Grow Your Own Magazine

dianajellymaker · #1 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 03:03 PM

Can anyone comment on the difference in taste and appeal between sloe gin and sloe vodka? Of course, sloe gin is the more well known but I've only tasted it once and have never tasted sloe vodka.

I have a load of extra sloes left after making my first batches of sloe gin (and sloe jelly) and am trying to decide if it's worth making sloe vodka next instead of more sloe gin.

Opinions welcome - especially if you've tasted home-made versions of both!

Oh - and I have to say what a great forum this is!

Diana

Flummery · #2 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 03:51 PM

I always make sloe gin and damson vodka - somehow the tastes meld better. The gin flavour complements the sloes. I think the vodka is a bit bland in comparison. Damsons have a stronger, plummier taste so they go well with the vodka. Just my opinion. Sharp wild plums, if you can find them, are great in brandy. I'm not REALLY and alcoholic!

greenlung · #3 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 03:59 PM

I'd agree - sloes go best with gin and everything else with vodka ! Having said that, I can't decide whether raspberry gin or raspberry vodka is the yummiest !

Snadger · #4 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 05:11 PM

I made rhubarb schnapps with gin and vodka!

Vodka wins hands down in this instance!

jayne&tony · #5 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 05:24 PM

sloe Vodka does it for me every time but OH says sloe gin is better, i think its all a personal choice really.
May i just say strawberry vodka is great, has a good kick to it especially if you eat the strawberries after as they soak up the vodka.

wellie · #6 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 07:55 PM

What a very interesting thread this is!

I'm sorry not to be able to answer your question, Dianajellymaker as I've never done a taste-test for comparison. However, Trousers and I picked 3 kilos of Damsons from the trees round the lottie sites today, and I made one and a half litres of Damson Gin this afternoon (because I can't find any Sloes largely). I do a mean Pork Fillet cooked with Sloe Gin, so Damson Gin it will just have to be from now on, and I've got a kilo of Damsons left, so I think I'll do a Voddy one as well, and a Damson Jelly, if I could 'pretty please' have your particular Sloe Jelly recipe please Dianajellymaker? !

And WOW! what a lovely thought: Strawberry or Raspberry Vodka.
We DID test out our Rhubarb Schnapps this afternoon whilst 'bottling'.... and it 'had the desired effect' in our humble opinion.... Hic!
What a lovely boozey lot we are on this forum! Keep it up peeps!

dianajellymaker · #7 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 08:51 PM

Thank you all for your opinions!

Whilst I was typing away for your advice, my OH went ahead and made a batch of sloe vodka with some of our surplus sloes. So, even if popular opinion suggests sloe gin is the better use of sloes, I'll have both gin and vodka to sample in three months!

Wellie, I can tell you that damson jelly is a very special jelly. I'm envious that you still have damsons, for I've access to only a few damson trees and I've already harvested the lot.

To make a superb damson jelly, I have repeatedly used the recipe from the National Trust book: Jams, Preserves and Edible Gifts. It has never let me down.

1.8 kg damsons (4 lb)
900 ml water (1.5 pints)

Place the damsons in a large pan with the water for about 40 minutes until very soft and pulpy, crushing with a potato masher from time to time. Strain through a jelly bag overnight. Measure the strained liquid and pour it into a clean pan with 450g warmed sugar for each 600 ml. Heat gently, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved, then boil rapidly until setting point is reached. Start testing after 3-4 minutes. Skim, then pot and cover.

I find that damson really can set after only 3-4 minutes of rapid boiling, so do test or you will risk having damson rubber instead of jelly.

Diana

dianajellymaker · #8 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 09:06 PM

Since it is relevant, here is how I spent last weekend.

Picked many damsons from this tree ...

Cooked the damsons with water - they are very yellow to begin with ...

... but they soon turn the most incredible colour! Pour into a jelly bag with care!

And wait ...

(Oops - image limit reached.)

dianajellymaker · #9 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 09:07 PM

... and wait for (here) 3.6 Kg of damson extract to collect.

(Don't squeeze the bag!)

You will have the most lovely extract the next day. Cook this until the setting point is reached:

And pot as usual (if it is usual for you). Jelly:

wellie · #10 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 09:09 PM

what a lovely jelly-maker you are diana...
Ah, but you have Sloes, and I do not girlie! and that sounds like a brilliant book (how come I missed it? and don't have it on my shelf already - birthday coming up soon... hint hint Trousers darling?)
and I shall return to the Lottie late tomorrow, to bolster the flagging last kilo to add the 'point eight' of a kg in order to do your recipe justice.

Thank you too for the 'setting warning'?
Your an angel.
X

dianajellymaker · #11 (**permalink**) 23-09-2007, 09:18 PM

Thanks Wellie. The National Trust book is the best I've ever read on the topic of preserves. (Though, the Good Housekeeping books on the same topic are useful, ditto for The Joy of Cooking's preserve chapters.)

I have so many sloes and access to many, many more. What I would do to be able to trade for damsons!

rustylady · #12 (**permalink**) 24-09-2007, 06:38 PM

What you have to remember is that gin has a taste, and vodka has none. Therefore if you want a slight bitterness to go with your fruit then use gin - if you just want the taste of the fruit, use vodka.

dianajellymaker · #13 (**permalink**) 24-09-2007, 08:56 PM

Rustylady, thank you. I had not thought of this aspect! I look forward to sampling the two side by side and will remember the point of the taste of the alcohol itself.

Brewer-again · #14 (**permalink**) 02-10-2007, 09:59 PM

dianajellymaker, thanks for your photographic uploads. really useful to see it being done.
Vodka is all about purity, just pure alchohol and water. They spend hours filtering it through charcoal, Gin however has many different additives. I started keeping a list of the additives but can only remember Angelica as one of them. The gin makers consider that they are creating a taste in its own right. It would be a shame to take someones lifetime work and add sloes or damsons to it.
But what ever floats your boat !!!

dianajellymaker · #15 (**permalink**) 08-10-2007, 06:12 PM

Well, thank you Brewer! I must admit I did go a bit overboard with the photos. I did a better job posting photos on a forum about rosehips.

dianajellymaker · #16 (**permalink**) 01-01-2008, 07:37 PM

Update! Now that we've tasted (and so have the guests) and compared the batches of sloe gin and sloe vodka made in the summer ...

Taste test results:

DianaJellyMaker: I cannot decide which I like better. They are both incredible.

Everyone else: Loved both the vodka and gin but ... slight surprise is that *all* preferred the sloe VODKA!

What's going on?

smallblueplanet · #17 (**permalink**) 01-01-2008, 07:42 PM

What was the difference in taste? I HATE vodka (whoever said it has no taste is wrong btw, it tastes vile!) and so we made sloe gin (and sloe brandy and sloe sherry and....). Sloe gin tastes fabby!

dianajellymaker · #18 (**permalink**) 01-01-2008, 08:05 PM

I am really struggling to describe it, small blue.

I would say that I can taste more of an alcohol flavour in the sloe gin than in the sloe vodka. Honestly, they are both amazingly good (I would offer to send you some sloe vodka to sample yourself but we made only a tiny amount of it because we expected to be not as good as the sloe gin).

I'm sorry I can't be more descriptive.

dianajellymaker · #19 (**permalink**) 01-01-2008, 08:20 PM

Small blue: I've asked my partner to explain how he compares them and he can describe two things:

1) The sloe vodka has more of an almondy flavour, which is possibly coming from the stone of the sloe. Maybe the vodka is better at extracting this?

2) Whilst the alcohol content is the same, he feels you can taste the alcohol itself *less* in the sloe vodka than in the sloe gin, and the other flavours a bit more.

Of course, this is all based the one (and only) time we've made (and tasted) sloe gin and sloe vodka. The sloes were of the same harvest. The gin was Gordons London and the vodka was probably something very cheap from the local co-op (as it was a last minute thing).

Again, we found both the gin and vodka good - just the unexpected surprise that everyone (but me) liked the sloe vodka even more.

smallblueplanet · #20 (**permalink**) 01-01-2008, 08:35 PM

Thanks for the description diana, I think we'll stick to gin. (Mostly because although I dislike gin, as I said before, I hate vodka!) We're still trying different recipe amounts and times before racking off the sloes. But the batch of sloe gin done in sept and racked for christmas was gorgeous!

I'm wondering whether the stuff still sitting on the sloes will taste any different. I'm also wondering what the sloe sherry will be like.

Two_Sheds · #21 (**permalink**) 01-01-2008, 10:53 PM

We made sloe & bullace gin, and blackberry vodka. Interestingly, the vodka needed much more sugar to be palatable. The sloe gin is sublime, like alcoholic Benylin

terrier · #22 (**permalink**) 01-01-2008, 11:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Two_Sheds

The sloe gin is sublime, like alcoholic Benylin

Cof! Cof! Can I try some?

I see no one's mentioned my favourite ... Lemon Gin. It's much kinder to the gin and all too drinkable!

wellie · #23 (**permalink**) 02-01-2008, 02:53 AM

I'm taking HUGE notice here as I've got all sorts of Tipples on the go now, thanks Grapes (!) and did Damson Brandy, Gin and Vodka.
Whilst I'm feeding Trousers's Man Flu with Limoncello at the moment, on account of the enormous benefit of Vitamin C of the Lemons, I shall shortly be weening him off onto the Damson Tipples once his Man Flu is 'under control'!

Seriously, I've not sampled the Damson Tipples yet, and will put a brave foot forward this week, purely for your research purposes, naturally....
and so I'll be adding my personal thoughts on the subject here as well in the next week or so?