Sloe Gin

[bridgit]

Ive also got my 4th gall on sloe wine on the go. Tried 4 different recipes. Of course it will need a couple of years to mature before I know which one I like best. Hope Ive got the patience. Ive made sloe vodka this time instead of gin.

[Neil Corbett]

Ive also got my 4th gall on sloe wine on the go. Tried 4 different recipes. Of course it will need a couple of years to mature before I know which one I like best. Hope Ive got the patience. Ive made sloe vodka this time instead of gin.

 

 

I don't think it matures any further after three or four months unless you keep it in wooden barrels in which case you would lose half of it through evaporation. To get the flavour you only need to steep it until the sloes give up their sugar and juice. You'll find they come out quite dessicated after three months. We have some very old samples and they don't improve (they don't need to!). Keep em in the dark too or they'll go brown.

 

Sloe rum is lovely - same recipe as gin but use dark rum. We always add a few drops of almond essence - lovely.

[bridgit]

I don't think it matures any further after three or four months unless you keep it in wooden barrels in which case you would lose half of it through evaporation. To get the flavour you only need to steep it until the sloes give up their sugar and juice. You'll find they come out quite dessicated after three months. We have some very old samples and they don't improve (they don't need to!). Keep em in the dark too or they'll go brown.

 

Sloe rum is lovely - same recipe as gin but use dark rum. We always add a few drops of almond essence - lovely.

 

 

Talking about wine maturing not the gin.

[jelunga]

Neat gin is both vile and troublesome to the emotions. It's not called Mothers Ruin for nothing. Competent gin drinkers are serious dudes/dudettes, incompetent ones, utter messes.

 

I must disagree - Try Plymouth Gin, absolutely beautiful, especially the high strength stuff. Full of lovely botanicals!!

 

Keith

[stickleback]

Disaster! I found I had too many sloes after I had used up a bottle of gin, so I bought more gin and made another kilner jar of sloe gin - but I had to pick more sloes to half fill the kilner jar.

 

Then I found I had too many sloes left over, so I used a bottle of vodka I found in a cupboard. Then I found there was some vodka left over so I picked more sloes. But there were too many sloes left over so I had to buy more vodka. I now have two kilner jars of sloe gin preparing and two kilner jars of of sloe vodka .

 

But now there is half a bottle of vodka left over - and lots of sloes on the bushes still..... it feels a bit like the sorcerers apprentice...

Edited October 13, 2009 by stickleback

[stickleback]

Chilli Gin

 

Put a few dried chillis in a screw top jar. Top up with gin. Leave a few weeks.

 

When decanting and bottling sloe gin, add a few drops (or more to taste) chilli gin. It doesn't alter the flavour of the sloe gin - just perks it up a bit and makes it taste much more alcoholic!

Stickleback

[Odana]

Disaster! I found I had too many sloes after I had used up a bottle of gin, so I bought more gin and made another kilner jar of sloe gin - but I had to pick more sloes to half fill the kilner jar.

 

Then I found I had too many sloes left over, so I used a bottle of vodka I found in a cupboard. Then I found there was some vodka left over so I picked more sloes. But there were too many sloes left over so I had to buy more vodka. I now have two kilner jars of sloe gin preparing and two kilner jars of of sloe vodka .

 

But now there is half a bottle of vodka left over - and lots of sloes on the bushes still..... it feels a bit like the sorcerers apprentice...

 

Don't worry - just keep picking. I'll come by and relieve you of any excess production. Where is such abundance? We're all out of sloe bushes up in South Yorkshire, though I intend a final sloe-hunting expedition this weekend in the vain hope that I won't have to ration myself on the gin this winter!

[Mac of Cygnet]

I've resurrected this thread, one of several on the subject, so you may see one or two names from the past!

Just bottled and labelled the 2018 vintage, and it promises from early sampling to be one of the best for years.  We didn't make any last year, as there were no sloes round our way, so we've been missing it for a while.  Bottling various sizes enables judicious distribution of Christmas presents!

[haggis]

Oh, these look lovely! Wish we lived nearer. We didn't make any this year as were weren't boating at the right time to pick sloes. 

 

Haggis

[LadyG]

On 11/09/2009 at 18:51, Christine said:

 

Having done a fair amount of cheap Gin and own brand tonic research (in the interests of science ) I recommend Tescos 'one off the bottom price' Gin (their Value 'Welfare' Gin is a bit er... industrial) and any own brand of tonic except Sainsburys which is vile.

Scotland has weird laws, so the cheapest is absolutely unhealthy, for a "£1perlitre more you get a premium product. What I am saying is there is no "value"

I believe one can distill  "gin", involves electric kettles.

I have never lived in a blackthorn area.

I have a lot of juniper berries . Recipes required.

ASDA tonic is the pitts.

Edited December 13, 2018 by LadyG

[Chewbacka]

On 13/12/2018 at 14:16, LadyG said:

Scotland has weird laws, so the cheapest is absolutely unhealthy, for a "£1perlitre more you get a premium product. What I am saying is there is no "value"

I believe one can distill  "gin", involves electric kettles.

I have never lived in a blackthorn area.

I have a lot of juniper berries . Recipes required.

ASDA tonic is the pitts.

Agree one should buy decent tonic.  As half (or thereabouts) of a G&T is tonic, why spoil a good gin with a bad tonic?  I like 1724 best with Fever Tree in second place.