Sloe vodka
A 38% tarninówka, the old Polish forest nalewka made from sloes, the small blue-black fruit of the blackthorn. Sloes are sour and astringent on the bush, but after a frost and a long steep they turn deep ruby, with plum, almond and a pleasant dry grip. Blackthorn is rare in the US, so dried sloes are the easy route; fresh ones can be picked after the first frost where it grows. Treat the amounts as a starting point and tune them by taste.
- Vodka in
- 2 L
- Vodka out
- about 2.1 L
- Strength
- roughly 38% ABV
- Start to bottle
- about 10 weeks
Shopping list
Amounts scale with the batch size above. The method text uses the 2 L amounts.
Botanicals to order online
| Got it | Botanical | Per batch | Product |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sloes, driedPrunus spinosa | 150 g | Dried sloe berries (search results) amazon.com/s?k=dried+sloe+berries |
Grocery store
Liquor store
Equipment
Know your botanicals
Sloes, dried Prunus spinosa
Polish: tarnina · 150 g
In the bag: small, dark, wrinkled berries with a stone inside, dusty blue-black
Brings: the whole character, dark plum, almond and a dry grip
Check: whole dried sloes (blackthorn berries), unsweetened
Method
Sloes need a frost, or a night in the freezer, to soften their skins. After that the jar simply waits for about six weeks, and the finished vodka needs another month in the bottle for the astringency to mellow.
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Day 0
Prepare the sloes
Rinse dried sloes briefly. Fresh sloes go in the freezer overnight, then prick each one a couple of times with a fork.
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Day 1
Start the jar
Put the sloes in the jar and cover them with the vodka. Seal it, keep it dark and shake it once a week.
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Weeks 1–6
Let it steep
The color turns a deep ruby within a couple of weeks; the flavor needs the full six. A soft almond note comes from the stones, so leave them whole.
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Week 6
Strain and press
Pour it through a sieve, press the sloes gently in cheesecloth and filter it through coffee filters.
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Week 6
Sweeten lightly
Warm the sugar and water until the sugar dissolves, let it cool, and add it a little at a time. It should stay a dry, grippy vodka rather than a syrupy liqueur.
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Then 4+ weeks
Bottle and age
Bottle it and age it at least four weeks. The astringency softens month by month.
Keep it safe
- Never crack or crush the stones. Sloe kernels contain amygdalin, which releases cyanide when crushed.
- If you pick your own, make sure it is blackthorn: a very thorny shrub with small blue-black fruit with a dusty bloom. Wear gloves; blackthorn punctures are notorious for getting infected.
- Keep the jar sealed, dark and away from heat, and label it with the start date.
Tuning the next batch
- Too astringent: age it longer, or add a little more syrup.
- Too thin: use 200 g of dried sloes next time.
- Too sweet: use 100 g of sugar next time.
- Not available at all: damson or beach plums, halved, give a similar result.
To serve
Serve it at room temperature or lightly chilled in small glasses. It goes especially well with game and roast meats in winter.