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 recently started to use a ”sous vide’ copper to make fruit gin and it considerably shortens the infusion time. In fact mostly it’s well drinkable within a couple of days if not at it’s best
Put usual ingredients into a re-useable ”zip-lock” bag using displacement to expel air and seal bag.
Put into cooker and set for 70%C for three hours. Allow bag to cool in cooker
Remove when cool a regfrigerate overnight.
decant into suitable bottles. I ideally use 350ml condiment bottles but any sterilized bottles/jars will do. I’ve made mulberry and raspberry gin, sloe gin, raspberry gin, and sloe and blueberry this way. My fav happens to be sloe and blueberry. The amount of sugar used can vary by personal taste and personally I do not like any fruit gin too sweet and I happen to think that most recipes overdo the sugar and generally I yse half the weight of sugar to fruit. You can actually re-sweeten if you so wish [i’m told that cane sugar syrup is good for this but I’ve no personal experience] but sugar does help the infusion process.
As an aside I sampled a ’04 sloe gin this very day . Very smooth too!! My bestest however is the ‘2010 and I’m thinking that, like grapes, a lot depends on the ”vintage” ANY IDEAS OUT THERE about that??
I have just made my first blackberry gin, The raspberry is delicious but on tasting my blackberry gin, its only been going a week, it tastes bitter. It is sweet enough but will the bitterness improve with age. I had thought to give it as Christmas presents, but at the moment it doesn’t taste very nice.
Any helpful hints gratefully received.
Many thanks. Julieh
I left mine for three months, didn’t open it once during that time. Tasted really nice
thank you for replying, so does it make a difference if you open it? I have only opened it to take a taste, but I think leaving it for as long as possible seems to be the answer.
Thank you.
I have been making fruit vodka/gin for a few years now and the best tip I found was to leave the fruit and sugar to macerate for 2 days before adding the vodka/gin. Speeds up the process.
I’m not sure you have to add sugar, but some form of sweetening would be needed as sloes are very tart – I suggest you experiment and see how it turns out!
Do we have to add sugar as I’m diabetic??
No you don’t need to add sugar, as raspberries are quite sweet enough & the gin should act as preservative. You would need sugar/honey with some other fruit (sloe) – it just won’t be syrupy like a liquor.
Hi having made cranbury@ raspberry gin what can i use the fruit for as it is very strong, thanks brenda
We make raspberry gin using a pound and a half of fruit and the same amount of sugar and a litre and a half of gin. Seems to work okay.
Are dried sloes any good for making sloe gin?
I have put sugar in even after I’ve taken the fruit out, tastes fine. It’s easier to add more, you can’t take it out if it’s too sweet!!
Sorry for my typo – should read tart sloes not soles!