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–+ servings
Caramel sauce being poured into a mason jar.

Whiskey Caramel Sauce

By Tammy Spencer
This easy Whiskey Caramel Sauce is made with heavy cream and your favorite whiskey, bourbon, or wine reduced to a syrup. Deeply flavored, it's caramel sauce taken to a whole new level!
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time2 minutes
Cook Time45 minutes
Cooling Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 47 minutes
Servings: 32 tablespoon
Calories: 88kcal

Special Equipment

Ingredients

  • 1½ cups (354 grams) whiskey, wine, bourbon, or your spirit of choice
  • 2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup water, optional, see Recipe Notes
  • 1 tablespoon (20 grams) light corn syrup, optional, see Recipe Notes
  • 6 tablespoons (89 grams) heavy cream, warmed to 110 °F
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, optional, see Recipe Notes

Instructions

  • In 1-quart saucepan, boil 1½ cups whiskey over medium heat until it's reduced to ½ cup, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
  • In a 2-quart heavy saucepan, stir together 2 cups granulated sugar, ¼ cup water, and 1 tablespoon light corn syrup (if using) until the mixture looks like wet sand. Bring the mixture to boil over medium heat and cook until the caramel has a deep amber color, about 8 to 10 minutes.
    DO NOT STIR the mixture during this process, but wash down sides of saucepan with a wet pastry brush dipped in cold water to minimize the risk of the mixture crystallizing. Watch it carefully as the caramel will turn dark very quickly at the end - you can also listen as the bubbling will quiet as the amber color is reached.
  • While sugar is boiling, heat the heavy cream until warm, about 110 °F on a digital thermometer.
  • Once a deep amber color is reached, remove from heat and SLOWLY add the whiskey syrup and the warmed 6 tablespoons heavy cream. The mixture will boil up, so stir continuously to keep the mixture from bubbling over (keep your face and hands away to avoid steam burns). Stir until combined, then return to heat and add 2 tablespoons unsalted butter and 1 teaspoon kosher salt, if using.
  • Return the pan to the heat, attaching a digital or candy thermometer to the side of the pan (but not touching the bottom). Bring the caramel back to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally to keep the mixture from bubbling over, until it registers 230 °F, about 1 to 2 minutes more.
  • Remove from heat, pour the caramel into a storage container with a tight-fitting lid (like a canning jar), and cool to room temperature before using. It will thicken as it cools.
  • Storage instructions: Store the caramel for up to 1 month in the refrigerator, sealed tightly in the jar. When you want to serve it, reheat it gently in the microwave (20 second increments at 40% powder) or on the stove over low heat until it has reached your desired consistency.

Recipe Notes

You can use any type of full-flavored whiskey, wine, or bourbon you’d like. Just remember that since the spirit will be reduced, the flavor will intensify. And know that the alcohol content will be burned off during the reduction process.
Adding water to the sugar while it's caramelizing (called a "wet caramel") helps to keep the sugar from burning. If you leave it out, the sugar will turn amber faster, but you have to be super diligent, swirling the sugar in the pan to melt it evenly.
Corn syrup helps to keep the sugar from seizing up during caramelization. It's optional, but recommended. You can also use honey, agave syrup, or golden syrup instead of the corn syrup.
If the sugar does end up crystalizing during the melting stage, add some water with 1 to 2 tablespoons corn syrup to soften sugar crystals, then cook the mixture again until it's reached the correct color.
Adding salt makes this, you guessed it, Salted Whiskey Caramel Sauce. It's optional, and will depend upon the flavor profile of the spirit you're using.
The sugar syrup can go from light amber to a black mess very quickly, so keep an eye on it and remove from heat as soon as the desired color is reached. The boiling sugar will also go from noisy to quiet as the sugar caramelizes, so you can listen for that.

Nutrition

Serving: 1tablespoon | Calories: 88kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 4mg | Sodium: 2mg | Potassium: 2mg | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 41IU | Calcium: 2mg | Iron: 1mg