Whitecurrant Wine - Final Bottle (3), 17th November 2018

This bottle did not even reach an average score of 1 at my Wine Party. It got 0.48, and my specific instructions were to rate each bottle 1-5. Whitecurrant wine, though, did not come last. I see from previous posts about Whitecurrant that I opened a bottle for my Wine Party in 2014, and this proves that Whitecurrant wine is one best drunk young.

One person (and I do not know who) wrote "Startling! Kerosene, Creosote, Vinegar" and awarded it a 0. Sooz could not even bring herself to rate it and wrote "The death of angels."

W is for Worst (but for Zucchini)

Whitecurrant Wine - Fifth Bottle (6), 16th-18th September 2015

Claire and I both had the same experience when drinking this wine. The first taste had distinctly unpleasant overtones, but thereafter they were no longer there. The wine never approached the dizzy heights of 'nice', but it sauntered along the foothills of 'drinkable'. I opened it on Wednesday evening while we watched Bake Off, then finished the last glass on Friday while I was waiting for Claire to finish her gin & tonic so that I could open something better.

Whitecurrant Wine - Fourth Bottle (1), 4th April 2015

For much of this bottle I was blowing up our air mattress. Having an infestation of Parents (four in total) meant that Claire and I had to forsake our bed and sleep in the study. It became apparent during my heavy blowing session that the air mattress does not absolutely fit in our "third bedroom". I shifted the blanket box as much as I could, and made do. Having got all hot and bothered doing this, a glass of whitecurrant wine was welcome. The wine was okay - actually better than that - and Mom claimed that she liked it. There is a sharpness to it that I think is beneficial.

Whitecurrant Wine - Third Bottle (2), 15th November 2014

We are getting into the realms of the Distinctly Unpopular. This wine came ninth in the Wine Party, scoring an average of 2.869. Two people declared it their worst. I think that is unfair. However, two people gave it top marks.

This wine party, more than any other, has been marked by a lack of agreement. Rachel described this bottle as 'cheek-sucking drain cleaner', whereas Lindsay wrote 'Liquid Stilton. In a good way', and gave it a 5. Vicky poured hers down the sink, and both Ros and Alex wrote simply "No".

Whitecurrant Wine - Second Bottle (5), 19th October 2014

I am very impressed with this wine. It is dry and has distinct similarity to wine made from grapes. I served it to Richard and Linda (well, to Richard, because Linda doesn't drink) on Sunday night when they came round for a meal. Unusually, Claire did most the tidying and I did most the cooking. It is true that Claire's course was more ambitious than either of mine - raised pies filled with chestnut, stilton and mushrooms served with a crab apple & roast garlic jelly. But I did a damn fine fish pie and a lemon drizzle cake that bore more than a passing resemblance to a house brick.

Lemon Drizzle Cake and definitely not a house brick

Whitecurrant Wine - First Bottle (4), 4th July 2014

Claire chose Whitecurrant to go with our 'Fourth of July' meal. We dined on Boston Baked Beans, Potato Salad and Fried Chicken. I associate the last two of these with my Grandmother and Fourths of July spent in Nebraska. We then watched Planes, Trains & Automobiles as a suitably American movie, and it was thoroughly satisfying and effectively sentimental.

The wine is rather good. After my first sip, I counted to five and there was no musty aftertaste. It is dry and sharp, and there is at least a hint of real wine to it. Should I ever find another source of whitecurrants I shall certainly make it again.

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

Whitecurrant Wine - The Making Of ...

Whitecurrants are misnamed. Beigecurrants would be the more accurate description. But I am pleased that this misnomer exists, because it means I get to tick the letter 'W' off my alphabet of wine. When Julia mentioned her whitecurrant bushes looked promising this year, my ears pricked up for this reason. On hearing that they needed netting to defeat the birds, I drove to her allotment as quickly as residential speed limits would allow. Then I made space in a busy Saturday, 20th July, to go and pick them.

Whitecurrants are more difficult to pick that their red siblings. The bushes are lower, which involved crouching and sitting and getting badly stung by nettles. Several hours later my hands were still throbbing. The fruit grows in strings, hanging below the branches and, as with redcurrants, I picked the fruit on their stems, and made no effort to remove the greenery.

I came away from the allotment with 2 lbs 15¼ oz of whitecurrants. The recipe calls for 3 lbs, and I looked on my harvesting as 'Efficient' rather than 'Three Quarters of an Ounce Short'.

I washed the currants on Sunday 21st July, put them in their bucket and crushed them. I dissolved 2 lbs 12oz sugar in six pints of water, brought this to the boil and poured it over the fruit. On Monday morning I added the yeast and a teaspoon each of nutrient and pectolase.

I sieved out the currants on Friday 26th July and put the liquid into its demijohn. The amount of water was spot on. This, I think, is the palest wine I have made. I hope this does not translate into a dull flavour.

If you want to see how this wine turned out, click here.