Just made this with my own homemade sloe gin. The sharpness of the gin and the lime juice work harmoniously, the Fernet adds herbal complexity, and the honey syrup brings out an almost peppery finish. Very nice indeed.

Ooh, this is a great Xmas drink - all berries and marzipan flavours. I've just decanted off this year's sloe gin especially to make it (we had an incredible crop of blackthorn fruit in Cumbria, UK, this year).

I wonder how often new riffs on drinks are the result of 'running out'? I know it has made me push the envelope - "necessity is the mother of invention" and all that.

Out of rye at the moment, so I just made this with double the bourbon and replaced the rye measure with a half-measure of a smoky single malt. Also halved the Suze (I do love it, but it's rather domineering). The result was reminiscent of a boozy whisky marmalade - very nice, it'll do until I get a restock!