UKC

I've made 3 litres of each and all looking good. Froze the sloes and given the huge amount, brutally pierced them with a fork on a tray (rather than carefully, individually with a pin). The liquor is slightly cloudy, think due to fine particles of sloe due to my brutal method. Any tips to make less cloudy? Not that bothered - just for aesthetic reasons.

In reply to mick taylor:
i usually filter wine through a clean hankerchief. If youve got a large funnel put the cloth over it and secure with an elastic band.

I also froze my sloes and also brutally mashed them in the vodka so will be filtering them as above.

In reply to ow arm:

Wonder if using a dirty hankie might add some quality flavour

In reply to ow arm:

Might do the same. What you doing with the vodka infused sloes once strained? I've seen a recipe for 'slider', sloes recycled into cider for X months. I actually tried similar with some of the very mashed sloes I removed and put into cider for couple of days and was amazed at the strength of taste (thought it would've taken ages).

In reply to mick taylor:

Strain it through a muslim filter.

In reply to Trangia:

not all muslims drink alcohol though...

In reply to mick taylor:

I eat a few of them but get bored of taking the stones out, otherwise id probably make a cake with them.

Ill have to look in to slider, sounds interesting.

In reply to mick taylor:

Excuse if it's a silly question but is it too late to find sloes and make some sloe gin. We routinely visit a crag late summer and there are always plenty of unripe sloes. I always mean to return later, as I said is it too late ?

In reply to Mike Conlon:

not at all!
there may be some wrinkly ones but have a hunt around, the old way of doing it wasnt to pick them untill after the first frosts

In reply to ow arm:

Oh good thank you, I know where I am off to tomorrow then (or should I risk waiting for "first frost" ?

In reply to Mike Conlon:

We've still got some nice plump ones in the hedge, so you should be lucky, and there's loads of brambles left for vodka.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

The first frost issue can be by-passed by freezing yourself. I believe it is a 'helps break the skin' issue rather than a 'they are only ripe after the first frost' issue.

In reply to cander:

Hmm, I understand the phrase 'dirty hankie' to mean 2 different different things. Not sure which one i'd prefer TBH.

In reply to mick taylor:

Last time I put the sloes out of the gin into cheap whisky with dark brown sugar. Mmmmmm.

In reply to mick taylor:


I think it might be do to with the frost triggering a breakdown of the starches to sugars.

I slash mine with a knife - they infuse quicker than the traditional pierce with a blackthorn.

In reply to ow arm:



Normally I have to hunt reasonably hard around Sheffield but went 'dawn sarf' last weekend and the size and number of sloes was staggering. Picking them by the handful and the size of small grapes. Perfectly ripe.

In reply to Philip:

Might be right. I've also read that adding couple drops almond essence per bottle gin works wonders, as this is the taste that eventually comes out of the sloe stones?

In reply to ow arm:

I saw a slerry recipe once (used sloes plus sherry) and that worked pretty well too.

In reply to mick taylor:

I usually pour mine into a bottle through a tundish, with a muslin cloth attached to it. Let it settle in the bottle, then decant into another bottle, held over some White paper and stop before any remaining sediment goes into second bottle.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

So we came home with 1.7kg of sloes. Does the quality of the original spirit make a big difference or can I have my first go of this using cheaper brands. Also, is it worth trying a vodka variant. Any particular recipes recommended ? Many thanks.

In reply to Mike Conlon:

I asked this before, and this article confirms what others said - get down to Aldi!!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2315572/Can-tell-Aldis-10-gin-pos...

In reply to mick taylor:

Don't bother pricking the sloes. It makes no consistently perceptible difference if you leave it for long enough - at least to my tastes. Just invert the jars for a few minutes once a week or so for the first 3 months.

As for the blackberry vodka, when you filter it, mash the blackberries up and put them in a chocolate truffle mix (melted butter, milk chocolate and double cream, simmered on a hob. Google for sensible ratios), then refrigerate the mix, then ball the mix up into truffles (after keeping your hands in iced water as long as you can bear), roll them in cocoa and re-refirgerate. Once they're cold, dip them briefly in molten 85% cocoa chocolate to coat them and re-re-refrigerate. Perfect blackberry vodka chocolate truffles. I take hygiene up several notches when making these compared to most foods.

In reply to wintertree:

Fantastic idea and will defo be doing.

In reply to wintertree:
Sounds good, worth trying once I've strained my elderberry vodka?

In reply to wintertree:

Mrs C has been informed and is suitably enthusiastic - well done

In reply to prog99:

Hows about passing fruit through a sieve (should still retain most of the alcohol, and most of the tasty juice) and making fruity alcoholic jelly?

In reply to prog99:


If you're brave. I opened our elderberry vodka a few months ago and was distinctly disenamoured with the smell. Perhaps it has mellowed, now where did I leave it?...

In reply to mick taylor:

I filter cloudy sloe gin by putting a flour sieve on top of a big jug, lining it with a layer of kitchen roll then pouring the gin through. But I don't normally bother decanting or sieving it.

In reply to wintertree:

Mines been in for a month now. Reckon another month at least and then strain onto sugar.
Hope it doesn't smell!