Whitley Neill Quince Gin 70cl

Product Information

Sweet soft-fleshed quince and blue-veined cheese – a small jump from that other sublime partnership, ripe pears with roquefort.

A small jump from pears with roquefort: quince and panettone pudding. Photograph: Jonathan Lovekin/Observer How to store: If your bottles or jars are well sealed, strained correctly and kept in a cool, dark place, your spirits can keep for up to a year. Whitley Neill Quince Gin is a flavored gin that adds quince and sweetening after distillation. The color is a bit neon yellow poured from the bottle, which reads a bit as Mountain Dew and yellow #5. Tasting Notes On entry, the palate has a fair viscosity. Early, it has a syrupy sweetness for me that reminds me of the juice from canned pears (in heavy syrup). Tart citrus rounds things out. Mid-palate there’s slight hints of green juniper and a touch of baking spice. The finish is long and sweet, with rich notes of pear syrup and candy. It’s not cloying, but Whitley Neill Quince Gin is sweet.Seal your bottle and decorate it with a nice label if you’re giving it as a gift. I’ve called this gin “Two Quinces” after the 1992 Spin Doctors song, you’re welcome. I liked Whitley Neill Quince Gin in a Gin and Tonic, but I did find it a touch too sweet if using a tonic water like Schweppes for example. Paired with a less sweet tonic water, Whitley Neill Quince Gin adds more and the end result is actually quite beautiful. It’s sweet, with apple and pear facets and a pleasant bitter finish. You really have to look for the juniper there, but it’s a good drink in its own right. Try a Gin and Soda for an easier party pour that keeps the quince and gin character at the fore. Overall, Whitley Neill Quince Gin To sterilise your jars and bottles, put your clean jars in a low oven for at least half an hour. Carefully remove your jars from the oven (they will be incredibly hot) and allow them to cool down a little. The aroma of fresh stone fruits appears immediately, gently followed by hints of juniper and citrus zest. The distinctive flavour of quince dominates the palate, giving way to the sweetness of apricots and peaches, with a long, fruity finish that opens out into orange blossoms and zesty grapefruits.

We have a quince tree in our garden, so most autumns we are blessed with a fairly decent crop of fruit. Most of this goes towards making quince jelly, which is excellent with cheese, but this year I put aside two nice big quinces for ginning with. It’s simple to do, you just need patience. How to make your own Quince Gin You will need:

Overall, Whitley Neill Quince Gin

Chop up your two clean quinces as small as you can be bothered to do. I removed the small core and the pips. Once they’re all chopped up, add them to your large jar and top up with 30g of sugar. Put the lid on your jar and give it a good shake. Quince Gin, or any fruit flavoured gin is really easy to do, you just need a big jar, some fruit, a bit of sugar, gin and some time.

Once it has been baked or poached, the flesh becomes soft and almost Turkish delight-like. A quince in this state will benefit from a crisp crust. Best so far has been a crumble, rough as pebbledash, where I tossed together flour, butter, almonds and breadcrumbs and sweetened it with light, butterscotch-scented muscovado.

Place a large heavy-based cooking pot over a low heat and tip in the cubed quince, the caster sugar, 250ml of water and the remaining half of the lemon. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat so the quince simmers very gently. Partially cover with a lid. Let the fruit cook for about 40 minutes, during which time it will change colour to glowing yellow-pink. Stir the mixture regularly to make sure it doesn’t catch and burn. There should be quite a bit of syrup. If I had a box of fruits appear on my doorstep, I would certainly have a go at making quince jelly to eat with cheese. And I wouldn’t stop at the firm Spanish cheeses that this slightly gritty amber spread traditionally accompanies. The sweet paste shines with goat’s cheeses and blues alike. I like the idea of making a tiny parcel of blue cheese, wrapping it in pastry and serving it with membrillo, as quince paste is known, on the side. Put the jar to one side, making sure you shake the jar every few days. Leave the quince to sit in the gin for 3-6 weeks.