Rhubarb Wine 2018 - Twelfth Bottle (A1), 7th July 2021

I have yet to let on to Claire that this bottle came from the Rhubarb Wine vintage that she claims is nasty. She drank it without complaint. It was a Wednesday evening bottle in a week that has been the most sociable for a very, very long time. We had Pat's 80th on Saturday, an impromptu meal at Mary's on Sunday and wind quintets in Harrogate on Monday, with trios to follow on Thursday and Book Group (albeit that one by Zoom) on Friday. That is pre-lockdown levels of sociability and then some. So of course a quiet night in on Wednesday became a whole bottle night.

Wiggy and I had a disagreement about the chair

Rhubarb Wine 2019 - Eighth Bottle (A4), 29th-30th June 2021

I have new boots. Bought at great expense and looking as if they have been made by elves for a medieval Germanic shoemaker, I am really pleased with them. It is the first time that I have been at all interested in footwear apart from slippers. On Tuesday I took my first walk in them - just to Sainsbury's - and I did not return limping and blistered. In the evening I opened this bottle and we had our first glass inspecting the garden and spotting amphibians in the pond. The wine is a fine vintage of rhubarb - there is a touch of bronze to its colour and I think it similar to a shop-bought white. Claire may disagree!

I had the last glass on Wednesday after returning from Madeleine's quintets. It is so good to be playing chamber music again. 

New Boots

Blackberry Wine - Thirteenth Bottle (A6), 12th-13th May 2021

Sausages, mash, onion gravy and blackberry wine - a winning combination. Claire's day involved five blood samples to analyse for a Covid 19 research project, and therefore most of a bottle of wine on a Wednesday was her reward. We shared the remaining glass on Thursday after I had returned from Madeleine's quintet. Though indoor restrictions end on Monday, they are currently still in force, so we played under Madeleine's car port for an hour, hoping the neighbours were forgiving souls.

Taken on 12 May in Gledhow Valley Woods

Prune & Parsnip Wine 2019, Fourth Bottle (A4) - 14th-15th August 2020

This started life as a Friday night bottle. Our fridge-freezer had just packed in, and so it was a stressful start to the weekend. However, it improved massively (for me, at least). I spent the rest of Friday night playing wind quintets in a garden in Woodhouse - the first time that I have played in an ensemble since March. It was such a lovely evening - what would once have been ordinary has become special. Unexpectedly, my favourite piece of the evening was an arrangement of Mahler. Leaving Claire with this bottle was a small sacrifice, and I had plenty on Saturday.

Taken on 14 August - allotments off Harrogate Road

Halloween Wine - First Bottle (4), 2nd November 2019

I had meant to open this wine on All Hallows' Eve. It wasn't until two nights later that I remembered. But I was out playing quintets at Madeleine's on Thursday once the Trick or Treaters had trickled, so that was a wine-free night.

I had expected the chilli that I used in this wine to be undetectable. In fact, there was both a chilli taste and a subtle heat to the wine making it one of my more interesting brews. It is drier than most my reds and I would have preferred it just a tad sweeter. Lots of fruity taste, though, with not one dominating.

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

Xmas Tutti Fruti - Second Bottle (B1), 25th-26th January 2019

Claire is working far, far too hard. She is contracted to work 9-5 Monday to Thursday. Currently she is doing 11 hour days and this week she did 4 or 5 hours on Friday as well. On Friday the only decision she could make was that we were to have a Take-Out. When I asked about wine, she looked at me blankly and then repeated that look when I suggested Xmas Tutti Fruti.

Chris and Kate came by to stay overnight on an unplanned trip to Leeds and it was lovely to see them. Neither tried the wine, however. I finished the bottle (which is a good, fruity red) on Saturday after performing a wind quintet at Leeds Music Club - which went as well as could be expected.

[NB - Photo failing to load - I may need to try from work on Monday. Imagine a photo of some sheet music!]

Damson Wine - The Making Of...

Two years ago, Claire and I planted a damson tree sapling in the front garden. Where Claire had images of damson jam and damson gin, my thoughts were of wine. We both looked forward to branches weighed down by their fruit. So far it has produced not a single damson. Therefore, when Emma mentioned at work that her mother had been storing damsons in her freezer and I was welcome to have a bag, I indicated that I would be a glad recipient.

Our damson tree

On Thursday 1st November, Emma brought the damsons in and it was important that I turn them into wine that evening - defrosting fruit never lasts beyond a day. I was busy with wine-making duties anyway - racking my elderberry and putting apple wine into its demijohns.

3 lbs 2 oz damsons

On consulting four recipe books only one told me to de-stone the fruit, so I ignored that one. One told me to put chalk into the wine, another advised wheat or barley and a third talked about sultanas. This is my first time of making damson wine and advice is there to be ignored. So I went for the simplest option - using only damsons, sugar, water and yeast.

The recipe books I ignored

There were 3 lbs 2 oz damsons, which is a little under the 4 lbs advised by recipe books (to which I was paying no attention anyway) so I declared this sufficient and put them into my bucket. They mashed easily. I put in 1 lb of sugar and then found I had no more sugar in the house. (A further 1 lb 12 oz went in on Saturday morning.) This was covered by six and a half pints of boiling water, stirred and left over night to cool. I then put in 1 teaspoon each of yeast, nutrient, pectolase and citric acid.

The wine with the yeast having been sprinkled in

The wine went into its demijohn on Tuesday 6th November, even though I was out all evening playing quintets in Ilkley. This meant that I had to be organised, so I got everything ready to sterilise before I left for work that morning. On my return I took time only to feed the cats before setting to and covering all equipment with a sodium metabisulphite solution. Putting the wine into its demijohn took about half an hour and I now have my first ever batch of Damson Wine bubbling away.

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

Orange Wine - Eighth Bottle (B1), 21st-22nd November 2017

Mostly drunk on a Tuesday!

Claire's new job has yet to take off into any sort of realm of usefulness. She came home bored and dispirited and a bottle of wine was in order. Madeleine's quintet was cancelled so I was able to help her with that, and we got through most of it. To maintain a veneer of decorum, a glass each was saved for Wednesday night after WYSO. This was polished off as I sat down with Claire to plan my turkey-cooking timetable for Thursday.

Gooseberry Wine 2017 - The Making Of...

On returning from work on Thursday, having had an alcohol-free Wednesday, I thought a small whisky would be in order. First, though, I checked my diary to ensure I had no engagements for the evening.  "Quintets in Harrogate," it read. "Bugger," I thought, and shelved the whisky idea. I grabbed my bassoon and headed to Esther's. The evening was a lot of fun and the Taffanel Quintet particularly so. At the end, Esther asked if anyone wanted any gooseberries because she had rather more than she needed. I decided to push my luck and asked if she had 6 lbs. She did. Esther has been stock-piling gooseberries for years because no-one in her family likes them, so she fished around in her freezer and came back with bags labelled '2015' and '2016'. I defrosted these overnight and began the wine on Friday evening, 30th June.

Our gooseberries untouched by pigeons

It has been several years since I have made gooseberry wine. We have plenty of bushes at home and this year I hoped I would be self-sufficient. However, we also have a family of three fat pigeons in our garden who are partial to the fruit. Oh, for a shot-gun and a good aim!

Anyway, I put the gooseberries in my bucket and spent ten minutes mashing them. Having been frozen and defrosted, they mashed easily and gave out a lot of liquid. I added 2 lbs 12 oz sugar and poured over 6 pints of boiling water, giving it all a thorough stir. Next morning, 1st July, I added a teaspoon each of nutrient, pectolase and tannin as well as the yeast.

Gooseberries fermenting

On Wednesday afternoon, 5th July, I put the wine into its demijohn. I am on holiday this week, but had had nothing specific planned and an afternoon of solid wine-making (after an hour and a half's nap) is a relaxing way to spend time away from work. I removed the gooseberries from the liquid firstly with a colander and then using a jug, sieve and funnel - making sure not to fill the demijohn too full. The wine is a pleasing light green and bubbling away.

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

Rhubarb Wine - Third Bottle (A6), 29th-30th June 2017

This has to be the best rhubarb wine that I have made and, irritatingly, I don't know what I did differently. It has a wonderful sharp white wine taste to it and has a pleasant fullness.

I left Claire with the bottle on Thursday night as I went to play wind quintets in Harrogate and came home to a giggly wife plus a less-than-half-full bottle. On Friday I finished the bottle before starting a Gooseberry wine making session - my first one in years. Esther (of the Harrogate Quintet) supplied the gooseberries, and this was a suitable way to start a week's holiday. Work has been rather busy of late and I think I will spend much of the forth-coming week asleep.

Rose Petal Wine - Seventh Bottle (B1), 4th-5th February 2017

Often rose petal wine is let down by just a hint of bitterness. Not this bottle, though. It was a delight - floral (of course), not too sweet and with a suggestion of the exotic. We drank most of it after Music Club where I played with Madeleine's quintet. Our theme was 'walking': two Promenades, a Walking Tune and the Washburn Suite (which, admittedly, has very little to do with perambulation). The quintet played well and I came home pleased, though eager for wine. We drank it while eating cheese on chilli flavoured crackers - and excellent way to wind down after a concert.

NB - the Video is the last movement of the Washburn Suite - and my favourite of the pieces we played (and has a great bassoon part). It only lasts a minute and a half. The three other links I have put in are Youtube videos of the pieces we played - though only one is a wind quintet.

Crab Apple Wine 2014 - Final Bottle (C2), 26th-29th October 2016

I dashed away from Madeleine's quintets on Wednesday so that I could watch the Final (and final time it is on BBC) of The Great British Bake Off. Claire's alcohol consumption currently only consists of hot toddies, so I drank this bottle of crab apple almost entirely by myself - albeit over three nights. The final Bake Off was as warm hearted as all previous episodes and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

On Saturday night I shared what was left of this bottle with Rachael and Mom, who were both visiting. This, though, was an appetiser for the rest of an excellent evening.

Crab Apple Wine - Seventeenth Bottle (A4), 19th-23rd June 2016

This bottle was opened on a Sunday night when we had already had Too Much to Drink. Consequently, I remember little about its early life. Probably it was refreshing and tasted of apples. Claire had some on Tuesday while I was at Madeleine's playing quintets - though most the music I took proved unpopular. I had the final glass or two on Thursday night after exercising my democratic, and all too regular, right to vote for the losing side. When I finished this bottle I believed our EU membership was secure and all would be well.

Dandelion Wine 2016 - The Making Of ...

On the four-hundredth anniversary of Shakespeare's death I found myself in a field on the edge of Gledhow Valley Woods picking dandelions for wine. A quick trawl of the internet tells me that Shakespeare never mentioned dandelions by name and only referred to them obliquely (if that) in Cymbeline: "Golden lads and girls all must / As chimney sweepers, come to dust." I was early enough in the season to catch them before the flowers became clocks and 'come to dust'. Indeed, 23rd April - St George's Day - is the traditional day on which to pick dandelions for wine.

My plan had been to collect flowers from the allotments off Harrogate Road, but all entrances were locked and since Julia died I no longer have access. I wandered around the adjacent park, where dandelions were sparse and mostly half-opened, and then down the hill to Gledhow Valley Road, where I saw an open area of grass dotted with points of gold. From here my spirits lifted and I picked six pints of flowers in the sunshine, feeling only slightly self-conscious as cars, joggers and pedestrians passed.

Back home, after all of Saturday's chores and a quintet rehearsal, I started taking the petals from the green base of each dandelion head. This was slow going and I had little time, so after doing about a tenth, I gave up and poured all flowers into the stock pot. I covered this with seven pints of water and put in 2 lbs 9 oz of sugar and the thin peelings of two lemons and an orange. This was brought up to the boil and I let it boil for either ten or twenty minutes (I forget). Meanwhile I minced half a kilo of sultanas and squeezed the juice from the lemons and orange and put these in the bucket. Once the dandelions had finished boiling I poured all this in too and let it sit overnight.

On Sunday morning I added a teaspoon each of nutrient, tannin and pectolase and sprinkled in the yeast.

After a very busy Thursday at work, getting everything done before a week's holiday in Cornwall and staying until 6:30, I put this into its demijohn. Its colour is a gorgeous mustard yellow and I get a good feeling about this wine.

The gorgeous yellow doesn't look quite as biege as this!

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

Rhubarb Wine - Tenth Bottle (A4), 22nd-23rd April 2016

For a second night on the trot I left Claire home alone while I was out galavanting. This time I was drinking (too much) beer with Matthew and John, reminiscing about Emsleys and catching up with each other's news. Claire had rhubarb wine for company and a quiet night.

On Saturday we each had a large glas before Music Club - I was performing a Peter Muller wind quintet and thought wine could only help. It didn't. I remained as nervous as ever. We played fairly well, and I don't know why I feel more pressure playing at Leeds Music Club than anywhere else.

Where Matthew, John and I went drinking

Blackcurrant Wine - Tenth Bottle (B1), 19th-21st January 2016

Kirsty came to stay on Tuesday night: she had a meeting in Leeds on Wednesday morning and we were a convenient base. I had already arranged wind quintets in Ilkley that night, so I opened a bottle of blackcurrant and left Claire and Kirsty to it. I imagine they spent the evening chatting about embroidery, shoes and the colour pink. There was still wine in the bottle when I got back, so I had a nightcap and caught up with Kirsty.

Claire and I had the last half glass each on Thursday night while haggis was in the oven.

Blackcurrant Wine - Seventh Bottle (A2), 21st-22nd November 2015

It is rare that I go to a concert in which I am not playing, but that was the case on Saturday night. Chris, the clarinettist in Tony's quintet, was the soloist in Mozart's Clarinet Concerto with Harrogate Phil, and three-quarters of the remaining quintet were there to cheer him on. I felt properly nervous as Chris played but, of course, he was brilliant. At the end of long semiquaver passages he visibly gasped for air as a diver might coming up from ocean depths.

On our return I opened up a bottle of blackcurrant, and it was lovely with its alcoholic Ribena taste. We finished it on Sunday after I had spent most the day up a ladder painting an acre of ceiling.

Rhubarb Wine - Fourth Bottle (A2), 30th September - 1st October 2015

I showed great forebearance by not opening this bottle until Claire came back from WYSO; a strings-only rehearsal. This was particularly the case because I spent the evening reading our latest Book Group book - After Me Comes the Flood by Sarah Perry, which is tedious and over-written. But once Claire was home the cork was pulled and we settled in to watch Bake Off's semi-final. The wine slipped down as the tension twisted up. Why is it that I care so much about people I don't know making cakes I won't eat? It is excellent television.

We left enough wine for a glass each on Thursday. I was meant to be at Madeleine's for quintets, but she had forgotten and the house was empty.

Gooseberry & Elderflower - Tenth Bottle (A5), 20th-23rd April 2015

Another bottle of nasty gooseberry & elderflower dispensed with. Actually, it wasn't too bad - just bad enough. There is an underlying hint of bitterness and something a little cloying. Still drinkable, though.

This week has been a busy one, socially, for me. Orchestras started up again after Easter, I was in Ilkley on Tuesday, when this bottle was opened and then more wind quintets in Harrogate on Friday. That left Thursday to have my share of this wine. I had meant to be out drinking beer with a load of solicitors and other "professionals in the construction industry", and I even made it to the relevant pub. But on arriving I only recognised one person, realised that I didn't want to be there and walked out. Not a social triumph.

Crab Apple Wine - Fourteenth Bottle (A2), 16th-17th April 2015

As I was leaving for Madeleine's quintet Claire asked what bottle she could open. "Anything white," was my response.

"Dandelion?"

"NO."

"Crab Apple?"

"Erm."

So, crab apple it was, despite this also being the last bottle drunk.

On Friday we finished the bottle in some misery. The carpet man has been and the stairs and bathroom floor are no longer bare floorboards. It looks great. However, he is insisting on being paid in cash - not having made this clear at the outset - and we feel sullied. Also, he has somehow broken the burglar alarm*. More expense. Bah.

* To all would-be burglars who know my address, we have had the burglar alarm fixed.