Whoops! Pink Champagne Everywhere!!

We've been playing with fire and we knew it... today we had our first casualty of the lively pink stuff, one bottle finally slipped its leash!! Yup, popped its cork of its own accord, all over the kitchen. Another of its buddies was straining at the wire so we decided to let it go too, Guy uncorking and me with jug at the ready. An operation that we've had down pat the last few times and barely spilled a drop. I'm not quite sure what happened this time but a second later and Guy and I, and the walls, ceiling, floor etc, were dripping in sticky sweet elderflower. Whoops!!

The ferocity of the bang was quite amazing and as a result we decided not to take any chances - the remaining 3 bottles were marched out to the garden for their uncorking ceremony! 

Off to finish mopping the walls down now!! Next time less sugar for the same effect... and we'll be sticking to the scew top lemonade bottles which are much easier to manage. Champagne corks might look cool but they're scary man!

The drinking of the pink stuff

Light, summery and giggly the pinks champers is quite a different beast to elder no.1!! It's a lively thing, don't get us wrong, and needs careful opening (must pay some good attention to that little problem) but once in captivity it's delightfully tame and awfully drinkable!

We've had it out and about for some social drinking in the last week - carefully transported in its special insulated carry case complete with Guy's old dressing gown and plenty of gaffa tape. Its not that we don't trust it you understand, but really you can never be too careful! A few bottles are straining at the seams so probably best drunk and enjoyed young.

Its going down really well though. Probably about 3 or 4% alcohol. Nice to see it being appreciated :o)

We're bottling baby!

Yeeha, check this out!! This morning we've washed bottles, stripped labels, steralised all surfaces, bottles, equipment and FINALLY were ready to strain the liquid off the fruit and flowers and bottle the stuff. We poured it through muslin into a clean container and then syphoned it into the bottles... easier said than done... I have a kitchen floor to clean after I've written this entry! However there was still plenty made it into the bottles to make 11 x champagne bottles, 2 x swing tops, 4 x 2 litre pop bottles and 1 x 1 litre pop bottles - all full of our very pink champagne! Oh and just enough for 2 little glasses for us to taste our hard work...

 

Tasting notes:

mmmmm!! Its another very sweet elderflowery brew, perhaps a little too sweet but hopefully this will fade at least a bit as it ages in the bottles. Hearteningly it has the first beginnings of fizz, can't wait to see how it develops. 

Pink Elderflower Champagne Recipe

Pink Elderflower Champagne 
makes 24 x 75cl bottles 

Ingredients

• 12 heads of elderflower in full bloom
• 2 pints blackcurrents, fresh or thawed
• 8 tbsp wine vinegar
• 2720g white sugar
• 32 pints / 18.4 litres cold water
  

24 champagne or sparkling wine bottles
plus corks and wires 

Cut the large stems from the heads of elderflower and put the blossoms in a sufficiently large bowl or bucket. Add the blackcurrents, the vinegar and the sugar. Pour in the cold water and stir well. Cover the bowl with a cloth and set aside for 24 hours, stirring the mixture from time to time to release the juice from the fruit.
Next day, strain the liquid into the bottles, and cork and wire them securely. Store the bottles on their sides in a cool, dark place for 2-3 weeks. The wine is ready when the corks start to rise in the wires.

Monster brew session!!

Tonight was the night for setting off our new brew experiments before the elderflower season is over for another year - as well as tending to no. 1 which has been brewing now for a week.

Elderflower Champagne no. 1 measured Specific Gravity 1.055, higher than we were expecting to be honest but it was still bubbling away so obviously still fermenting, and smelled fab! We decided to take it off the elferflowers etc. but leave it to ferment out a little more. A cheeky taste was strongly elderflower, quite sweet but very drinkable :o) Piccy above

We also put to brew our version of an Elderflower and gooseberry sparkling recipe adapted from a Truman recipe, details below, 1 gallon split between two demi johns as we're out of fermenting tubs.

After yesterdays pink champagne we also brewed up 24 litres of elder and summer fruit with mixed summer fruits of raspberry, blackberry, black and redcurrant substituting the pure blackcurrant the recipe called for. Its racked off and bottled real soon with no added yeast to hopefully become a low alcohol but very drinkable summer brew ready in 3 weeks!

All that brewing and its got very late... phew! We must be committed to the cause ;o)