Posted: Thu Mar 24, 05 1:37 pm Post subject: Herb and Flower Wines
I just bashed out the first half of an article on herb and flower wines. It now needs some recipes added, I thought I'd incude recipes for, say, half a dozen or so different wines.
Any requests?
Treacodactyl Downsizer Moderator
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 25795 Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism
Posted: Thu Mar 24, 05 2:06 pm Post subject:
Do you have any that only require flowers? I'm often disappointed with recipes that take a few flowers or fruit and add two lemons, two oranges and a few pounds of sultanas.
jema Downsizer Moderator
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 28242 Location: escaped from Swindon
Posted: Thu Mar 24, 05 2:11 pm Post subject:
Here is a daft question on elderflower wine, if I grab the flowers am I effecting the elderberry crop?
Yes, the crop is affected; each flower has the potential to becmoe a berry, so a tree must never be stripped of flowers, or there will be no berries for the birds or the wine making.
The reason dried fruit is added to herb and flower wines is to add body to the wine;: it would be very thin and lacking without it, also the citrus fruit. Not worth making without the additions, I think.
Here is a daft question on elderflower wine, if I grab the flowers am I effecting the elderberry crop?
Kind of. It's like pruning out the ends of gooseberry shoots like many people do, you've got less fruit but you're aiming at an earlier and better crop. For most of us the elder is so plentiful that it doesn't matter.
Do you have any that only require flowers? I'm often disappointed with recipes that take a few flowers or fruit and add two lemons, two oranges and a few pounds of sultanas.
You can make a flower or herb wine without extra fruit but you might be lacking in body. I'll include a trick for getting around that. As for citrus, you do need to get a bit of acid in; lemon juice or citric acid is pretty damned useful.
jema Downsizer Moderator
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 28242 Location: escaped from Swindon
Posted: Thu Mar 24, 05 2:25 pm Post subject:
cab wrote:
jema wrote:
Here is a daft question on elderflower wine, if I grab the flowers am I effecting the elderberry crop?
Kind of. It's like pruning out the ends of gooseberry shoots like many people do, you've got less fruit but you're aiming at an earlier and better crop. For most of us the elder is so plentiful that it doesn't matter.
It is pretty plentiful here, but I think I'd rather keep it that way ....
Blacksmith
Joined: 25 Jan 2005 Posts: 5025 Location: Berkshire
Posted: Thu Mar 24, 05 2:38 pm Post subject:
Just off to pick some gorse flowers, was going to use Berrys recipie
unless you know of a better one ?
Dave
It is pretty plentiful here, but I think I'd rather keep it that way ....
Elder is a weed. In most places you no more need to worry about affecting its numbers than you have to worry about picking dandelions. I pull up elder seedlings a dozen times a year in my garden, and the neares elder tree is fifty yards away!
jema Downsizer Moderator
Joined: 28 Oct 2004 Posts: 28242 Location: escaped from Swindon
Posted: Thu Mar 24, 05 3:05 pm Post subject:
cab wrote:
jema wrote:
It is pretty plentiful here, but I think I'd rather keep it that way ....
Elder is a weed. In most places you no more need to worry about affecting its numbers than you have to worry about picking dandelions. I pull up elder seedlings a dozen times a year in my garden, and the neares elder tree is fifty yards away!
I was referring more to keeping the berries plentiful
moggins
Joined: 24 Feb 2005 Posts: 942 Location: Gloucester
Posted: Thu Mar 24, 05 3:15 pm Post subject:
You just can't kill elder off, every year I have to cut down the one that grows right in front of my back gate and the one that is growing through my lean to wall is very annoying but quite pretty
A quart of flwoers or leaves is a two pint jug filled so that, lightly pressed, the level of the flowers or leaves or whatever reaches the quart/two pint mark.
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