I usually use this time of year to make sloe vodka, probably down to my Danish roots as I don't really like gin. It's easy and thanks to the recipe I got from this site very tasty. 3 litres last the whole year when I'm ready for the next batch. But I'm unable to this year as I can find no sloes. The usual place I go produced about 3 berries instead of the 2 Kg I would usually pick for 30 mins of work. I've been looking around my local area to no avail. I'm not sure what is eating them or whether it's down to a lack of bees to pollinate them in the spring but I just can't find any. I could pick all the ones I find but that leaves nothing for the wild creatures to fatten up with. So does anyone out there have an alternative or shall I just cheat and make it up with 1 part ribena to 2 parts vodka? I'm thinking plums or damsons for now but input from any masters of the art would be appreciated.