Gin · Explainer
What is sloe gin?
Sloe gin is a liqueur of sloes in gin. Regulation (EU) 2019/787 gives it its own place, category 35, with a minimum of 25% alcohol against 37.5% for ordinary gin. The sloes are macerated in gin, sloe juice may be added, and only natural flavouring substances and flavouring preparations are permitted.
In brief
The key figures
| Place in the regulation | Category 35, sloe gin |
|---|---|
| Legal category | Liqueur |
| Base drink | Gin |
| Fruit | Sloe, the fruit of the blackthorn |
| Method | Maceration of sloes in gin |
| Permitted addition | Sloe juice |
| Minimum alcohol content | 25% vol |
| Minimum alcohol content of ordinary gin | 37.5% vol |
Is sloe gin a gin or a liqueur?
Under Regulation (EU) 2019/787, sloe gin is a liqueur with gin as its base. It has its own category, number 35, separate from the three classes of gin.
The regulation expressly allows the legal name to be supplemented with the term liqueur. On the label you may therefore come across both sloe gin and sloe gin liqueur; both are correct. What is not allowed is selling sloe gin under the name gin.
What is the minimum alcohol content of sloe gin?
Twenty-five per cent. Regulation (EU) 2019/787 sets a minimum of 25% vol for sloe gin, while gin, distilled gin and London gin must contain at least 37.5% vol.
The regulation names only that minimum and no maximum. What is actually in the bottle is stated on the label and differs by brand.
How is sloe gin made?
By steeping sloes in gin. The regulation names maceration as the method, allows sloe juice to be added, and permits only natural flavouring substances and flavouring preparations.
Maceration means the fruit stays in the gin until colour, flavour and acidity have passed into it. In British home preparation the sloes are picked late in the season, pricked and put into gin with sugar, after which the bottle is put away for months. Artificial flavourings are not permitted in sloe gin.
How does sloe gin differ from pacharan?
Pacharan does not start from gin. For it, Regulation (EU) 2019/787 has category 32, spirit drink flavoured with sloe, likewise with a minimum of 25% vol.
The difference lies in the base. For sloe gin that base is by definition gin, so a drink in which juniper predominates. For pacharan, the Spanish and Navarrese variant, that is not required.
Is sugar allowed in sloe gin?
Yes. Sloe gin is a liqueur, and sweetening is part of that. The category text for sloe gin itself names no minimum or maximum for the sugar content.
What the regulation does pin down for sloe gin is the flavour side: only natural flavouring substances and flavouring preparations. If you want to know how sweet a bottle is, check the maker's product information; the sugar content is not mandatory on the label.
Which gin categories does the European regulation recognise?
Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2019/787 covers gin, distilled gin and London gin, each with at least 37.5 per cent alcohol, plus sloe gin and pacharan with at least 25 per cent.
Gin may be flavoured after distillation. Distilled gin is distilled from alcohol of at least 96 per cent in the presence of juniper berries. London gin is the strictest form: all flavour comes from that one distillation, the distillate is at least 70 per cent, colouring is prohibited and it may contain at most 0.1 grams of sweetening per litre.
Sloe gin and pacharan are separate from those three. Both rely on sloes and both may be bottled from 25 per cent alcohol, because sugar and fruit juice are added, which lower the percentage.
From the shop in Bathmen
Sloe gin in the shop in Bathmen
The shop in Bathmen has 6 bottles with sloe on the label, from 5 different brands in 5 countries. The alcohol content ranges from 26% to 30%.
- Berkshire Botanical Sloe Gin 28% · 50 cl · England
- Hayman's Sloe Gin 26% · 70 cl · England
- Nusbaumer Jos'Berri Sloe Gin 30% · 50 cl · France
- Pickering's Sloe Gin 29% · 50 cl · Scotland
- Rammstein Sloe Gin 27% · 70 cl · Germany
- Rutte Sloe Gin 30% · 70 cl · Netherlands
Related questions
Which garnish goes with which gin?Which gin do you use for a gin and tonic?Which gin would you give as a gift?
Short answer
Short answers to related questions
- What are sloes?
- The small blue fruits of the blackthorn, a thorny shrub that grows in hedges and hedgerows.
- May sloe gin simply be called gin?
- No. Gin and sloe gin are separate categories in the regulation, each with its own requirements. Sloe gin is a liqueur.
- Why does the label often also say liqueur?
- Because the regulation allows the legal name sloe gin to be supplemented with the term liqueur.
- Why does sloe gin have less alcohol than gin?
- The regulation sets a minimum of 25% vol for sloe gin and 37.5% vol for gin.
The reasoning
Sources
- Regulation (EU) 2019/787 on spirit drinks, EUR-Lex (accessed 4 September 2026)
- Annex I, category 32 and category 35, The National Archives, official text as adopted (accessed 4 September 2026)
- Gin Navigator: gin, production and designated categories, The Gin Guild (accessed 4 September 2026)
Deze pagina is geschreven en gecontroleerd door ’t Bockje Bathmen, slijterij aan de Brink 2 in Bathmen. Laatst bijgewerkt op 30 oktober 2026.
Verkoop van alcohol onder de 18 jaar is verboden. NIX18.