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.
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I’ve made both sloe and damson gin successfully in the past.
The sloe gin recipe is to mix them with half their weight in sugar, half fill the bottles with this mixture and then pour gin into the bottles until they are nearly full.
The damson gin recipe is 450g damsons, 170g sugar & 750ml gin.
Put the fruit into a 1 litre bottle and add the sugar and gin.
Each time I’ve made these gins, it has taken quite a while for the sugar to dissolve, shaking them at least once a day.
I made 4 jars of blackberry gin 5 days ago, using 280g blackberries to 100g sugar in 2 of the jars and 305g blackberries to 100g sugar in the other 2. I just filled each jar to the top with gin, so I’m unsure how much went in. I didn’t want to use too much sugar as the blackberries were so sweet, not at all like the tart soles and damsons.
The sugar dissolved after a day or so of daily shaking, so I’m concerned that I may not have put enough in. Such a waste of gin if it all goes wrong and has to be binned!!
Should I open the jars now to taste for sweetness, adding extra sugar if I think it needs it, or keep my nerve and wait for a month or so?
Hello, I’d love to be able to make a bottle of this for my friend’s wedding. I’ve been looking for a recipe that I can bottle on the day and they can open on their anniversary a year later, this is the first I’ve seen that seems confident about leaving to infuse for such a long time.
Do you have any tips for attempting to go for the full year?
Thanks!
Made raspberry gun last year this was. Let it said for 7 months in a cupboard and had it at Christmas time. It was AMAZING and quite alcoholic. I took the used raspberries and froze them. They are delicious, like an alcoholic sorbet.
Hi
I have made my first raspberry gin and its been under my stairs for a month. How long do i keep the fruit in for? What can i do with the fruit after any receipe ideas please
At least 3 months. I’ve only just started my raspberry gin, im gonna leave it til christmas, then remove the fruit and get drinking
OK thanks. What are you going to use the raspberries for afterwards. I was thinking of a trifle not sure what else would be good
I took the gin from the raspberries after two months, strained and bottled it. I made it in the spring using frozen raspberries. Think the key is not to use too much sugar, you can always add more at a later point. Now in the dark waiting for Christmas but already tastes fresh and fruity. Use the fruit in a trifle.
Using the raspberries in a trifle afterwards sounds like a great idea.
I’m also making pomegranate gin, the smell is to die for
We have made LOADS of sloe gin and it is nasty! Very cloying and sweet with no detectable fruit flavour. Too much sugar and not enough sloes we are guessing… Can we save it by infusing raspberrys in it for a couple of weeks? Will it be rescued and drinkable?
I love sloe gin and would love to make it but can’t get any sloes in Newcastle so I’m making blackberry gin instead. Can’t wait til its ready to drink. Can I reuse the blackberries?
Tesco sell 500g packs of frozen mixed summer berry’s for £2 , after one week soaking in vodka the smell is to die for
I put together a similar recipe but including peach and raspberry. Works really well! I found that after 3 months the flavour was good and had some with family for Christmas, but after 4.5 months the flavour was perfect. Only at that point did I strain the fruit out. Recipe if anyone wants is here: http://loxstockandbagels.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/peach-and-raspberry-gin.html?m=1
Hi
How much more sugar do you need for when you make the Vodka instead of the Gin?
Thanks
I don’t think you need to alter the quantities for vodka. my only experience for saying this is that I made sloe vodka (I made sloe gin about 20 yrs ago) for the first time this year, didn’t alter the quantity of sugar, and 3 months later we have enjoyed it very much!
Having never made a fruit gin before, and now I have a number of jars of gin filled with damsons, when do I strain the fruit off and bottle up the remaining gin please?
I have also made plum brandy, again the same question?