How to: Make Whiskey Sriracha Candy at Home

My friend and collaborator Capree sent me this recipe for whiskey and sriracha-flavored homemade candies, with the comment, “some sorta ManMade somethin’.” I was seriously intrigued, and followed up with “even though they’re heart-shaped?”…mostly just to see what she’d say. I expected some kinda Valentine’s Day comment, but she came back with:   

Capree: It’s like… manly hearts. Cuz they’re made from whiskey and sriracha.
me:  Men’s hearts are made from whiskey and hot sauce?
Capree:  Yep.
me:  Can I quote you on that as my intro to the post?
Capree:  Yes.
 
Sounds good to me. The recipe comes from Erin from Olives for Dinner, who says, 
 
After reading this article on Bon Appétit several months ago, I was excited to order a few sriracha lollipops fromThinkGeek, but then read the ingredients and thought—I can just make these myself. I would just need a basic hard candy recipe like this, and then some type of extract or flavoring to compliment and enhance the sriracha flavor. 

After deciding that hot cinnamon extract would be the perfect flavor, I discovered after looking at two separate stores that this ingredient either doesn’t exist or is only available online. The only other extracts I had at home were almond and vanilla, so I unscrewed each tiny bottle in one hand with the sriracha bottle in the other hand. After a deep inhale, it was clear that both extracts were completely wrong for this. I then looked through my refrigerator and cabinets, which offered no other options, then strolled into our dining room and saw it … whisky! I placed both the sriracha and whisky bottles under my nose and inhaled, then smiled. This was it.

 
Her intro is too perfectly constructed to pare down, so Erin, please forgive the long quote. And…nice job.
 
Get the full recipe from Olives for Dinner…Also, these would be good for Valentine’s Day: Whisky-Sriracha Candy