Hi everyone,

First time poster. October/November is said to be the ideal time to pick sloes, and I'm keen to try to make some slow gin.
It's proving tricky however to find where you can find them (or the blackthorn bush they grow on) around Newbury. As hedgerow fruits I suspect they can probably be found in the country lanes but there are quite a few of them and I don't know where to look.

Has anyone picked sloes around Newbury before/point me in the right direction please?

Thanks

I am a great devotee of Sloes and their use. So much so that daughter has now taken on the mantle.

Searching can be hit and miss depending on the years weather.

Open common land should be a place to find bushes bearing fruit.
Newtown Common, The lanes through Adbury Park.
Along the disused railway lines.Reasonably kempt hedging usually is best,
such as are pruned by horses or cattle. I did have a look along the valley around Hurstbourne Tarrant, but no sign at all thereabouts.

Good luck. The sight of the gin turning a delicate pink brings sunshine to a winter kitchen.
ce

The footpath across the Sandleford site. Park in Warren Road off the Andover Road and walk east, over the first field to the copse and then the hedge along the second field has some good sloes.

The canal tow path between Victoria Park and Greenham Lock has some good ones, though they're quite big and I wonder that they are not quite as astringent as our native sloe.

The field south of the canal in Enborne has some good ones. Walk west from West Mills and when you leave the houses behind the field is on your left. It's actually two fields with a north-south hedge separating and that has some good ones.

The field by the side of the bypass in Enborne. Follow Skinners Green Lane south from the Enborne Road, the road bends right then left and just before some houses there's a footpath on your right that will take you to south along the bypass (which is the other side of a fence) and there are good sloes in those fields.

It is important to note, that Sloes only ripen once they have had a good hard frost, so ideally they not be picked until then, otherwise they will be extremely bitter.

If you are willing to go fo a decent walk, then try the hedgerows surrounding the arable fields up behind Manor Park, Turnpike Industrial estate. Load up their! Always is. Just a muddy walk though!

They're always extremely bitter - well, sour rather than bitter, the frost doesn't do anything about that. The flavour develops after they've been frosted, but I find they're usually past their best by the first frosts (and a little past their best already) and the pheasants have had most of them by then, so pick them now and put them in the freezer for a few days.

Your advice on where to forage was much appreciated...

I was given a couple of bottles of home made sloe gin last year as a present and it was lovely stuff to have a nip of during the cold spell while out on a walk... I made a mental note then to have a bash at making some myself this year - but then promptly overwrote my mental notes and forgot about it until this thread came up!


Finding a hedge of blackthorn bushes can be tricky... You stumble across them if you're not looking for them, but when you go out for a long walk in the country with the sole intention of picking sloes you'll never see one... so thanks for the tip.

Will be on the lookout in future and will share any good locations for others...

6lb of sloes in the freezer now and looking forward to gin making.... <hic>

Thank you everyone for your helpful responses. I'm actually in Wash Common so the Sandleford path is a short walk from home. Needless to say I will pay a visit this week ... provided others haven't taken everything yet!

'tis that time of the year again... don't let the birds have them and don't let them go to waste. Previous advice on sloe picking is 'wait for the first frosts', however winter weather patterns have changed and if you wait till then the berries will have shrivelled and fallen to the ground. The berries are big and fat right now. Get out there and pick 'em...!

Sloe Gin. Warms your cockles....

Silchester - footpath from car park to town walls can be good

I still have some Sloe Gin that was made last year, going to make Wine with this years crop, ( to go with the Greengage and the Pear ) .

But keep an eye on your car!