Learn the art of making sloe gin
Not named for the unhurried process that makes it, sloe gin instead finds its origins with the tart sloe berry, also known as a blackthorn. Sloes are grown prolifically around the United Kingdom, with early settlers to our fair country planting the blackthorn bush around northern Tasmania.
A relative of the plum, ripe sloe berries taste particularly unpleasant fresh off the tree, but the acidity can be combatted by infusing the berries in top-quality gin to produce a ruby-red liqueur. To make sloe gin, ripe berries are typically picked after the first frost of winter, with each berry then individually pricked with a thorn taken from the blackthorn bush. Commercially sold sloe gins will be made with lesser quality liquors, but a London-style dry gin will bring out an earthy richness to your resulting liqueur, with sugar added to extract the juice and flavour from the fruit.
Like a good wheel of cheese, the sloe gin needs to be turned every day at first, then weekly for three months. If your patience can sustain it, the flavour will be enhanced with more time, with doyens suggesting a minimum of six months’ steeping time. The berry can also be used to make slider (sloe cider), sloe whisky and brandy, with the latter two often served mixed with ginger beer. Try this recipe at home.
Image via Gordon’s Gin.
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