Raspberry gin recipe
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Liqueurs | 246 comments
Autumn raspberries are a late fruiting variety with great flavour
This recipe can also be used for blackberry gin and vodka
Our autumn fruiting raspberries are late, but they’re finally here. Just a few of them. Succulent and tempting and the promise of more to follow. If you grow autumn fruiting raspberries you might like to have a go at making this delicious raspberry gin. The liqueur is delicate yet has a fresh raspberry bite that makes a change from the raunchiness of sloe gin. (This is a fresh review. I nipped out to the barn this evening to try some of our July 2006 vintage and it was superb. Fragrant and tasty). At it’s best, raspberry gin totally overshadows sloe gin. We had a tasting of a wide selection of our fruit gin at a dinner party, a few months ago. The clear winner was the raspberry gin.
You can make raspberry vodka using the same method detailed below for gin with similar ingredients, just a little more sugar. We’ve tried both and think that the gin wins hands down. Both are quite drinkable in three months so would be ready for Christmas. I love a dash of this in a fresh fruit salad.We had to buy the raspberries for our gin this summer but the end result will be well worth the outlay. In July we feasted off our early raspberries. We guzzled large bowls of them, sprinkled with castor sugar and had heated discussions as to how to use the rest of the fruit. Unfortunately, I had not secured the netting tightly enough and when I went out with my trug a couple of days later the canes were bare. Raspberries are my favourite fruit and raspberry gin is the biz. It always puts people in the best of moods. People have said the most complimentary things about us after a glass or three of our raspberry gin.
Tips and tricks for making fruit infused gin/vodka:
- If you are using the original gin bottles and you find that you don’t have quite enough gin to fill each one to the neck, don’t worry. We often do the final fill up the next day when we have got more gin.
- Make notes on a label of your fruit/gin/sugar ratio and stick it onto the bottle(s) so that you have a record, if you make a particularly good batch. The best labels are made from decorator’s masking tape as these can be peeled off and passed from bottle to bottle. We also note our responses at the grog matures. Yucky after sixth months can be to die for in a year (you will probably not remember without notes). Notes seem boring when you are making the grog. But they are so worthwhile when you start again the next year. It won’t be long before you will get a feel of what works well for your taste (and the notes will come into their own).
- Make more than you need the first year. So you can compare different vintages. This liqueur does improve over time.
- Some people drain the grog through muslin after a couple of months, to clarify the liqueur and bottle. We don’t bother as one old soak tipped that, once the gin is drunk, you can pour medium sherry on the fruit and start all over again! The latter is devilish and drinkable within three months.
- Keep your fruit gin away from the light as this will maintain the colour. Unless the bottle is dark green or brown. If you are stuck with clear bottles, wrap them in brown paper to keep out the light.
- Every couple of months take a tiny sip. At this time a add sugar if it tastes too sharp.
- If you want to make your own labels check out the post for 26 October 2006 to see how we make our labels.
| Raspberry gin recipe |
- Recipe for raspberry gin:
- 300g of raspberries
- 330g of white granulated sugar
- 1.5 litres (or more) of medium quality gin
- Steriiised 2 litre Le Parfait jar or 2 or 3 (70 cl) washed and sterilised gin bottles
- Wash raspberries and discard any bruised fruit. Place rasberries in either a large 2 litre Kilner/Le Parfait jar or divide the raspberries between 2 or 3 (70 cl) saved gin bottles.
- Using a funnel, add the sugar (divide the amounts if using several bottles) and top up with gin to the rim.
- Shake every day until the sugar is dissolved and then store in a cool, dark place until you can resist it no longer (leave for at least three months, we usually let it mature for a year).
- If you are making blackberry gin remove the fruit after 3 months (pour through muslin) to stop the woody taste developing and mature for at least a year.
Leave a reply
Hi, Alison
Any glass bottles will do, you don’t need to buy any special equipment. I use empty coffee or sweetener jars with screw lids, and then decant the finished gins into old screw cap wine bottles. But I wouldn’t use plastic bottles as this could flavour the gins.
Miriam
Hi, I have just started off my first ever batch of rasperry gin about a month ago and I was a bit worried to see the comment on this forum to the effect that I should not be making it in a plastic bottle. I am using a big 1 1/2 litre water bottle. Is this really a problem, should I transfer it into glass bottles? I don’t have any bottling jars and I wasn’t planning to buy any special equipment.
Hi Alison
It’s thought that the plastic will eventually leech into the gin. I always make my drinks in glass bottles, just in case.
How would i make rasp whiskey?
Thanks Miriam. Hoping for ribena with a kick come Christmas
Hi, Sarah
I have not made blackcurrant gin, but have tried a few others, like Blackberry, Raspberry and Fruits of the Forest (all from frozen fruit. They have all been delicious. I have always added about 12oz of sugar to 24ozs fruit which seems sweet enough, and left it to stand for 3 months once the sugar has dissolved. This seems to be long enough, especially with the Blackberry as I am told it tastes ‘woody’ if left longer. Good luck with your gins and enjoy them.
Miriam
Hi, great site. Started raspberry gin off yesterday as have too much jam and too many raspberries. Same with blackcurrants, but how long should I leave the blackcurrant gin before bottling and does it need extra sugar compared to raspberries and damsons? I have two old large sweet jars which are perfect for this but I want to start damson off in September so will the blackcurrant be ready by then?
just picked 1lb and 13 oz of redcurrents for the first time as at home, bushes were netted and also made sure watwered well, hence the best result, so the question is can I make a redcurrent gin vodka or any other liquer(brandy) and put other fruits(rasberrys are slow, and strawberry’s looking good) in a pot to make a drink for christmas
Thanks Miriam! I’ll get it going this weekend 🙂
You used to be able to buy an earthenware pot called a ‘Rumtopf’ which was a german product. The idea with this, as you suggest, was that you filled it with fruit as it comes into season and top it up with Rum. I have never used one myself, but think it sounds very good. The only thing I would suggest not putting in is blackberries, as they should only be soaked in spirit for 3 months otherwise they go woody (see other posts on this site. I don’t see why you can’t use any spirit you wish for this instead of the rum. Good luck if you give it a try. Miriam
I’ve heard somewhere about an old tradition of picking each fruit as it comes into season and layering the fruits in a container, topping it up each time with a spirit (I have bought gin) and then drinking and eating the results at Christmas… has anyone else heard of this idea? And any tips from anyone? I am a complete novice so don’t even know how much sugar I should be putting in, any help would be greatly appreciated! :o)