So I will soon be making my sloe gin again this year, in previous years I have just used Aldi’ s gin as it had half decent reviews but they seem to have a different gin this year.

So any suggestions for a half ok cheap gin (Gordon’s is on offer just now), or do I stick to Aldi (might be same stuff in a different bottle).

Not exactly “cheap” ..but I’ve just bought a 1litre bottle of Tanqueray for £25.50 at Tesco which is a good reduction..

Yeah Hodgy, nice to drink but feels a shame to use it for a ‘base’. And as I need 2 or 3 bottles I hope to aim lower… :D, and as I am in Ireland our Tesco don’t have that offer 🙄

The Aldi stuff is a tenner and won many awards

Yeah iainc that’s why I used to get it, it was always in a green bottle but the one in there now is in a clear bottle so not sure if they have changed the gin or just the bottle.

They had the green bottle one in my local store a few weeks ago, as I bought one !

The £9.97 Oliver Cromwell London Dry Gin from Aldi won a gold medal at the International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC) this week.

Tesco finest is pretty decent, but if you’re putting sloes in it does it matter that much?

Just realised who you are Andy 😀
How are you doing ..I miss the other forum !

we have a Rosehip bush in the garden, anyone tried doing rosehip gin or vodka?

No ..but happy to test some for you if you can spare a bottle / need a test dummy !

Surely, when you’re sloeing, it doesn’t matter?

Pretty much any cheap GIn will do it doesn’t have to be good as the sugar content and fruit takes care of the taste. Last year’s is in the cupboard I must give it a taste test soon.

The wise old sage we ride with CBM ( Colin Barkin Mad ) ..brought along a bottle of Sloe Whisky ( or maybe Whiskey for yourself Andy ..although you are a Scot in exile ) to a bothy night we had a year or so ago ..and what a night …
It was delicious ..try making both you wont be disappointed 😀

if you haven’t already, get out and pick your sloes now!

last week they were literally falling off the bush…

(pick one, dislodge three)

as for gin, i’ve gone with sainsury’s/waitrose/tesco own (one of each), all of them £16/litre, i’ll be seeing if i can taste a difference.

Or you could use Vodka.

Not cheap but sensible “normal” money, iro £18, Whiteley and Neill, with a slice of orange and some decent tonic is awesome.

I normally use supermarket own brand gin – the flavour of the sloes is far to strong for anyone to notice any nuance in the base gin. That said, I can’t quite bring myself to buy the stupidly cheap stuff! But I guess that’s just snobbery. £10/70cl is about my sweet spot.

The wise old sage we ride with CBM ( Colin Barkin Mad ) ..brought along a bottle of Sloe Whisky ( or maybe Whiskey for yourself Andy ..although you are a Scot in exile ) to a bothy night we had a year or so ago ..and what a night …

Interesting that. Seems like sacrilege, but I’m being snobby again. I’ve wondered about trying that Aldi home-brand single malt that apparently beat a load of more expensive malts in some competition. Could be a win-win: if it’s good, it’s good, if not, sloe it.

The only problem with all this is I’m having some difficulty finding sloes this year!

Right…picking tomorrow then off to Aldi. 😀
Thanks all.

Rosehip scnapps worked pretty well, as did sloe whiskey.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/allotment/2011/nov/10/allotments-gardeningadvice

I got sent a bottle from William Chase of their Sloe & Mulberry gin, bloody lovely stuff.

I use the Aldi Dry London stuff. As many have said, by the time it’s been flavoured with sloes and sugar it doesn’t make much difference. Best find for me this year was a wild Damson tree. I’ve got a bottle of damson vodka and a bottle of damson gin on the go, plus two litres of sloe gin, and best of all a couple of bottles of bramble whisky. I use a reduced sugar mix in the sloe gin, and strain after three months, before storing for another year. I am just finishing the first of two bottles I made in late 2015, which has a slightly tawny appearance, and is brilliantly semi-dry and slightly astringent. I don’t know how long you can store the bramble whisky or damson vodka for, as I tend to crack on with that at Christmas…….

What is this “sugar” you are putting in your gin? Isn’t the fruit sweet enough?

What is this “sugar” you are putting in your gin? Isn’t the fruit sweet enough?

No.

Yep a dry London gin as you will be overpowering any fancy botanicals in there, normally the on offer ones.

As for the awards and medals the value rather depends on how many who entered one one.