Elderflowers?

misskool

no elderflowers yet in SE, don't get confused with rowan.

gardenroute

It might be elder, but the wayfaring tree (viburnum lantana) has a similar flower and is in bloom now. Elder foliage smells slightly unpleasant and the bark is distinctive as well - light brown with lenticels (look like small bumps). The older stems are hollow.

lostinrates

they are in bud and ready to pop here (I'm in wiltshire) but not yet open.

Kantankrus_Mare

I would like to have a go at some elder flower champagne.

Think I saw Hugh Fearnley thingamybob making some on his programme last year but need to find some bottles with those popper things on the top.

cootambear

Kantankrus_Mare wrote: »

I would like to have a go at some elder flower champagne.

Think I saw Hugh Fearnley thingamybob making some on his programme last year but need to find some bottles with those popper things on the top.

you can use screw top cider, pop bottles, etc

Dustykitten

Not confusing them with cow parsley/queen anne lace are you - Elderflower is a large shrub/tree. cow parsley is only a couple of feet high and is not shrubby.



Cow Parsley



Elder

lufoo7

in peterborough they are still in bud but went to my dads in lincoln (approx 60 miles further north) and they were in full bloom which i thought was strange.

made elderflower champagne last year in pop bottles, it worked really well but you do have to remember to release the fizz every week, i did have one explode, but it did make the hallway smell really nice!

floyd

I would also recommend using plastic pop bottles as they give you a much earlier warning that you need to burp the bottles (release a little gas) as you can feel them becoming rigid. I have read far too many accounts of people finding glass embedded in their kitchen ceilings and shed doors to ever consider using glass bottles of any description. Due to the natural variations in yeast it can be unpredictable, even the swing top brewers bottles and champagne bottles can explode so stick to plastic

I have a batch on the go now that I made using flowers from last year that I kept in a polythene bag in the freezer, needed a little more steeping time in the bucket but seems to be plopping away happily outside.

Make sure you use the newer HFW recipe as there is an older one doing the rounds on the internet that has far too much sugar in it which increases your chances of redecorating your entire house with fizz. This is the correct ratio with 700g sugar http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/chefs/hugh-fearnley-whittingstall/elderflower-champagne-recipe#comments-top

Horace

No Elderflowers out yet but there is tons of cow parsley in flower at the mo, it is a bit too early for Elderflowers still.

I can remember Mum making some elderflower lemonade when I was a kid although I was banned from drinking it when I started to stagger around because it had fermented. Some bottles exploded and I know that Dad found one lurking in the back of the garage last year, unopened where it had been sitting for the last 40 years - he left it where it was because I don't think it will taste that nice now.:eek:

cootambear

floyd wrote: »

I would also recommend using plastic pop bottles as they give you a much earlier warning that you need to burp the bottles (release a little gas) as you can feel them becoming rigid. I have read far too many accounts of people finding glass embedded in their kitchen ceilings and shed doors to ever consider using glass bottles of any description. Due to the natural variations in yeast it can be unpredictable, even the swing top brewers bottles and champagne bottles can explode so stick to plastic

I have a batch on the go now that I made using flowers from last year that I kept in a polythene bag in the freezer, needed a little more steeping time in the bucket but seems to be plopping away happily outside.

Make sure you use the newer HFW recipe as there is an older one doing the rounds on the internet that has far too much sugar in it which increases your chances of redecorating your entire house with fizz. This is the correct ratio with 700g sugar http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/chefs/hugh-fearnley-whittingstall/elderflower-champagne-recipe#comments-top

I have heard of the fire brigade being called to people houses to deal with exploding glass bottles.