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Choose flowers that have fully blossomed, but aren’t yet touched by brown
Don’t pick flowers that smell sickly
Don’t take too many from one source
Always remember to ask permission from the witch who inhabits the elder tree or you may be cursed.[If the tree seems grumpy, you probably shouldn’t take her flowers.]
Preparing the Elderflowers
Elderflowers are fragile and deteriorate quickly, so use them as soon as possible after picking
Shake rather than wash. Encourage any insects who may have taken up residence in the flowers to move on
Trim the stems
Equipment You Will Need
A bucket with a lid
A thermometer
Two 5-litre bottles[Or you can buy a couple of demijohns like everyone else]
An airlock for the bottles[Again, you can buy these to fit the demijohns or you can use cotton wool, cling film, and an elastic band, which is fine]
A muslin strainer or a sieve
A piece of plastic tubing about 1.5 m long
Ingredients
500 ml of elderflowers
1.5 kg white sugar
250 g raisins or sultanas, washed and lightly chopped (this gives the wine body)
½ mug strong tea, cooled (for tannin)
The juice of three lemons
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp yeast (ideally a wine yeast)
4.5 litres boiling water
What To Do
Before beginning—unless you are intentionally planning to make several bottles of vinegar—you will need to sanitise all the things. You can get sanitising solutions for this, or just use a lot of boiling water.[Or make your boyfriend do it.]Or that.
Dissolve the sugar in 500 ml of the boiling water.
Put the flowers, raisins (or sultanas), and lemon juice in the bucket.
Pour over the remaining boiling water, and then stir in the sugar solution.
Cover the bucket and wait until the temperature has dropped to 21°C.[Which could take all day if it’s hot outside.]
