Triple Berry Sauce

I love to make this rich sauce to serve with chocolate mousse or on cheesecake. Of course, if you don't want to indulge in rich desserts, put a few drops in a glass of prosecco. There are simpler sauces, yes, but once in a while, it's nice to create something this delicious from scratch. 

1 pint of fresh strawberries trimmed and hulled
1 quart of fresh raspberries, blackberries, or perhaps dark cherries (pitted)
1 pint of fresh, wild blueberries. 
1/2 cup or more of sugar
an ounce or two of Chambord or similar liqueur
an ounce or two of champagne or other sparkling wine if you have it
the juice of 1/2 lime

Mix the fruit in a saucepan and macerate it with the sugar. Stir over low heat till the fruit breaks down to the point where the seeds separate from the fruit. Mash the fruit well, then press it through a fine strainer to remove the seeds. The strawberry seeds may be too fine to remove, but you certainly should be able to get out the blackberry or raspberry seeds. 

Return the sauce to the pan over low heat. Stir well and add sugar to taste, keeping in mind that the sauce will get sweeter as it cooks down and that you'll add some lime juice, too. You just want enough sugar to enhance the taste of the fruits.

Add the liqueur (and sparkling wine), then cook the mixture slowly still over low heat, stirring often, till the sauce has reduced by half. (I note the depth of the sauce on a spoon or by marking a cheap wooden chopstick or toothpick.). If you cook the sauce over very low heat, you can reduce it even more. 

Finally, stir in the lime juice and chill the sauce in an ice bath before refrigerating. The lime juice goes in last because cooking it can change its character in a way that I think does not improve the taste of this sauce.