I started making my own Sloe Gin some forty-plus years ago and took great pride in the preparation and pricking of the berries, selection of my gin, and the right amount of sugar. Then followed the six-month seasoning in a cool dark cupboard before the gentle decanting back into bottles followed by further maturation in the same dark cupboard. Most folk seldom have the self-control to wait very long before succumbing to the temptation to sample their efforts. Most commercial Sloe gins are probably sold at this point with variable degrees of quality. I have to confess that this offering does hold its head up high, as it has a distinctive flavour without being gauche or "in-your-face". Now that I no longer have ready access to a source of Sloe berries to make my own, I am very happy to be supplied by Sloe Boat. This offering beats many of its competitors.
For those of you with self-control, I am sure that this will keep very well if stored properly and over the years will eventually acquire a pale straw colour with a smoothness to match the best of our highland spirits. I have done this with my own brews and still have a bottle from all those years ago that only comes out on very special occasions. I, therefore, plan to lay a couple of these down and see how they are in a number of years.