Two recipes: Wild Damson Gin and Sloe Gin recipes
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Liqueurs | 713 comments
Wild damsons are a beautiful rich dark colour
Unlike sloes, wild damsons are hard to find. For every thirty wild plum trees there may be just one wild damson tree. When I spot wild damsons in the hedgerows, they are harvested into a special bag.
These, and the diminutive bullace, are the kings of hedgerow fruit. These tiny fruit make such an irresistible liqueur that overnight guests have actually turned down Danny’s famous cooked breakfast, and gone back to bed to sleep off the excesses of the night before.
Our damson and sloe gin is not the thick ultra sweet variety. We prefer the sugar to enhance rather than shield the flavour. Every three months or so it’s sampled and, if necessary, topped up with sugar. Usually no extra sugar is needed.
We try to keep our damson and sloe gin well away from the drinks tray! Each year we make a lot of fruit gin and vodka (more recipes to follow, in time). Sloe gin is the big craze at the moment around here, as sloes are more plentiful.
Here are our recipes for both. We are also starting experimenting with sloe gin see this post for details
Tips and tricks:
- 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. We have a recipe for this in our wine and gin section.
- Keep your fruit gin away from the light as this will maintain the colour. Unless it is in a dark green or brown bottle. Wrapping it in brown parcel paper will keep out the light.
- Make notes on a label of your fruit gin/vodka /sugar ratio and stick it onto the bottle(s) so that you have a record, if you make a particularly good batch. We note our responses as 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).
- Adding almond essence to sloe gin lifts it from good to great. I haven’t tried this with the damson gin but return in a years’ time for our review.
- Don’t kill the liqueur with too much sugar at the start. Use the amount above to start your sloe or damson gin and then every couple of months take a tiny sip. At this time add more sugar if it is too sharp for your taste.
- Gin v Vodka? Vodka can be used as the spirit for these recipes. Although I’m a vodka drinker, we tend to stick to a gin base for our fruit liqueurs.
- A good damson gin can be made from ordinary damsons available in the shops. As they are bigger you would need to put them into a larger Le Parfait jar (I’d use a 2 litre size).
- People have been picking sloes from September 1st around here. Some people say that you shouldn’t pick sloes until after the first frost. This can be circumvented by putting your sloes in the freezer overnight. We don’t bother with either method and always have great results.
- This year we have made up a number of small (1lb honey jars) of sloe gin to give as Christmas presents.
| Wild Damson Gin and sloe gin Recipes |
Recipe Type: Liqueurs
Prep time: 15 mins
Total time: 15 mins
Ingredients
- Wild damson gin:
- 1lb/454gm of washed wild damsons
- 6 ozs/168gm of white granulated sugar
- 75cl bottle of medium quality gin
- Sterilised 1 litre (at least) Le Parfait jar or wide necked bottle with stopper/cork
- Sloe Gin:
- 1lb/454gm of washed sloes
- 4 ozs/112gm of white granulated sugar
- 75cl bottle of medium quality gin
- Sterilised 1 litre (at least) Le Parfait jar or wide necked bottle
- 1-2 drops of almond essence
Instructions
- Wild damson gin:
- Wash damsons well and discard any bad or bruised fruit. Prick fruit several times with a fork and place damsons in either a large
- Kilner/Le Parfait jar or a wide necked 1 litre bottle.
- Using a funnel, add the sugar 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 planning to drink this after 3 months, have a nip afetr a month, and top up with sugar to taste.
- Some people strain the grog (through muslin/jelly bag) after 3 months and bottle it, leaving it mature for six months. We strain and bottle after a year. Don’t leave the straining process any longer than a year; leaving the fruit in too long can spoil the liqueur, as we found to our cost one year.
- Sloe gin:
- Wash sloes well and discard any bruised or rotten fruit. Prick fruit several times with a fork and place sloes in either a large Kilner/Le Parfait jar or a wide necked 1 litre bottle. I put several sloes in my palm to prick them rather than picking them up one by one.
- Using a funnel, add the sugar and top up with gin to the rim. Always open sugar bags over the sink as sugar tends to get caught in the folds at the top of the bag.
- Add the almond essence.
- 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).
- Some people strain the grog (through muslin/jelly bag) after 3 months and bottle it, leaving it mature for six months. We strain and bottle after a year.
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Limoncello! Now that is interesting. A lovely drink. Please could you post a recipe?
I would dearly love to try that.
I use Morrisons basic London gin which is the cheapest I have found and as the taste of the finished product is governed more by the sloes/damsons not the gin, it makes little difference, except to my pocket.
The other advantage is that the gin comes in plain clear bottles with plain white caps, ideal for bottling the finished product.
Please, please, please post the Limoncello recipe.
Have fun
Ooops!! I went ahead & made my first batch of damson gin. They might be very slightly underripe, but I gently shook the branches & the riper fruit plopped into my basket. So I will keep an eye on the hedgerow in question and make another batch in a week maybe – then compare & contrast later! Or blend, perhaps… After all, that’s what happens in wineries. I’ve already got raspberry vodka and limoncello on the go 🙂
By the way, I conducted a blind tasting of gin recently, and since we found there was very little to choose between Bombay Sapphire, Gordon’s and Saunsbury’s Basics, I would advocate the use of the latter for sloe & damson gin!
I’ve a couple of damson trees in my garden (Berkshire). I just wait for them to fall. The first few are dropping now, and I discard them; the bulk will come almost all at once, probably next week or maybe the week after. It’s much easier than picking them.
I agree with the point about using less sugar then recommended – it’s not meant to be sickly.
Lucky you. Sounds like someone started keeping bees nearby.
I have not used damsons until they were ripe. This means they wre soft like ripe plums.
In contrast to Sloes, which never seem to get soft.
You will find that it is so much easier to prick the skins of damsons than sloes.
As damsons are sweeter than sloes, be careful with the initial sugar. I reduce mine by 25% for damsons. You can always sweeten it up to taste at the end, if needed.
Now is the time to start looking out for cheap gin offers.
Have fun.
Deep in the wilds of Suffolk, we have damsons, wild plums AND sloes in our garden!I’ve made lots of sloe ginin the past, but want to experiment with damson gin this year as the crop is unbelievable. My question is, what is the best stage of ripeness for damsons? They are dark but firm & bitter right now. Should I wait?
Mirabelles make a delicious tart.
Lay half mirabelles in a tart case (curved side up), making sure there are plenty in, glaze and bake.
Try googling mirabelles for further recipes, details and pictures.
I’ve found a source of mirabelle plums and would love to hear of ways to cook them – not jam or gin!
Can i freeze them?
Thank y’all kindly. When September comes around, I’ll be sure to try those things, and report back.
I made my first batch of damson gin last year and, after extensive experimentation with the alternatives, can confirm that neat is best, with the caveat that it is somewhat moreish, so that, whereas a double measure of gin is fine in a gin and tonic, a session of damson gin is liable to end up as two triples.
I agree with Paul S that you should cut back on the suggested sugar quantities.
Greetings. Though we are in the East, we are not all wise men (and women), merely ordinary folks continuing the tradition of making country style wines and drinks, not all of which are alcoholic.
I have made sloe gin for 5 or 6 years and was given some damsons that I added to my sloes by mistake. I have found the two almost interchangeable. I say almost, for damsons have a higher fructose /sugar content and do not need quite as much sugar. They are also easier to stone when the gin making is over and consequently easier to use for making damson gin chutney (waste not, want not).
Sloe/damson gin can be drunk neat as a warming liqueur on a cold winters evening. If mixed with soda with a slice of lemon and sprig of mint it makes a lovely refreshing long fruity summer drink (don’t over ice it). Alternatively a little added to the bottom of a champagne flute and topped up with sparkling wine makes a great celebration drink akin to Bucks Fizz or Kier Royale. It will also enrich any alcoholic fruit punch at party time. No doubt it would be a great addition to many cocktails. In other words, you drink it how you like it best.
I now give about 6 bottles each year as Christmas presents to friends. It is so popular that they not only enjoy it but get dissapointed if they get an alternative present one year.
The only ingredients I use are sloes or damsons, gin and sugar. Some people add a little almond essence but as you can read above, this not only changes the flavour but can lead to problems of a pectin-type jelly forming in the drink. I doubt glycerin will enhance it but you could always try it in a small batch and see if it makes a difference. If it works, please do let us all know.
My suggestion is to have a go this year with a modest batch using the recipe above and see how it turns out. I suggest you go lighter on the sugar. You can always add it later if it is not sweet enough for your taste, but you cannot take it out.
In other words, Go For It.
Most importantly, please let us know how you get on. have fun.