Sloe Gin Fizz

Another hot day calls for another fizzy cocktail and while there are plenty of fizzy, club soda cocktails none is more classic than the Sloe Gin Fizz.

Until recently I didn’t know what Sloe Gin was. I honestly thought it was just a different brand of gin. But then I bought a bottle and discovered that they’re nothing alike. Gin is a clear spirit made from juniper berries and has a distinct herbal flavor. While sloe gin does have gin in it, the main ingredient are sloe berries which are purple berries that grow wild all over England. Never heard of the sloe berry? I’m not surprised. The sloe berry is not a pleasant tasting berry but since they’re everywhere, the Brits found a use for them: they started soaking them in gin with a little sugar. The result was a red liqueur that’s tart, but has a delicious flavor.

Originally sloe gin was imbibed warm during the winter months. But then the Americans got ahold of it and turned that classic hot winter drink into a fizzy summer cocktail. While I have no idea who the first American was to convert sloe gin into a cool summer drink, I do know that New Orleans is considered the Sloe Gin Fizz’s home. It can also be found in several classic cocktail books and was even written about in Esquire in 1941.

Since both the cocktail and the liqueur are over 75 years old, I’d say it definitely qualifies as a classic. The good news is since it’s still exceedingly hot, there’s plenty of time to enjoy this wonderful American summer cocktail, and if you can find Plymouth Sloe Gin all the better.

Sloe Gin Fizz

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 oz. sloe gin
• 1/2 oz. gin
• 3/4 oz. lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 egg white
• club soda

Directions:

1. Combine the sloe gin, gin, lemon juice, sugar and egg white in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake vigorously for at least a minute.
2. Strain into a highball glass filled with ice. Top off with club soda and serve.