Into the Wild
INTO THE Wild TAKING IT SOLE
With frosty mornings definitely upon us, my mind is taken instantly to Christmas, and of course, presents. I always find the best presents are those which have been handmade and crafted with love – one of my favourite gifts is the annual bottle of sloe gin I receive from my father-in-law. Gin seems to be very quickly becoming one of the UK’s most popular alcoholic drinks, and in my view, sloe gin is the very best gin there is.
SLOES (PRUNUS SPINOSA)
Sloes come from the blackthorn bush – it’s an extremely common hedgerow species; you can find it in gardens, along river banks and even in car parks. The best time to find your sloe patch is in early spring. The blackthorn is the one of the first hedgerow plants to come into flower – each branch will boast lots of small white flowers, which fit fantastically into a salad and will give a wonderfully sweet, almond flavour to your dish. The flowers are very small (less than a centimetre wide) and sit in clusters, on short stalks that run along the length of a branch. The flowers bloom before the leaves grow, in March and early April; but be careful not to pick too many flowers, otherwise you won’t have any sloe berries for making gin in the autumn and winter.