingly smooth and drinkable.

Throughout the episode, viewers learn about the history and cultural significance of each of the liqueurs being produced. They also get a sense of the scale of production, with thousands of bottles being filled and labelled every day.

Overall, Inside the Factory season 5 episode 8 is a fascinating look at how some of the UK's favourite liqueurs are made. From the orchards and roasteries to the distilleries and bottling plants, viewers get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the processes involved in producing these sweet, flavoured alcoholic drinks.