Worcestershire is renowned worldwide for growing fruit, but now an entrepreneur has brought a new crop to the scene; the juneberry.

Pershore Junberry Gin Liqueur | The New Berry On The Block

Sophie Sidaway launched Pershore Juneberries in 2015 and is currently the only person in the UK growing the plants commercially. She recently launched a new and delicious liqueur, Pershore Juneberry Gin, which benefits from the fruit’s distinctive flavour of cherries and almond, similar to that of Bakewell tart.

Juneberries come from Canada and are also known as saskatoons. There is a city named after them in Saskatchewan. The fruits resemble blueberries but are actually related to apples.

Every berry is grown and harvested at the Pershore Juneberries plantation in the Vale of Evesham. They are then steeped in gin and processed in small batches for a distinctive artisan product which makes an excellent gift and is always a talking point.

Sophie has a gardening background but honed her skills as a mature student of Pershore Horticultural College. With college support, she gained a grant to go and meet growers in Canada and import 300 young trees.

“It was really interesting learning about juneberries and how the First Nations people of Canada and North America have used them,” says Sophie. “They have quite a health following over there.”

Pershore Juneberry Gin, 19.9% alcohol by volume, is on sale through Amazon.

Pershore Juneberries, tel 07783 466782, email info@juneberries.co.uk website www.juneberries.co.uk Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @juneberriesUK