UKC

I got a prompt off here last year and made some lovely "gin". We went back last week to where we picked masses last year and there were none. Has it been a particularly bad year ? There were literaly none so I don't believe it was a question of someone getting there before us.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

No, it's been a fantastic year as far as I can see. Probably the best ever. Loads everywhere I've been (Midlands) I've got 5 kilos on the go. I could have picked kilos more if needed.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

We have not had slowed for three years now

In reply to Mike Conlon:

Where's 'here'? We've had masses in Cornwall, but they've all gone over now. And there was a huge increase in hipsters (odd trousers, flat cap, beard, ironic glasses, the lot) out picking - has one of their leaders been blogging about sloe gin?

In reply to Mike Conlon:

Sounds like you've been trumped. There are loads here in the SE - best crop for decades.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

picked all mine weeks ago - they ripened early

In reply to pebbles:

Aren't you supposed to wait until the first frost before picking theM?

In reply to iksander:

Ideally, but we haven't had one here yet. I bunged my in the freezer for a few days. Killed all the maggots in them as well.

In reply to arch:


It was a bad year for pollination but a good growing year. If the bush was hit by late frost it might have no sloes.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

Over the last 2 autumns, I've become fascinated by all things sloe and damson. In Wigan/Lancashire, I know of blackthorn bushes with no sloes at all, some with millions of small sloes, some with moderate amounts of large sloes (almost size of a small damson). Also, reckon Philip is right re: pollination. Luckily, I have sloes and tonnes of damsons, frozen and ready for use.

Out of interest, where are you based?

On a slightly different note, had an unusual blackberry season, which started with a few frizzled ones but ended with a frenzy of masses of big ones. Better than last year (and a lot later). I have a demijohn with 5 bottles of vodka topped up with the strained juice of blackberries and minimal sugar. So far, tastes amazing.

In reply to mick taylor:

Yeah, blackberries were bumper, but late. For us, they were desperately short on sugar, so probably ideal for flavouring, but I'll not bother with wine this time and they'll need sweetening for crumbles etc.

The sloes have been good, but given the competition this year, I picked relatively early and - as someone said - dumped them in the freezer.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

Last year in our bit of mid Wales was a bumper crop. This year very few.
Crops can be very localised in different areas, quite normal, my suggestion is always "make hay when the sun shines"; when there's a surplus make a couple of years supply of gin/vodka.

No fungi either this year, a disaster, but other areas are having bumper crops. Similar scenario.

In reply to iksander:

Well you can wait for frost but I pick them when they're ripe. Also don't freeze them it rather kills the colour and flavour. If you don't mind paying postage I'll try and pick&post some for you, there are loads but a lot are a little past their best.

Cheers

Toby

In reply to iksander:

but we've had global warming in effect since , so if you leave it that long the things tend to be all picked, or wrinkled and dried up. you could always stick them in the fridge to simulate the frosting effect!

In reply to iksander:


I think that's more about stopping folk picking them too soon (before they're properly ripe). I don't think the frost makes any difference.


FWIW I freeze mine - I'm not sure that by the time the spirit and sugar has gone in you'll notice a difference

In reply to Toby_W:


The freezing bit shouldn't be for days on end - just enough to form a few ice crystals inside, but not enough to make the fruit hard. If it's a quick blast, it should help to *release* the flavour.

Although I have to be honest, having done extensive trials, I can't tell the difference between gins made with frozen or fresh sloes.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

It's been a fairly good crop here in Cumbria.

I used to wait for the first frost, but freezing them so they crack avoids having to prick the fruit with a cocktail stick. I'm not sure I can taste the difference.

My top tip is to put a couple of damsons in with the sloes for a sweeter taste. Bramble Bacardi is good too!

Jw.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

Is there anything else you can do with sloes apart from sloe gin?

In reply to digby:
I quite like them as sweeties! Like natural sour plums. But you have to really like sour things like tangfastics.

In reply to pebbles:

I'm not sure about another use for the sloes, but the fruit from my Bramble Bacardi went into a good crumble!
Jw

In reply to digby:


Sloe vodka Sloe whisky Sloe wine Sloe port with brambles and elderberries. There might be non-alcoholic stuff you can do but who cares.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

We had a good crop, but small berries. Came very early (end August) and so we cleared the bushes by mid sept.

In reply to digby:

I put some in a verry strong and very fruity wine (together with plums, blackebrries, elderberries and damsons). got it up to 15.5% using a desert wine yeats then fortified with brandy. however, even though i fed the sugar gradually i still made it a bit sweet for my tastes - thought the wine would ferment out abit more but it didnt. so ive got 3 gallons of sweet port sitting in a cupbaord maturing.

i beleive you can make a pure sloe wine. might give it a bash, but run out of demijohns.

top tip - add a drop or two of almond essence.....the sloe stone imparts an almond flavour which is enhanced with almond essence.

In reply to Martin not maisie:

That explains it, no time and they ended up in the freezer for a week or more. I think it tasted O.K but the colour was very washed out. Last year was amazing, like ribina.

Cheers

Toby

In reply to digby:

And another tip I got from here.............keep your sloes after straining from the gin and add to cider, to make 'slider'. I bought a 1 litre bottle of strong (Ma Westons?) from Lidl in a demijohn lookalike bottle, had a pint, then filled with gin infused sloes. Brilliant.

In reply to pebbles:


I wonder if you'd cope with the Snowdonia sloes? The Welsh call them eirin tagu- >Choke berries!

You'd end up looking like Edvard Munch's 'The Scream'

In reply to llechwedd:

Ill test it out next time im there!!!!

In reply to Moley: Mushrooms very on off this year. In the Midlands its been a bit of a flush then stop, spot of rain, bit of a flush then stop. The raspberries in the garden are on their second crop, very confused.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

It's been a very variable year, for no obvious reasons I can see. On a circular walk I do around Pangbourne, I saw some trees absolutely drooping under the weight of sloes, and yet others were almost bare. Thinking about it, the laden trees were on the valley floor, and the empty trees on chalky/clay farmland above the valley floor. So may be a water supply issue.

The golden bullaces hanging over the path from someone's garden were very nice, though. Pity I could only reach a few low-hanging fruit...

In reply to Mike Conlon:

LOADS around the Pentlands/Edinburgh area.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

In response to can you do anything else with sloes. I make sloe jelly, good to add to sauces for lamb and venison or serve with cold meats like you would crab apple jelly.