there’s a nice crop of elderberries and blackberry in my hedge, anyone have any nice tried recipes to make wine from them with – or any advice?

tried both. I found the elderberry wine a bit ‘earthy’ for my palate but the blackberry wine was excellent.

I just mashed up the blackberries, strained most of the bits and added sugar/water till the SG was about 1050 the added a red wine yeast to the demijohn. air locked and left for a couple of months. fined and bottled and drunk next summer.

I tried it again the next year and it was cack – dunno what I did wrong but suspect something wasn’t clean enough and ruined the batch. Made blackberry & apple crumble since then – its a more immediate win!

I made elderberry and damson wine in 2012. It seemed OK, fairly “winelike”

I scalded the fruit with boiling water and once cooled a bit squooshed the mash by hand.

As above dont forget your campden tablets to clean everything properly and to kill and natural yeasts before adding your wine yeast,

Im not making any this year but will be making some perry. Our 2012 was amazing. really hoping we can repeat it.

In fact the other day I brought one of the last bottles of the Damson & Elderberry in from the garage. It’s right here….let me just open it and I can give you the 2014 tasting notes 😉

Colour: Damson & elderberry wine coloured
Nose: A whiff of white spirit in a cloud of Benylin. Smells promising.
Taste: A whoosh of Benylin in a storm of white spirit. Christ that’s strong.
Aftertaste: Petrol-flavoured Rowntree Fruit Pastilles. Jeeeezuss!

It might grown on me.

stoner

I gave up making wine after i realised i was getting a hint of boot polish and cough mixture in my red wine. It was only when i had articulated the tastes emerging from the bouquet that I realised it really was a bit shit.

aye. I havent made any since.

Except the perry. that was a winner – tasted as good as an upper Loire Sauvignan Blanc. Hence why having another crack at this year.