We began the process on 23 Dec. We took our lantern and materials out to a place in the forest, where we went around tasting evergreen needles of Spruce and Fir to find the tastiest one.
Once we found a tasty sprig of forest Fir, we made our gin. It’s honestly very easy. The hardest part for us was deciding which ingredients to use in our gin, as the sky is the limit!
But we had our hearts set on a very wintry flavor with hints of holiday. So to the neutral spirit (like vodka), we added:
- 2-3 tablespoons of foraged juniper berries
- the tasty sprig of foraged fir
- dried lavender from our summer garden
- a bay leaf
- a cinnamon stick
- a few peppercorns
- anise seeds
- cardamom pods
- fresh orange peel
In a large glass jar, all of these ingredients were swirled together.
Check the video above to watch me make it.
Ah, how beautiful it looked. It stayed with us in the forest all day, and then went home with us that evening.
I let it sit on our windowsill at home for four days. Perhaps even three days would have been enough, I’m not sure. On the morning of 27 Dec, I opened the bottle and was nearly knocked to my knees by the scent. Just amazing. Time to strain out the solids and taste it.
Other than the smell, the other noticeable change was the color. What was once a completely clear liquid was now a buttery caramel color. Judging by scent and sight alone, the compounds from all of our ingredients had clearly been infused into the spirit.
After it was strained and bottled up (in a reused bottle from Stockholms Bränneri, a local gin that we really enjoy), we tasted and were very pleased. It was far better than we even expected. I didn’t think that we’d get such an enjoyable result on our first attempt. It’s not perfect, and we did learn a few things, and we will take our learnings into the next attempt.
Maybe a spring herb spirt? A summer flower one? Autumn berry gin?
This was super fun, very easy, and even quick (when compared to infusing oils for skincare products anyway). It’s something that my partner and I can enjoy together, and that we have been able to share with all the lovely friends we’ve met throughout the holidays.
Because the gin has so much flavor, I recommend drinking it straight up or simply mixed with tonic. Or perhaps you have another idea for a drink we could make with our winter gin? Have you ever tried making gin? Or want to try? I’m taking all tips, as this is very new territory for me.
Also, happy 2022! Wishing us all a little more kindness and wildness this year. I reflected a little bit on instagram already, but thank you so much for all of the support and love in 2021. You inspire us so much.
xx
