» Gooseberry gin

Make a tasty and tart fruit gin with gooseberries.

Three months ago, I snuck a handful of gooseberries away from the allotment and, after cutting them in half and topping and tailing them, threw them into a jam jar, covered them in gin, stirred in a tablespoon of sugar, sealed the jar and forgot about them. This weekend I tucked into the drink.

I can’t say this smells particularly good. It doesn’t, so don’t give it a good sniff before tucking into it.

But it does taste beautiful: light, sweet, tart, and slightly dry. It’s a joy to drink, especially on one of these sticky warm Indian summer evenings that have pitched up recently. In a few weeks’ time, I’ll be making sloe gin in time for Christmas.