Elderflower wine

Latest Articles

Elderflower wine
Page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Next

Downsizer Forum Index -> Recipes, Preserving, Homebrewing

Author

Message

leebu

Joined: 23 Nov 2004
Posts: 418
Location: east yorkshire

Posted: Mon May 23, 05 4:33 pm Post subject: Elderflower wine
I tried to make this last year and it was disastrous! So if anyone knows the most fool proof way of making elderflower wine without ending up with a moldy pan of lemon and flowers ( I tried the Roger Phillips recipe from Wild Food book) I'd be very grateful. Frankly it has put me off trying any other fruit/ wild flower drinks. Too traumatised. Oh, and I really mean "fool proof"!

Res

Joined: 07 Apr 2005
Posts: 1172
Location: Allotment Shed, Harlow

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 12:58 pm Post subject:

Hi leebu,

I made elderflower wine a good few years ago now and it was the best wine I have ever made, so it is well worth getting it right and enjoying a really good home made wine.

I will have to look up the recipe I used and post it for you.

I dont understand how you got a mouldy pan of ingredients, I seem to remember it was straight forward and worked fine first go. Was a pain getting off the flowers from the stalks though but I will be having anouther go this year, if I can get my act together as I have not made any wine for years, so maybe we can help each other, you being my incentive

Richard

selfsufficientish

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 364
Location: Bristol

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 1:03 pm Post subject:
Someone posted a recipe for elderflower wine recently on our forum https://www.selfsufficientish.com/Forum/about494.html - aparently it is from a book called "500 Recipes - Home Made Wines and Drinks" by Marguerite Patten, so it is worth looking out for that.

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 1:17 pm Post subject:

D'oh!

Sorry, I'm a berk.

Somehow misread your post Leebu!

How to avoid the mold...

Get the pan of liquid ingredients (sugar, water, tea, lemon juice or citric acid, yeast nutrient or grape juice, etc) really boiling. Pour that onto the flowers in a bucket that has been sterilised, cover, and wait to cool.

Get some champagne yeast activated, and pitch it in when you're ready. Make sure there's yeast nutrient present and that the yeast is well ready to go.

Basically, it's the method from the 'herb and flower wines' article. I can't swear that it's faultless, but using this method I've never had any batch go wrong;

https://www.downsizer.net/Projects/Home_Brewing/Herb_and_Flower_Wines/

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 1:38 pm Post subject:

selfsufficientish wrote:

"500 Recipes - Home Made Wines and Drinks" by Marguerite Patten, so it is worth looking out for that.

Hey, I found a much stained and ragged copy of this on TD's mum's kitchen shelves at the weekend. I had a quick thumb through it and it looked quite good. I'll have to have a proper nose next time we go down.

Res and Leebu, this could be the time to revive the Downsizer challenge idea.

Anyone else up for first time or first time in a while elderflower wine making?

Hedonists

Joined: 13 Jan 2005
Posts: 95
Location: Romford, Essex.

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 1:56 pm Post subject:

Bugs wrote:

Anyone else up for first time or first time in a while elderflower wine making?

Yeah, I'm v. interested. I've only just started making wine. Have so far brewed one gallon of carrot whisky and five gallons of Ribena(esque) wine. Now I'm very keen to have a crack at a proper country wine.

selfsufficientish

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 364
Location: Bristol

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 2:31 pm Post subject:

Bugs wrote:

Anyone else up for first time or first time in a while elderflower wine making?

In the process of making danelion (flower) wine, just a few days unill I bottle it up. Supposed to be very stong.

I have started to drink Rock's Organic cordials and the screw top bottles are perfect for home brew bottling.

Blacksmith

Joined: 25 Jan 2005
Posts: 5025
Location: Berkshire

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 3:18 pm Post subject:
Not many Elder flowers out in this area, make sure you collect them on a sunny day when the flowers are open, and they dont small "rank" Dave

judith

Joined: 16 Dec 2004
Posts: 22789
Location: Montgomeryshire

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 3:18 pm Post subject:
I would like to have a bash. How are we going to coordinate the flowering of all the elder trees across the country though? No sign of any flowers here yet.

Res

Joined: 07 Apr 2005
Posts: 1172
Location: Allotment Shed, Harlow

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 3:20 pm Post subject:

Bugs wrote:

Anyone else up for first time or first time in a while elderflower wine making?

Hi Bugs,

Yes, it will give me the necessary kick up the a*** to get motivated again after a long absence from this fun hobby.

So count me in guys

jema
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 28111
Location: escaped from Swindon

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 3:23 pm Post subject:
I am game, still worried about the effect of taking the flowers now on the berries later though?

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 3:24 pm Post subject:

Judith wrote:

I would like to have a bash. How are we going to coordinate the flowering of all the elder trees across the country though? No sign of any flowers here yet.

Not a lot of point in coordinating when the flowers and the yeast won't cooperate

But if everyone else is making elderflower, then for the record mine will either go on this weekend or a fortnight after.

Res

Joined: 07 Apr 2005
Posts: 1172
Location: Allotment Shed, Harlow

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 3:27 pm Post subject:

Judith wrote:

I would like to have a bash. How are we going to coordinate the flowering of all the elder trees across the country though? No sign of any flowers here yet.

And they dont hang arong for very long either, just a couple of weeks round here. Thats one of the reasons I've not done any. Last year I said I would start it up again after seeing the flowers come out, then when I had the time and new lot of ingredients to do it, they had all gone

So must get stuff ready now, before flowers arrive, then I've no excuse!

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 3:28 pm Post subject:

jema wrote:

I am game, still worried about the effect of taking the flowers now on the berries later though?

Why how many of your local elderberries are you going to be needing?

I'd say that it's worth spreading your picking over a wide area if you can, rather than stripping any trees.

Res

Joined: 07 Apr 2005
Posts: 1172
Location: Allotment Shed, Harlow

Posted: Tue May 24, 05 3:47 pm Post subject:

cab wrote:

I'd say that it's worth spreading your picking over a wide area if you can, rather than stripping any trees.

Yep, dont ravage the tree, save some for berries not only for you but for the blackbirds in autumn.

	Downsizer Forum Index -> Recipes, Preserving, Homebrewing	All times are GMT Page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Next
Page 1 of 5

View Latest Posts