Xmas Tutti Fruti 2018 - Tenth Bottle (B1), 26th-27th November 2020

It has been an odd Thanksgiving this year. Rather than a houseful of friends & family, we celebrated alone. Actually, we had two Zoom sessions - one with the Taylors to mark the opening of Whisky Mac season, and one with Richard & Linda for Thanksgiving Proper. The other odd thing was no turkey. Claire roasted a guinea fowl instead, which is not strictly North American, but is rather better than the traditional bird. Also more suited to two. We washed it all down with a bottle of Tutti Fruti, which was as good as ever, but did not finish it. Friday was a working day and, as mentioned above, it was the start of Whisky Mac season.

Our Thanksgiving meal (plus wine)

Damson Wine - Second Bottle (2), 28th November 2019

Damson wine is not going to get the chance to mature to a ripe old age. This is the second bottle drunk in the space of three weeks. I chose it as a Thanksgiving bottle because it is one of my best, and I wanted to treat our guests. As well as Richard & Linda, we had Andrew, Sooz and Cindy over to share the Thanksgiving meal. And what a meal it was - everything that is traditional about Thanksgiving plus a tricolor nut loaf and sprouts pan-fried with garlic and parmesan. The wine was, rightly, enjoyed by all. There is a deep plumminess to it that certainly was not present in the years that I made plum wine. Definitely a wine to make again.

NB - There is no photo that I have not already put up for the days around Thanksgiving. Sorry.

Strawberry Wine 2018 - Second Bottle (1), 28th November 2019

On the basis that strawberry wine is Richard's favourite, I opened this bottle for Thanksgiving. As with the previous bottle, this one had a distinct fizz. Unlike the previous bottle, I removed its cork. It was with some trepidation that I asked Richard whether it was acceptable. Happily it was more than: it was actively nice. Rather drier than previous bottles of strawberry wine and perhaps a little less strawberry flavoured. The fizz is entirely beneficial, apart from giving the wine a tendency to explode.

Our Thanksgiving Table - before the food!

Apple & Strawberry Wine 2016 - Fifth Bottle (2), 29th November 2019

Having half a turkey remaining after Thanksgiving meant that Thanksgiving II was required. Andrew and Sooz were staying and this provided an excuse to invite Jayne. I decided to open Apple & Strawberry on the basis that it is one of my best. Sooz preferred the dregs of Clove & Ginger to this, but then she preferred this to the bottle of real wine that Jayne provided.

Thanksgiving II was more of a traditional Sunday Roast than the original had been - and none the worse for that.

Horns of Plenty - nothing to do with this post

but taken on the same day.

Blackberry Wine - Fourth Bottle (B2), 26th-28th November 2017

On Sunday our house was quiet again. All visitors had left the day before and, whilst I love entertaining, having one's own space back is always a relief. It is a measure of how good the Thanksgiving holiday was that we had no wine on Saturday and only half a bottle of blackberry (which is now fizzy) on Sunday.

We finished the bottle having returned from meeting our next cats: Kato and Wiggy (which we have decided is short for Wilgefortis, and that makes it better). They are 6-year-old siblings, pure white and needed a home urgently. He is a bruiser, she is beautiful and both are affectionate.

St Wilgefortis - patron saint of bearded ladies

Elderberry Wine - Second Bottle (B5), 24th November 2017

Jayne came round for Thanksgiving II on Friday night. Whilst much of the alcohol ration was provided by Prosecco and Whisky Macs, I also opened a bottle of elderberry. Paying no attention at all to what people thought of it, I am unable to report whether it was popular or not. The bottle was emptied, which must mean it was at least acceptable, and I enjoyed it - though a young elderberry has a certain roughness to it.

I disgraced myself by having to go to bed before 10:30, leaving Claire and the guests to continue their carousing.

They have missed 'young elderberry' from this list

Rose Petal Wine - Fourteenth Bottle (C4), 23rd-24th November 2017

I think I drank most of this bottle; I was well-sauced by the time I went to bed on Thursday. This was my reward for a day of hard-graft. It was Thanksgiving and Claire had not taken the day off work. Never having roasted a turkey, made a nut-loaf, assembled cranberry sauce or prepared a meal for seven, I was somewhat out of my comfort zone. But it all seemed to work and I even had some time for tidying. Hence the vast quantity of alcohol (Thanksgiving marks the opening of whisky-mac season too) including much rose-petal wine. And no thumping headache on Friday morning. Result!

Apple & Strawberry Wine - First Bottle (1), 23rd November 2017

Well, I liked this bottle of wine. I thought it light and fruity with subtle flavours of both apple and strawberry. It was entirely clear and its colour was white with an edge of pink. Sooz said that this wine would aid in not drinking too much. Harrumph.

It was a Thanksgiving bottle, and the evening was lovely. Andrew, Sooz, Richard, Linda, Mary, Claire and I fit round the table and ate more than was sensible, managing to leave enough leftovers for a week. Happy times!

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

Blackcurrant Wine - Nineteenth Bottle (A5), 22nd November 2017

I marked the start of my Thanksgiving holiday by opening and finishing a bottle of blackcurrant wine. Still, I had Claire and Sooz (who has arrived from Dublin) to help me. I didn't take much notice of the wine's flavour - sharp and blackcurranty I imagine. Instead, we sat on the dining room sofa and chatted about this and that until nearly midnight. I was in a good mood after WYSO where we played Grieg's Piano Concerto with the soloist. It sounded fantastic and our concert on 2 December should be a good one.

Elderberry Wine - Eighth Bottle (B1), 5th November 2017

What a great bottle of wine. Everything that elderberry should be - dark, earthy, sophisticated. It was also my only bottle of the weekend: Friday had been Book Group and we were playing Handel's Coronation Anthems in Pontefract on Saturday. Having just the one bottle is a rare event, and I savoured it all the more for that reason. Claire cooked a slab of beef in Madeira, auditioning the recipe for Christmas, when all the Taylors will descend. It got a definite approval from me - far better than turkey. And we will have enough of that in a few weeks for Thanksgiving.

One of the Coronation Anthems involves this man

Strawberry Wine - Second Bottle (6), 24th November 2016

Thanksgiving was at Richard & Linda's this year, so I took a bottle of Strawberry and Claire took the pumpkin pie (which was fresh from the oven - she had to wear oven gloves in the car). Richard thought the wine was drier than previous years and had more body to it , and I think both observations were correct. It is a lovely wine, and it is a shame I could only have a small glass.

The evening was excellent with two genuine Americans there (Linda and Cindy) and more food that would fit on the table. Everyone was sent home with a box of left-overs.

Elderberry Wine - Second Bottle (A6), 27th-29th November 2015

This was our final Thanksgiving bottle, opened on the Friday when we were entertaining Sooz, Andrew, Rachel & Duncan. To be honest, good as the wine was (and it is a fine vintage of elderberry wine, full of rich and dark flavours) it was a bottle too far. We drank half of it and I then spent a teetotal Saturday. This Saturday mostly involved the WYSO winter concert with Tchaikovsky's scary Fourth Symphony. My lip survived and I was moderately pleased with my solos.

Claire and I finished the bottle on Sunday after a day clearing the attic - a long job made all the less tedious by Rachel & Duncan forming an industrious chain.

A small proportion of the attic to clear

Rose Petal Wine - Sixth Bottle (A3), 27th November 2015

Rachel and Duncan came for Thanksgiving II, which meant a bottle of rose petal wine was virtually obligatory. It is Rachel's favourite, and its sweet, perfumed taste went particularly well with the sweet potato, mashed with chilli and lime.

Earlier in the day the House came on in leaps and bounds. The kitchen is now fitted (though there is no electricity yet) and Andrew and I laid carpets. Both of these transform the place. Rather than looking like a building site, it now looks like a home. This is a good thing because we will be living there in less than a week.

Blackcurrant Wine - Eighth Bottle (A1), 26th-27th November 2015

I opened this for our final bottle of Thanksgiving, and we finished it during Thanksgiving II. This year I bought a fairly small turkey (5.2 kg) and it did for two meals - thirteen hungry adults, of whom only one was a vegetarian. The leftovers are scant but not non-existent. I certainly enjoyed the blackcurrant wine (perhaps a little too much - I drank nothing alcoholic on Saturday) but I did not gauge anyone else's reaction. This suggests they enjoyed it.

Dandelion Wine - Second Bottle (6), 26th November 2015

What could possibly say 'Thanksgiving' more than a bottle of homemade Dandelion Wine? This was our first bottle of the evening after a round of whisky macs, and everyone thought it a 'Hit'. It is very reminiscent of sherry, though sherry with a touch of vegetable, and I was told that even Claire's grandmother might have approved. It being Thanksgiving we had a couple of Americans over - Linda and Rory, plus Richard (of course), Andrew and Sooz. It was a lovely evening with too much food and lots of good conversation. And Linda's pumpkin pie was the best I think she has ever done.

Crab Apple & Strawberry Wine - First Bottle (1), 27th November 2014

Thanksgiving is one of the many reasons that I am pleased to be half American. Any festival that is based around food ticks my boxes. This year it was Richard and Linda's turn to host and Claire's to make the pumpkin pie. My contribution was a bottle of 'Crabapple & Strawberry' - this being the closest to what I imagine cranberry wine would resemble.

There were seven of us round the dinner table: Andrew is visiting from Newcastle, and we were joined by Pippa and Jackie. It was a lovely evening, though I had to battle my falling eyelids. The wine was good - bone dry yet fruity and clear. It deserves its position as a Regular.

How the wine looks in its bottle

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

Blackberry Wine - Sixth Bottle (A4), 29th-30th November 2013

By the end of the evening, Duncan was calling for more wine. Between the seven of us, we had already had bottles of raspberry, real, and crab apple & strawberry, half a bottle of blackcurrant & gooseberry, and various whisky macs or gins and tonics. So I fished out a bottle of blackberry and also took the opportunity to put the kettle on.

Only half of this bottle was drunk on Friday, so Claire and I finished it on Saturday when we had the house to ourselves. It is lovely having lots of guests and eating feasts, but it is also nice when everyone has gone.

Strawberry & Crab Apple Wine - Second Bottle (5), 29th November 2013

There was no room in our fridge, what with all the Thanksgiving food bursting from it, so I left this bottle outside to cool. This method worked, it being late November, and the wine was chilled, sparkling, dry and delicious. It was shared between seven of us, gathered for Thanksgiving II (very much the same as Thanksgiving I but with cold turkey and no vegetarian alternative). It would have been eight but Sooz was upstairs in bed, feverish.

Earlier in the day we been to York - mostly to see Rachael and Myles, who were visiting from Leicester. Myles is on the verge of toddlerdom and is a happy baby. Except when Claire had a hold, when there were screams and real tears.

Not Myles - but there are similarities

Blackcurrant & Red Gooseberry Wine - Third Bottle (5), 28th-29th November 2013

This bottle spanned Thanksgiving I and Thanksgiving II. Claire decided that because she only cooks a turkey once every two years, she should get a large one and have two dinner parties. Did I say large? I mean enormous. It is currently Sunday morning, and (not counting soup, to which you can add four) the turkey has provided 14 hungry people with plenty of meat. And there is still loads to go.

The blackcurrant & gooseberry was as good as ever, but didn't form part of the meals. It was post on Thursday and pre on Friday. Of the flavours Rory tried (including an 18 year-old bottle of Raspberry, courtesy of Julia) I think this was his favourite.

Strawberry Wine - Third Bottle (1), 28th November 2013

This was our Thanksgiving bottle. More accurately, it was one of our Thanksgiving bottles, but the only one which started the night full and ended it empty.

It was our year to host and we had Richard, Linda, Andrew and Sooz as guests. The turkey was ostrich size and we ate rather less than half. This is a Good Thing as we are having Thanksgiving 2 tonight with eight diners.

The meal as a whole was both traditional and delicious, and Richard and Linda brought the pumpkin pies. Strawberry wine seemed to go down nicely. It certainly went down and I barely remember it. The combination of a huge meal, a couple of whisky macs and a stressful time at work meant I fell asleep at ten and left everyone else to it.