What are Sloes?
The prickly blackthorn bush (Prunus spinosa) produces clumps of sloes in the latter half of the year, these dark purple berries look delicious but are predictably sour raw. Blackthorn is one of the most common hedgerow bushes as they were planted as a quick growing stock proof hedge by farmers and landowners. Along with hawthorn it produces clusters of small flowers in the Spring that turns the hedgerows to a froth of bloom.
Despite the fruits sharp taste some inspired person found that they are incredible if you soak them in gin and sugar for several months, their flavour permeates the gin and transforms it into a unique tipple.
Blackthorn blossom in Spring
Sloe Gin Recipe
500g Sloes
250g Sugar
70cl Gin
Wisdom has it that you should pick the sloes after the first frost, which will split the skin, if you can’t wait for that then the trick is to freeze the sloes first for a couple of hours to do the same job. With that process you can start picking them in September and lay it down in batches so you have a steady supply.
Put the frozen sloes into a 1.5 litre airtight container, add the sugar and then the gin. Put it somewhere dark and just give it a shake every day for the first week to dissolve the sugar. Then the hard bit, leave it for a year or six months at least and then strain it into clean bottles. I usually drink it after three months as I’m impatient, but it does taste better the longer you leave it.
Images: Adobe Stock
