The Playscheme is bordered on one side by lots of red brick council houses with steel frames hidden beneath the brickwork. One such house was the scene of one the most exciting, yet dangerous, house parties I ever attended back in the summer of 2009.
Nine years on I found the Playscheme and the Council Houses to be separated by thick hedges containing wild Sloe Berries. These wild berries prove a fantastic ingredient for festive Sloe Gin and with some foresight I was inspired to procure fifteen ounces of them from a local source.
When the Dogg and I returned home I stuck onto the player Jethro Tull's difficult yet rewarding effort "A Passion Play". If you want to tackle this album then why not have a listen at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZFlq3zQhQ0
It's an album that was willfully obscure in terms of the concept behind it and the lyrics. However it contains some of the band's best playing and strong musical themes even if the interlude, which sounds like it was meant to emulate Monty Python, "The Story of the Hare Who Lost His Spectacles" can grate a little after several listens. Nevertheless like all the best albums you hear something new every time you listen to it.
I took a one litre plastic bottle and added the Sloes to it with five ounces of Caster Sugar and two thirds of a litre of Gin. I screwed on the bottle cap very tightly and shook the contents well. I then left it for three months and two weeks, in the back of one of my kitchen cupboards, apart from making sure I shook the bottle once every week or two weeks and then replacing it back in the cupboard.
I also made some Elderberry Gin by taking six Ounces of local elderberries and added them to a half a litre plastic bottle with three ounces of caster sugar and one third of a litre of Gin. I stored this bottle of Gin for the same time and in the same manner as the Sloe Gin.
When the Gin was opened it was the Christmas Holidays. After bottling it up in September I had returned briefly to the North Country to take the ashes of a close relative back home. Then after closing that part of the book I had achieved three big victories in my professional life and been partying and socialising non-stop since the start of the month. I was a lucky man to have done all this. The holiday season and the month of December had reminded me of the many good people in my life.
As I type this I've got Mike Oldfield's 1982 record "Five Miles Out" on the player. It's a record that shows how an artist who had been requested by his label to make a 'pop' album was able to come up with something that ticked that box while still having one track that is a twenty-four minute opus as well as two big hit singles. It is a good metaphor for life in the sense that; you should be sure you have plenty of memorable moments that you can share with many others but don't forget to create things that are uniquely yours. Have a butchers at this album and then, if you like it, buy it to support the artist. Here's a link to the record: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAiEZhVPekI&list=PLfimnwaZdumhjRFkLSiHSB0y9ag5XJUw5
The Sloe Gin was tested on my Dad at the inaugural family Boxing Day Gathering at my home. Although he's usually a beer and whisky fan he enjoyed the Gin and it contributed to many new memories that were made that evening on what could have been a day of melancholy for the family.
The girlfriend of a very good friend of mine also thought the Sloe Gin was a hit when the pair of them visited me the day after Boxing Day. As she is a genuine connoisseur of Gin this was a great compliment that was as kind as the wonderful Christmas Presents they presented to me on their visit.
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| Sloe Gin with some Tonic, Juniper Berries and a Lemon |
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| The Dogg looks on as I prepare to sup a glass of Elderberry Gin |
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