Plymouth Gin gin, purportedly due to a higher than usual proportion of root ingredients, which bring a more 'earthy' feel to the gin as well as a softened juniper flavour. There is also a 'navy strength' variety which is 57% ABV (100° English proof), being the traditional strength demanded by the British Royal Navy. <ref name="http://www.plymouthgin.com"></ref> A 47% ABV (94 U.S. proof) version is distributed worldwide. Plymouth also produces a sloe gin, but has discontinued its Fruit cups and Damson liqueur. Gin, originally being a relatively cheap alcoholic beverage, was bought by the poor and caused considerable social problems, illustrated by the
Sloe gin ginger beer or ginger ale. In Japan, a similar liqueur called "umeshu" is made by steeping whole Japanese apricots ("ume") and sugar in "shōchū", a spirit made from distilled rice wine. Sloe gin Sloe gin is a red liqueur made with gin and sloe (blackthorn) drupes, which are a small fruit relative of the plum. Sloe gin has an alcohol content between 15 and 30 percent by volume. However, the European Union has established a minimum of 25% ABV for sloe gin to be named as such. The traditional way of making sloe gin is to soak the sloes in