Rhubarb Wine 2021 - First Bottle (1), 9th January 2022

This could be the best rhubarb wine that I have made. It is light, refreshing and has a pleasant fruity taste. Its colour is the palest of pinks and it is absolutely clear. Unusually, it is rather better than the Rhubarb, elderflower and mint that I bottled today as well.

My day was one of pottering and wine making and was exactly how I wanted to spend Sunday. In the evening Claire served a sausage and bean casserole with roast Jerusalem artichokes and mash, and we continued with The Killing (which holds up well on second viewing). During this I adulterated the last of the rhubarb wine with the last of the ginger wine. The ginger was dominant, but it was a good mix.

The Rhubarb Wine (I think - possibly Ginger!)

Prune & Parsnip Wine 2021 - First Bottle (B4), 3rd-5th February 2022

When I bottled this, I noted that Prune & Parsnip 2021 was a poor vintage. It is pleasing, therefore, that the wine seems to have aged well. This bottle was entirely like Prune & Parsnips that I have known. Possibly it is lighter in colour, but I cannot detect a difference in taste. As always, it has the essence of a semi-sweet sherry.

I opened it on Thursday and we finished it on Saturday. In between, we had Book Group (proper face-to-face Book Group) where we discussed The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett: mostly enjoyed with Catherine dissenting.

A not very interesting photo taken on 7 February

Ginger Wine 2021 - Second Bottle (4), 8th-9th January 2022

There is a reason that the last time I performed with Alan and Audrey at Leeds Music Club I came away swearing "Never again". I was reminded of that reason on Saturday night where, against my better judgment, I performed with Alan and Audrey at Leeds Music Club. Never again. We were playing humorous and relatively straightforward arrangements of The Nutcracker. Within three bars of starting, Audrey was lost and playing notes from several bars ahead. Alan and I ploughed on as best we could until we recognised where she was and joined up with her. A bottle of wine couldn't come soon enough. This hit the spot splendidly.

 

Wiggy on 8th January

Ginger Wine 2021 - First Bottle (1), 7th-14th October 2021

I opened this bottle of ginger wine very quickly after rejecting a bottle of Apple & Strawberry as being simply unpleasant. This wine, though, is excellent. Perhaps it is just that little bit sweet, but the ginger flavour fights through that. It would be a fabulous base for a whisky mac.

The only reason that it stayed open for so long was that on the few nights we weren't out, we drank real wine. One of those nights was Book Group round our house where we discussed Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell. Beautifully written and an overall Hit.

Taken on 7th October

Xmas Tutti Fruti 2020 - Third Bottle (B5), 5th February 2022

Angie & Phil had an impromptu wine, cheese and games evening so we grabbed Blockus and this bottle of Xmas Tutti Fruti and walked the 200 metres to their house. It was a wonderful, drunken evening and the first time in an age that we stayed up past midnight. I am really quite poor at Blockus - and it is a vicious game with tactics I have yet to grasp. The wine went down nicely, with Phil and Angie having the lion's share. We (Claire and I) took the opportunity to drink more real wine than was sensible.

Taken on 30th Jan - I haven't any more recent!

Xmas Tutti Fruti 2020 - Second Bottle (A5), 15th January 2022

I took this bottle to York with me, where we had a lovely weekend with my parents. Mom cooked 'Biochemist's Lamb' and we spent the evening drinking and chatting. Pop had several helpings from this bottle so I think he enjoyed it. Rightly so! It is a light, fruity red with a touch of fizz.

On Sunday I went to the Unitarian Chapel with Mom & Pop and quite enjoyed it. I have little spirituality, though, and had to suppress that. The best element was the music: there was a terrific pianist who played Piazolla, Janacek and Lionel Bart!

Taken on 15th January

Xmas Tutti Fruti 2020 - First Bottle (A4), 25th December 2021

This is a light red wine with a warmth to the back of the throat as it slips down. There is no dominant fruit, although the wine is distinctly fruity. It is not as good as 2019's vintage but it is close (and close in taste too). Maybe maturation time is required.

Our Christmas meal was venison and was superb. Andrew did most the cooking, and at one point to dramatic effect. He opened the oven door and a sheet of yellow flame erupted out. Sooz, who was in a different room, said that she knew something had happened from a noise of general commotion and my cry of "Do we need the Fire Brigade?". Happily, we did not.

A picture for Christmas 

 

Jam Wine - First Bottle, 4th-6th November 2021

This wine is very much a dessert* wine. It has a fruity sweetness to it that would make it a poor one to go with many meals but which could be shared afterwards by a roaring fire. Perhaps the flavour is a little 'one note' but it is not a bad wine by any means. Claire described it as "Better than expected"^. We drank most of this on Thursday, which was an unremarkable day: working at home, followed by blue cheese & spinach quiche (I should have taken a photo - it looked fantastic) and a joyously silly episode of Taskmaster.

Taken on 1 November - the River Aire

* Claire inserted "last resort"

^ Claire changed to "Not as nasty as I expected"

Crab Apple & Strawberry Wine 2020 - Second Bottle (4), 27th October 2021

Not a bad bottle of wine at all. Perhaps more crab apple than strawberry, but lovely and light. We drank the whole lot on a Wednesday evening, mostly because I was making pancakes. That may appear to be a non-sequitur but making pancakes always puts me in a bad mood. They take longer than they should, rarely reach the edge of the pan and flipping them can go badly wrong. Still, the resulting 'Pancakes Stuffed with Ham and Mushroom in a White Sauce Topped with Parmesan' (snappy title) was absolutely delicious and worth being grumpy for.

Taken on 28th October - a new shirt!

Crab Apple Wine 2020 - Second Bottle (5), 23rd September 2021

I left this bottle in the fridge for the combined Taylors to enjoy whilst I was out playing trios with Pat and Peter, but with strict instructions that there should be a glass for me to enjoy on my return. Happily those instructions were obeyed and I had my ration before bed. Susanna said how much she liked this wine, with its elements of Croft Original. I don't pick those up, but it certainly has a fruity rich taste. I returned from Pat & Peter's via Sainsbury's with four bottles of real wine - we can't just drink my stuff whilst we have guests!

Taken on 24 September - a Japanese Garden in Horsforth

Japonica Quince Wine - First Bottle (5), 2nd-3rd September 2021

Not a terrible wine by any means. I'm not sure it tastes of much, though, other than an overly dry white wine. 'Sharp' will be an adjective that I shall overuse on this page. It is not as dry as the Quince I made about a decade ago, but it is approaching that. Claire suggested adding a sugar syrup and that worked, though did not make the wine any more interesting.

We drank most of the bottle on Thursday, though I had the final glass on Friday before Book Group to celebrate being on holiday. This coming week we will walk The Herriot Way.

A Cake I made on 3 September. I have no memory of this.

If you want to see how I made this wine, click here.

Blackberry Wine 2020 - Eighth Bottle (A5), 19th November 2021

The second I walked through the door, Claire handed me a glass of blackberry wine. It was quarter past seven and it had been a long, intense day at work. I have much of the coming week on holiday - mostly to avoid losing days from my annual allowance - and so I wanted to leave the office having done everything required. When I turned off my computer there was not a single email in my in-box, which is an unusual state of affairs. The blackberry wine was hugely welcome and this is a fine vintage with hints of real wine.

On 18th November, I made a Christmas Pudding.
These are some of the ingredients.

Blackberry Wine 2020 - Seventh Bottle (A2), 2nd October 2021

On the dankest of Saturdays I have been out in the rain thrice. The first two were to buy provisions for the coming week. The last was to check if the local garage was selling petrol. We are in the midst of a fuel shortage because (thanks to Brexit - the gift that keeps on giving) there are not enough lorry drivers. And as soon as the Government says "Please don't panic buy", everyone does. There have been queues of traffic at any open garage for the last week. On Saturday evening I joined that queue (short, when I was there) and celebrated my success at home with a bottle of Blackberry Wine, a lamb curry and an episode of The Bridge.

Taken on 2 October - the result of a 
startled cat after I sneezed.

Blackberry Wine 2020 - Sixth Bottle (A3), 19th September 2021

Blackberry Wine feels like a proper Sunday night bottle. One that you can relax into like a favourite sofa. It had been a gentle weekend full of entirely pleasurable nothing much. On Sunday that involved walking the suburbs of North Leeds in search of elderberries and making both bread and a ginger & marmalade cake (note to self: the marmalade was a flavour too far). Then in the evening we had a Padian chicken curry, drank this wine and watched The Crown. The curry involved me sucking on a chili by mistake. Emergency yoghurt was required.

Ginger & Marmalade Cake

 

Blackberry Wine 2020 - Fifth Bottle (C2), Mid-August 2021

Claire had this bottle whilst I was in the Brecon Beacons with Rachael & Myles. She says that she has written it up in her diary and hopes that this is Good Enough. It isn't really, but it is also clear that she won't write it up in this one. I think she had a reasonable week whilst I was away - plenty of Midsomer Murders and RuPaul's Drag Race I understand

Rachael in the Brecon Beacons

Damson Wine 2020 - Fourth Bottle (3), 23rd September 2021

We have an infestation of Taylors. Bob, Judith and Susanna are staying for several days - and that is a thoroughly good thing. I was dashing out playing trios with Pat & Peter so really only had time to open this bottle, have a small glass and leave the Taylors to it. Reports of the wine were positive, and it was the first of two drunk on a Thursday evening. I am so pleased that our house is open to guests again.

Taken on 20 September - the view from my office

Damson Wine 2020 - Third Bottle (5), 27th-28th August 2021

Claire fancied a red on Friday night and neither of us felt the inclination to cook, so a bottle of Damson wine and a take-out curry it was. The wine was not as good as I had remembered: too dry and slightly thin, but certainly drinkable. Claire enjoyed it, saying that it had hints of real wine.

The curry was blisteringly hot and we made inroads into our yoghurt mountain in an attempt to cool it down.

There was half a bottle left for Saturday night, which we drank to the Snarkalong Film choice: 9 to 5. Whilst the film is unsubtle, it had aged remarkably well and is a pure joy.

Taken on 27 August - our damson tree

Blackcurrant Wine - Third Bottle (3), 14th August 2021

It is good to be home! The last two weeks have been excellent: a superb week at Rydal followed by another one in the Brecon Beacons, but returning to the Usual is, in some ways, a relief. A quiet night in with Claire, who did not come to Wales, curled up on the sofa watching a movie with the Snarkalong Film Club was absolutely the right thing to do. This time it was Relative Values: a comedy of manners with a terrific cast, led by Julie Andrews. Nothing demanding or noisy at all.

A running stream in the Brecon Beacons

Blackcurrant Wine 2020 - Second Bottle (1), 27th-28th July 2021

I was on hairdressing duties on Tuesday evening. We are shortly to go to Rydal (!) and Claire wanted to re-blue her mohican. The bottle of blackcurrant was opened before the process began. What could possibly go wrong? My task was to paint bleach into the back of Claire's head and then later in the evening (and further down the bottle) to shave the sides of her scalp, leaving a wide blue stripe of hair in the centre. It all looks quite alarming, but in a thoroughly good way. The wine was also excellent and is Claire's favourite of all my brews.

The hairdressing process

Blackcurrant & Raspberry Wine 2020 - Fourth Bottle (1), 14th November 2021

The Internet is a marvelous thing. It allows one to order Dim Sum to arrive through the post, complete with cardboard double-decker steamer and dipping sauces. This was Rachel's idea and we had a Zoom Dinner Party with her and Duncan, during which I opened this Blackcurrant & Raspberry Wine. Whilst a white wine might have been preferable, I had nothing chilled. The Dim Sum was fantastic - and my favourite was the pork bun. It all made for an entertaining evening.

An upside-down Mango cake made on 14th November