My first foraging attempt

[Kezz]

If they're damsons they're small then surely? I thought damsons would be a bit bigger, the biggest ones were as big as my thumb nail (less than an inch)

[jannie]

Mine were that sort of size too Kezz. I thought Damsons were mean't to be bigger but I am so new to this I've got alot to learn.

[Millymollymandy]

My damsons are that size but if you google you will see all sorts of shapes and sizes, rather the same as bullace - some say a bullace is just another name for a damson, some reckon they are different shape. It is a bit of a minefield and probably rather regional as well. But Kezz if you didn't taste really, really bitter then I don't (personally ) think it's a sloe, cos you'd just know!

[MKG]

I'm with MMM. If you bite a sloe, your face will make a serious attempt to turn inside out. It isn't just sour - it's extreme sourness and bitterness which makes your lips turn into the smallest possible circle. If you didn't get that but just thought "Oh, that's a bit sour", it wasn't a sloe you bit.

But ... with sugar added, sloe is the most marvellous flavour.

Mike

[oldjerry]

The third phot looks to me like a hand,some dark blue fruit,and some serious thorns,so are they damsons???...

[Kezz]

Well I had another nibble of one before I chucked them in the freezer, I'm sticking with my first description of "grape-ish" in flavour, the juice was intense and made my mouth go super dry, but I still wouldn't say they were sour...

[Millymollymandy]

I thought the thorn like thing was a branch - it's not very clear or close up. Maybe we have discovered the world's first person who can eat raw sloes - Kezz! Cos most folk (well me anyway) would never bite into a sloe twice. Maybe it's a mix of the two - stranger things have happened in nature.

[jannie]

Maybe what i found was sloes then as they tasted really really horrible, definately not something I would want to eat raw.
There was another tree nearby though and the fruit was a little different and tasted sour but bearable, i think i have a mix of the 2 but i'm sure that wont matter.