Discussion
I made some last year. It was lovely. I looked up a recipe, can’t remember exactly which but very similar to this one:
http://www.corshamfield.co.uk/sloe-gin-proper-gin-...
It was actually a pretty good recipe because it uses no sugar for the initial 3-5 month period where you’re soaking the sloes and spices in gin, after that bit, the prep was the normal filtering and then if you wanted to, making a very simple sugar syrup which could be added just before bottling, so you ended up with something that wasn’t tooSweet. In the end I added hardly any sugar syrup and it tasted really good.
The main mistake I made was making a batch with a £24 bottle Sipsmiths gin. I did another batch with 1.5 litres of Sainsbury’s own brand gin for £14. The difference was virtually nothing in the finished drink as you use some spices in the making which means the subtle flavours in expensive gin are obscured by the flavour Sloe berries, cinnamon, cloves etc. Cheap gin does just fine (maybe not too industrial, but basic Sainsbury’s own was fine).
http://www.corshamfield.co.uk/sloe-gin-proper-gin-...
It was actually a pretty good recipe because it uses no sugar for the initial 3-5 month period where you’re soaking the sloes and spices in gin, after that bit, the prep was the normal filtering and then if you wanted to, making a very simple sugar syrup which could be added just before bottling, so you ended up with something that wasn’t tooSweet. In the end I added hardly any sugar syrup and it tasted really good.
The main mistake I made was making a batch with a £24 bottle Sipsmiths gin. I did another batch with 1.5 litres of Sainsbury’s own brand gin for £14. The difference was virtually nothing in the finished drink as you use some spices in the making which means the subtle flavours in expensive gin are obscured by the flavour Sloe berries, cinnamon, cloves etc. Cheap gin does just fine (maybe not too industrial, but basic Sainsbury’s own was fine).
, and if you’re anything like me you end up giving bottles as presents to family so it’s good to have plenty. Just to be sure! Don't worry about premium gin ,we used Aldi gin last year ,and results were excellent , hic
Spike berries ,or freeze them first to split them to extract maximum flavour .and golden caster sugar , agitate every couple of days to desolve sugar and extract flavour from sloes
Spike berries ,or freeze them first to split them to extract maximum flavour .and golden caster sugar , agitate every couple of days to desolve sugar and extract flavour from sloes
Edited by MXRod on Saturday 24th October 17:38
Picked a couple of kilos today. Most of the berries were very large and juicy so I'm hopeful for a good result. Used a BBC recipe with golden castor sugar. Have made two litres so far but have run out of bottles and gin (well, I've got loads of the good stuff left but no more cheap Gordon's).
The rest of the berries are in the freezer and I'll make more next weekend.
The rest of the berries are in the freezer and I'll make more next weekend.
Been making it for the last 10 years or so, I have a drop of a nice one from 2012 in the back of the cupboard.
Lucky enough to have some amazing Sloe ladened bushes within yards of the entrance to our road. 1.6 kg collected in less than an hour on my own today.
I agree with the posters above that you can generally go for the cheapest gin however a few years ago we were on holiday in Italy where they sell gin at crazily low prices, think it was 4 euro per 700ml bottle for the cheapest supermarket stuff. That is 40% of the price of supermarket own brand stuff in the UK. It was September and we had loads of space in our luggage anyway so brought some back and used it. It had a certain...semi-industrial flavour. Never again.
Lucky enough to have some amazing Sloe ladened bushes within yards of the entrance to our road. 1.6 kg collected in less than an hour on my own today.
I agree with the posters above that you can generally go for the cheapest gin however a few years ago we were on holiday in Italy where they sell gin at crazily low prices, think it was 4 euro per 700ml bottle for the cheapest supermarket stuff. That is 40% of the price of supermarket own brand stuff in the UK. It was September and we had loads of space in our luggage anyway so brought some back and used it. It had a certain...semi-industrial flavour. Never again.
If you are lucky enough to ever find bullaces (wild damsons) there is a Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall treatment which is simply epic.
Like every red fruit rolled into one, without the overriding taste of juniper that gin gives:
Bullace vodka:
2Kg bullaces
1Kg sugar
3 bottles of cheap vodka
Prick each fruit several times with a pin (the boring bit), transfer to a demi-john and add the sugar and vodka.
Leave for at least six months.
Like every red fruit rolled into one, without the overriding taste of juniper that gin gives:
Bullace vodka:
2Kg bullaces
1Kg sugar
3 bottles of cheap vodka
Prick each fruit several times with a pin (the boring bit), transfer to a demi-john and add the sugar and vodka.
Leave for at least six months.
Well reminded - I need to pick them this week.
I do 2 types.
Standard sloe gin with Lidl own brand (€7/litre)
Xmas slow vodka with cinnamon sticks, bitter almond, vanilla and a clove or two. Again, cheap vodka from Lidl or Aldi.
I used to up the octane a bit with 180 proof rectified spirit, but haven’t seen that stuff in the supermarket for a while. Pity, as it gave it a lovely kick.
I STRONGLY recommend giving the spiced sloe voddie a try. It’s a winner.
Also, kir royale with sie gin and an extra dry Sekt is a great way to start Xmas dinner.
I do 2 types.
Standard sloe gin with Lidl own brand (€7/litre)
Xmas slow vodka with cinnamon sticks, bitter almond, vanilla and a clove or two. Again, cheap vodka from Lidl or Aldi.
I used to up the octane a bit with 180 proof rectified spirit, but haven’t seen that stuff in the supermarket for a while. Pity, as it gave it a lovely kick.
I STRONGLY recommend giving the spiced sloe voddie a try. It’s a winner.
Also, kir royale with sie gin and an extra dry Sekt is a great way to start Xmas dinner.
Two bottles so far, lots of sloes in freezer , but we have put the remaining Kilner jars away and can't find them at present
A year or 2 ago year I was listening to a R4 program "Kitchen Cabinet " with Jay Rayner , and a guest was talking about home made whiskey liqueur .
I had a bottle of single malt given as a gift ( the next bit is sacrilege ) not being a lover of whiskey I decided to give the liqueur a go ,
The whiskey was infused with lots of dark fruit and a goodly amount of light brown sugar and agitated much the same as sloe gin , every few months the brew was filtered the spent fruit was removed ,and more sugar and dark fruit was added .
After about 18 months the liqueur was passed through a coffee filter ( good for filtering sloe gin as well ) and bottled.
The resulting drink was smooth without the harshness of straight whiskey the essence of whiskey however was still present .
Again , cheap whiskey as a base and a different liqueur to try
A year or 2 ago year I was listening to a R4 program "Kitchen Cabinet " with Jay Rayner , and a guest was talking about home made whiskey liqueur .
I had a bottle of single malt given as a gift ( the next bit is sacrilege ) not being a lover of whiskey I decided to give the liqueur a go ,
The whiskey was infused with lots of dark fruit and a goodly amount of light brown sugar and agitated much the same as sloe gin , every few months the brew was filtered the spent fruit was removed ,and more sugar and dark fruit was added .
After about 18 months the liqueur was passed through a coffee filter ( good for filtering sloe gin as well ) and bottled.
The resulting drink was smooth without the harshness of straight whiskey the essence of whiskey however was still present .
Again , cheap whiskey as a base and a different liqueur to try
Edited by MXRod on Tuesday 27th October 15:19
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