Tag Archives: raspberry

Hobbit Hombrew: Decanting Day-Festive Finale

Remember, please drink this responsibly. I have also had intermittent parental supervision as they wondered I was doing exactly. They know, and were watching carefully. That goes for all of you.

With nine days left to the big day, today was the last decanting day of the year. All of which was being decanted was made primarily for the festive season. Most of it will be festive gifts, hopefully. The one batch, was the plum brandy that was steeped three months ago exactly. That was the first to be decanted.  The rest, whilst I remember, was

  • Blueberry Gin
  • Blackforest Gin
  • Cranberries, raspberries and cherries in light rum

Having been decanted for the last three hours, I need to get that list down quickly, I assure you.

I learned a valuable lesson with the gin, from the lovely Thane Prince. She of Big allotment challenge fame, and one of Britain’s preserving Queen. Use coriander seeds in the Gin. Decanting those two, the gin gives a lovely spiced smell to it. No idea yet as to what it tastes like, I was trying to concentrate whilst I still could.

Most of what has been decanted today, is a beautiful pink or claret. The Plum brandy is less attractive. Perhaps it was the plums, the sugar or the spices, basically all of it; but its a very dark muddy brown. I assure you that there is no mud in there.

The gins and light rum have only been in brew for about six weeks. The raspberries had gone all very mushy, and just disintegrated with squishing.

#NaBloPoMo: Still there, still going strong

chilliesshakespeare

Ventured down to the plot today. It’s been damp and miserable all week, and with work I haven’t been able to get down to the plot. I wanted to double check the chillies, and was heartened to find that they are still there. All very bushy and green, I don’t have the heart to euthanise them. So much for entering the dorset naga challenge, I have not harvested one chilli from any of them. Seems cruel to let them continue, when there doesn’t seem to be any fruit forthcoming. They all look healthy, burgeoning with blooms. But still nothing. All very disappointing. Even now, we are half way through November. How long further will these things go? I doubt very much that I will get a chilli this Christmas! Not sure now, as to what chillies i will sow next year. Might go back to basic cayenne and see what happens.

At the centre of the plot is William Shakespeare 2000. A beautiful red rose, that when in full bloom, smells of lemons. That too is still going. In fact, I counted eleven blooming roses across the plot. Even the week before last,I had eleven roses that I harvested to fashion a bouquet from. I don’t recall roses being in bloom at this point in the year before. And there are quite a few bushes on the plot. I tinkered with the climbing roses, golden showers and i think the other one is called danse de Feu. These just needed tying in to the metal arch. Which reminded me to prune there roses on the plot. A task made somewhat easier, in having been deadheading blooms over the summer as I went along. The more established posh roses, such as christian dior, Lover’s meeting, silver jubilee, pascali, peace rose, harry wheatcroft, have grown upwards quite a bit. Less so with the width of these. The less established lost label roses are a mixed bag. Still quite small, a handful are quite tall, and still very leaf. No idea what they are, hence the name A lot pink ones, an odd orange one.Was looking at where I might squeeze in another couple of roses bushes. Given how we have Shakespeare all ready, Anne Boleyn might be one to window shop.

The autumn bliss raspberry will also need to be pruned. I’m not entirely sure what to do with those.

Feeling cordial: blackberry, raspberry and rhubarb

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This recipe required:

1500g blackberries, I had 1kg,
With a few raspberries, plums and 3
Small sticks of rhubarb.
400g of sugar
Enough cold water to cover them, but let say a litre per kilo.
A stick of of cinnoman, I used powder
A teaspoon of lemon juice.

I put fruit and water into a pan, and boiled til burst. I did mash to be fair and probably shouldn’t have. Then with Ma’s fine mesh sieve, filtered the juice. Returning this to the hob, I added cinnamon, sugar and lemon juice. The recipe said to simmer, then boil for 20 minutes. I got as a far as 11 and the sugar had dissolved. Cool and then decant.

The taste test. Well I had double measure in that glass as it wouldn’t fit into the bottle. Not bad! A bit warm, bit nice.

Handful of pink

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Earlier in the summer, I rescued two raspberry plants from a well know high street garden centre. Knowing that these were autumn fruiting, i didn’t think that they would actually crop this year. Something of pleasant surprise though to have a handful already.

Not quite enough for boozy vodka.

Yet.