Do we have any Sloe Gin fans here?

hyperfish

Just a thought, did you dissolve the sugar before adding it to the bottles? I'm not sure if the recipes call for it or not but I do it out of habit more than reason.

tvmcp

Never dissolve mine, it does that within a day or two
I've also done a couple of bottles with different spices to see how they go.

IronGiant

Some people call for you to prick them with a pin or cocktail stick to encourage them to release flavour/colour.  I gather sticking them in the freezer overnight accomplishes the same thing which is what I do.  I think you are more likely to get sediment with either of these methods though.

NytMadn

I saw this post on the latest posts reel so not within the context of the rest of the thread, it makes for rather amusing reading from that perspective

hyperfish

I run mine through a sieve to catch the berries and coarse bits, then through a single layer of muslin cloth in the funnel when decanting into bottles. The result is close enough for me.

sniffer66

No, our recipe just said add the sugar. It's dissolved in a day anyway

reiteration

yeah, if I add sugar then I shake it daily for the first few weeks and that gets rid of the sugar...

but by adding sugar syrup at the end allows you to fine tune the sweetness...tho, you can always fine tune it anyway..

county angler

We sorted out any Sloe collection issues we might have had by planting a mixed native hedge last winter. We did about around 250m and did a double row. The first row, on the windward side we did a 50/50 mix of Hawthorn and blackthorn and on the inner row we planted a few more interesting/ornamental species like sea buckthorn, crab apples, roses, red dog wood, holly, cherry plums, gooseberry, various currants, oak, snow berry and a few more mature trees. 2500 plants in all. All dug, caned and spiral guarded by hand. It'll be a couple more years yet but we should have an inordinate amount of sloes! It was a few weeks graft but will be well worth it in years to come.

hyperfish

↑
Mail order it is then

GarethP

My dog walking route has a sloe bush and plentiful elderberries. Made a massive batch of sloe and apple jelly and buckets full of elderberry vinegar for gifts at Christmas