Sloe gin is a red liqueur flavoured with sloe (blackthorn) berries, which are a small fruit relative of the plum. Sloe gin has an alcohol content between 15 and 30 percent by volume. The traditional way of making sloe gin is to infuse gin with the berries. Sugar is required to ensure the sloe juices are extracted from the fruit. Almond flavouring may also be added.
Many commercial sloe gins today are made by flavouring less expensive neutral grain spirits, and produce a fruit cordial effect, although a number of long-established, reputable manufacturers still use the traditional method.
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To make sloe gin, the sloe berries must be ripe. In the Northern Hemisphere, they were traditionally picked in late October or early November after the first frost of winter. Each berry is pricked, and a wide-necked jar is filled half way with the pricked berries. Folklore has it that when making sloe gin, one should not prick the berries with a metal fork, unless it is made of silver. The established traditional method is to prick the berries with a thorn taken from the blackthorn bush on which they grow.
For each 1 imperial pint (570 ml) of sloes, 4 ounces (110 g) of sugar is used, then the jar is filled with gin, adding a few cloves and a small stick of cinnamon, as well as the almond essence. The jar is sealed and turned several times to mix, then stored in a cool, dark place. It is turned every day for the first two weeks, then each week, until at least three months have passed.
The gin will now be a deep ruby red. The liqueur is poured off and the berries and spices discarded. Alternatively, the leftover berries can be infused in white wine or cider, made into jam, used as a basis for a chutney, or a filling for liqueur chocolates.[1] The liqueur can be filtered, but it is best decanted back into clean containers and left to stand for another week. Careful decanting can then ensure that almost all sediment is eliminated, leaving a clear liqueur.
Made in this way, the alcohol extracts an almond-like essence from the sloes, this comes from the sloe stones; this avoids the need to add almond essence. Recipes for sloe gin vary depending on the maker's taste. The sweetness can be adjusted to taste at the end, but sufficient sugar is required at the start of the process to ensure full extraction of flavour from the sloes.
A sloe gin competition is held each January in Dorstone, Herefordshire.[2] Each year the winner is crowned the "Grand Master of the Sloes".[3]
In Germany and other German-speaking countries, a very similar liqueur, Schlehenfeuer (literally, "sloe fire"), is made, but in the English speaking world, Schlehenfeuer is generally considered any German version of sloe gin, not the specific product. Schlehenfeuer has an alcohol content of about 38% by volume, and this higher alcohol content is also the most important difference between it and other sloe gins. However, Schlehenfeuer and other types of Schlehenlikör (the generic German term for any kind of sloe liqueur) are sometimes made with vodka or rum. The most popular commercial brand, based on white rum, is made by Mast-Jägermeister SE, better known for its product Jägermeister.
In Spain, pacharán is made by soaking sloe berries in an anise-flavoured spirit, resulting in a light reddish-brown, sweet liquid, around 25-30% alcohol by volume. In Italy, bargnolino is made by soaking sloe berries with sugar and spices in spirit alcohol (recipe varies locally), resulting a reddish, sweet liquor, around 40-45% alcohol by volume; it is often chilled before serving.
Sloe gin is also known as sloe or Schlehen wine.
Slider, a Devonshire tradition, uses the used sloe berries from the sloe gin to steep in still cider, making sloe-flavoured cider. Sloe whisky and sloe brandy are variants on the tradition, and are often mixed with ginger beer or ginger ale.[4]
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