Lovely Greens - 'A is for Apple'

I am delighted that Tanya of Lovely Greens has asked me to do a second guest blog post on her wonderful website (which you can go to if you click here). Last year she ran a series of guest posts on a 'Homesteading' theme. I felt a bit of a fraud to be shoe-horned into that series, as what I do is hardly homesteading, but being the media tart that I am, jumped in with both feet. The article (which you can read here) proved popular, and the hits on my page jumped exponentially. So, therefore, when Tanya asked again at the end of April, I had no hesitation but to give her a firm 'Yes'.

My theme this year is 'an alphabet of wine'. Those of you who read regularly (a handful at most!) will know that I am trying to make a wine with its main ingredient being from every letter of the alphabet. Over the last 12 months I have ticked off the letters W, L and V. I mentioned this aim in my last Lovely Greens post, and that is what got most response, so I decided to do a follow-up. Once the article is published (Sunday 29 June) I will post a link to it here. Although it might be quite late - I'm playing in a concert in Ilkley that day. Nielsen's Fourth Symphony - The Inextinguishable - which to me sounds like a headache set to music. But then I'm a nineteenth century kind of guy, so far as musical tastes are concerned.

To any new readers - welcome. This blog is essentially my diary with a few instructions on how to make wine, and tasting notes thrown in. I live a fairly unextraordinary life in Leeds, West Yorkshire, and you will find that my main concerns tend to be food, family, friends, music and books. Roughly in that order. This blog is most useful for seeing how I made wine, and then finding out whether the flavours have worked or not. Click on the label 'making wine' to find my recipes and methods. Generally I will put a link at the bottom of a 'making wine' entry to the first bottle of that flavour - so you can see whether it was a success (step forward Rose Petal 2013) or a failure (yes, I'm looking at you, Redcurrant 2013). I started this blog in April 2011, and since then I must have made over 50 batches of wine, and probably about 30 different flavours. Basically, have a browse.

To any existing readers - thank you. It is a great pleasure to know that some people are interested in an unexceptional, though (I like to think) very human, person. And do check out Lovely Greens. Tanya writes on many topics, with beautiful photographs, always in an interesting manner.

Ben