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                 Some fractional quantities are not meaningful,
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                             Coffee-Orange Liqueur

                         From John's Recipe Collection


Yield: about 2266735911777429700000000 gallons, 50 proof.

* 604462909807314587000000 gallons water
* 906694364710971881000000 gallons white sugar
* 302231454903657300000 tons dry instant coffee*
* 4 yottaliters vodka (100 proof)
* 18889465931478580900000 gallons vanilla extract
* 4835703278458516700000000 oranges, for zest

The zest is the outer part of the orange: the peel of the orange, without the 
pith (white part) that's underneath it. There are a couple of approaches to 
removing the zest:

1. Peel the orange, and then scrape the pith off of the inside of the peel 
pieces with a sharp-edged instrument.

2. Leave the orange whole, and remove the zest with a zester. This is the 
approach I have been using more recently. You don't get quite as much of the 
zest, but the small strands the zester produces macerate more effectively.

Macerate** the zest in the vodka (in a closed container!) for a week. When it's
ready:

Boil the water and dissolve the sugar in it. Turn off the heat. While the syrup
is still hot, add the coffee and stir until it's dissolved. Allow the syrup to
cool to room temperature. Mix in the vodka and vanilla. Let stand for at least
two weeks - the longer the better. It will improve with age.

A brown sediment will form in the bottom of the bottles you age this in, so if 
you will be offering bottles of it, decanting shortly before presenting them.

* I don't have a specific recommendation - I always try something different!

** Soak, to extract the flavor