Cider

[Treehugger]

Hubby and I cracked open our first bottle of home made cider last night and have to say that it was very nice. Well worth the labour intensive process of making it.
Has anyone else made any home brew or such like and was it successful?
We has to throw our Goosegog wine away as it went brown - yuck! The elderberry and blackberry wine, however, is delicious - very 'Porty' if that makes sense?
As for the Sloe Gin - mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm :)
(Gosh, I've just read this back and we sound like complete suphs! Beats buying it though!)

[franbee]

Blackberry wine seems to be one of the best, my parents used to make it, and I think cowslip, but I don't think you're allowed to pick them now?

[dragonfly]

I used to make wine years ago, elderberry, blackberry, rhubarb. The only failure I had was rosehip, it was like vinegar and I had to throw it away. The last couple of years I have made elderberry cordial which I drink hot through the winter as I don't like tea or coffee. I have been thinking of making wine again.

[baab95]

My parents used to make ginger beer when I was a youngster - although it was very morish, we did have a few exploding bottles over the years!

[Crocus]

Hhhmmmm, lovely gingerbeer! My mum used to put raisens in and then just strained it off after a few hours. Exploding bottles I know all about, not to mention the mess ...

[Treehugger]

Gosh, I haven't had gingerbeer for years - yum!

[Crocus]

Me neither TH, perhaps time to make some! I'll have to dig up my mum's recipe from somewhere though. I think I must go and have a look this minute .......:cool:

[Treehugger]

Oooh, can you post a copy here Crocus so I can have a go too?

[Crocus]

I'll do so TH - first have to find it though! I'll post it under the "Recipe Book" heading. xx

[Clunkshift]

I once made 2 gallons of blackberry and blackcurrant wine. I racked it off and stored it under the stairs. Then I married and left home and my parents presented it to me about 6 years later - it had some sediment but tasted like a good Madeira (not that I would know what that tastes like of course).
I made a rule not to use any ingredient that I wouldn't consume in its natural state, so my one big failure was banana wine, which stayed cloudy and was never even bottled.

[Crocus]

Don't think I will be able to drink banana wine......... and are still searching for my mum's ginger beer recipe ....... x

[baab95]

Looking forward to the recipe Crocus!

[bonnie]

I was shown how to make pucheen once but we won't go there.

[Crocus]

GINGER BEER RECIPE


INGREDIENTS

11 litre water
7 cups sugar
1 cup raisins
3 table spoons ground ginger
(10g) instant yeast
1 teaspoon tartaric acid
1 packet (1 table spoon) cream of tartar

METHOD:

8. Boil 3 litres of the water, the sugar, ginger and the raisins etc. together (±15 min).

9. Add the boiled mixture to the balance of the water (8 litres).

10. Add the yeast, tartaric acid and cream of tartar.

11. Stir well.

12. Leave to ferment until all / most of the raisins etc. float on top of the beer.

13. Pour through cheese cloth or clean towel into plastic bottles.

14. Keep refrigerated in open bottles (the fermentation can burst glass bottles).

[Treehugger]

Ooooh yum - thanks C. I'll have a go at it this weekend.

[Crocus]

Hi TH, enjoy! I must make some as well while it's so very hot here! x

[jazzactivist]

I'll have a go too, crocus. I can remember one of our neighbours making gallons of ginger beer when I lived in Cape Town. I don't know how she did it, but she used to ring the changes by starting it off with different types of fruit. There were always saucers of grapefruit skins, pineapple slices and cut oranges fizzing away on her windowsill.

We hardly ever drink alcohol when we're out, and aren't house drinkers either, so I only make sloe vodka or elderberry wine if I am planning to give most of it away. A friend of ours makes apple brandy which is truly lovely on desserts.

[Crocus]

I remember my mum once got very ill after drinking ginger beer and Mr C as well, so I haven't made it in years. I usually only put raisins in, no other fruit or pineapple skins etc. x

[souter girl]

When I was a child everybody had a ginger beer plant - does anybody remember them? You kept this gurgling thing in the kitchen and every so often you had to divide it and give half of it away. Of course it got to the point where everybody had one already and nobody wanted another! My Uncle Jim kept his bottles (once he had made the beer,) in the strongroom of the bank where he was Manager. One night he had a call from the police to say an explosion had been heard in the bank and they were afraid burglars had broken in, so off he went, unlocked it and was his face red when all he and the police found was some broken bottles and a strong smell of alcohol from ginger beer-sodden bank notes!!

[Crocus]

Oh no SG! I wonder what they did with the notes! Gingerbeer was the cause of quite a few explosions in my youth as well. My sister had bottles explode in her grocery cupboard which was quite a mess as well. Perhaps one should stay clear of making ginger beer .........

[souter girl]

I tried to read this thread at school today (I know I should have been working, but hey) and the computer banned that page as it might contain "pornography, drugs or alcohol!!!"
I hadn't realised ginger beer was either so addictive, an illegal substance or naughty!!

[Crocus]

Wow, me neither SG! Seems we'll have to give gingerbeer a rethink! :eek: Or you'll have to "educate" your computer to know the difference ....;)

[Treehugger]

I am probably being very silly here C, but is it actually alcoholic?

[Crocus]

Hi TH, it does contain yeast and ginger, but no I don't think is alcoholic as such, although once (was still in my teens) I had two glasses of the stuff almost in one go, and my head didn't feel completely my own afterwards !:o:eek::D Oh dear .....

[TIGGYWINKLE]

Someone advised me to put ginger beer in plastic bottles, and open it outside.