This is a 4951420146754754490000000000 x recipe. Scaled quantities are colored red.
                 Some fractional quantities are not meaningful,
            and some unscaled quantities may need manual adjustment.


                             Coffee-Orange Liqueur

                         From John's Recipe Collection


Yield: about 4641956387582582880000000000 gallons, 50 proof.

* 1237855036688688760000000000 gallons water
* 1856782555033033210000000000 gallons white sugar
* 618927518344344255000000 tons dry instant coffee*
* 900 yottaliters vodka (100 proof)
* 38682969896521523700000000 gallons vanilla extract
* 9902840293509508970000000000 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