How to make sloe port
Foraging author Christine Iverson shares her recipe for sloe port - a great way to use up gin-soaked sloes.
The snowy white flowers of the blackthorn are one of the first blooms of spring in the hedgerow. It has thorny branches, small oval-shaped leaves and, in autumn, purple marble-sized fruits, commonly known as sloes.
As with sloe gin, there’s a fair bit of waiting around before you can sample your sloe port but, believe me, it’s well worth it!
More berry foraging recipes:
On BBC Wildlife Magazine‘s website:
On BBC Countryfile Magazine‘s website:
Ingredients
- Sloes that you used to make your sloe gin
- Red wine 70cl, I like to use claret
- Caster sugar 100g
- Brandy 200ml
Method
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Step 1
Put the sloes, wine and caster sugar into a 1 litre jar and shake to dissolve the sugar. Store the jar in a dark cupboard for 3 weeks, giving it a little shake now and then.
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Step 2
After the 3 weeks, add the brandy, shake well and leave for at least 3 months before straining.
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Gin-soaked sloes can be used to make sloe port. © Joff Lee/Getty
Christine Iverson discovered a love of all things hedgerow after moving to a Sussex Downland village in 2001. This fascination led to volunteering as an apothecary at the Weald and Downland Living Museum. She is a regular contributor to her local parish, runs regular folklore and superstitions of hedgerow plants, and gives talks to local women's institutes and horticultural societies.
This is a recipe from The Hedgerow Apothecary: Recipes, Remedies and Rituals by Christine Iverson, published by Summersdale, £14.99.
