Prune & Parsnip Wine 2020 - Fourth Bottle (5), 23rd October 2021

It has been a quiet Saturday, though originally Chris & Kate were meant to stay for the weekend. That they have both fallen ill (not Covid, I think) is unfortunate but at least it meant that I didn't have to spend two hours tidying frantically. Instead I have shopped, played my mother at Scrabble, made a fabulous bread & butter pudding (from the remains of the Gugelhopf) and tried to watch Lego Batman, which was a fail from me. Oh, and drunk half a bottle of Prune & Parsnip, which is Perfectly Pleasant

Wiggy on 23 October

Elderberry Wine 2019 - First Bottle (B3), 4th September 2021

I left this vintage two years before opening the first bottle. As a consequence I have avoided a disappointing thin and metallic elderberry wine. This bottle was a fine elderberry: rich and dark, with a hint of real wine.

Duncan and Rachel are here: our first overnight visitors since the Before Times, and our house is tidy! We had a lovely evening which started with negronis and ended with bush tea. Then tomorrow we go to Aysgarth to begin a 52 mile walk round the Herriot Way. Wish us luck!

Taken on 5th September - at Aysgarth Church

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

Blckcurrant Wine 2019 - Ninth Bottle (A3), 28th March 2021

Sunday was a day full of domestic chores. The best of these was making Blondies with Peanut butter-cream icing (calorie content: astronomical) but there was also much sweeping and tidying. Not that there is anyone allowed to visit until 17th May, but sometimes I get fed up of living in grime. 

In the evening I opened this bottle of blackcurrant wine - which was as tasty a bottle as blackcurrant can be - and we had a beef & spring onion stir-fry courtesy of Padian Foods. Blisteringly hot as ever - which is not a bad thing. Then Line of Duty and a sleep interrupted by two mice gifted by Wiggy.

Blondies - they were fabulous!

Blackberry Wine 2018 - Ninth Bottle (B5), 3rd October 2020

Claire and I have known each other 25 years. A quarter of a century ago I met her on the way to Newcastle Concert Band. I can barely remember a time before Claire. To celebrate, I bought a vacuum cleaner, which Claire is using as I write. Our previous one broke in March and we have been living in a fog of cat hair ever since. I also opened a bottle of blackberry wine and cooked Toad in the Hole. Both were exactly what was needed on a dark October day.

Self portrait in blue - taken on 3rd October

Xmas Tutti Fruti 2014 - Final Bottle (A2), 25th December 2019

Merry Christmas to one and all. I had left this bottle for several years because I think it is absolutely the best wine that I have ever made. But I didn't want it developing that sherry taste that fruit wines can get if left too long. Therefore Christmas Day, five years after it was made, seemed a suitable occasion. 

We are hosting festivities in Leeds this year, with all Taylors down to stay, and it has been a lovely day. Claire and I started it at the Park Run in Roundhay Park: she was running and I most definitely was not. There were hundreds of runners there - many in costume. The Taylors arrived at about one (I was still sweeping) and from then on the day was full of laughter, food and rather too much to drink.

Waiting for the Park Run to begin

Blackberry Wine - Second Bottle (A5), 3rd November 2019

It is unusual for my blackberry wine to taste like real red wine, but this bottle gave a good impression of it. There was a richness and depth that I don't associate with Bramble Wine. We drank it to a Chinese beef and red pepper dish - we ate and drank well on Sunday night.

The day was spent starting the tidying process for the Wine Party on Saturday. I would love to be one of those people who can effortlessly keep their house in order and clean. At the age of 49-and-a-third, I think it is time to admit defeat.

Kiwi Fruit Wine 2018 - The Making Of...

Easter Monday should be spent in the garden, followed by a trip to the Garden Centre. This is simply what middle-class, middle-aged British people do. It is our cultural duty. On 2nd April 2018, I failed my nation. In my defence, for much of the day it was snowing and when not snowing there was a torrent of rain. Instead, I spent the morning tidying our bedroom (unearthing paraphernalia from Amsterdam - I was last there in 2016) and the afternoon making kiwi-fruit wine.

I have only made this flavour once before - five years ago - though if you google 'Kiwi Fruit wine' it is the second web page out of the box. I made up the recipe that time and pretty much followed it this. To start, I counted out 20 kiwi fruit, weighed them and added another two to bring the weight up to 3 lbs 8 oz. I cut each of them in half, held the half over the bucket and scooped the insides out with a spoon, discarding the skin. This had the advantage that the flesh and all spare juice landed squarely in the bucket. On the downside I discovered a combination of fine kiwi fruit hairs and acidic kiwi fruit juice has blistered my finger and caused an irritating rash. How I suffer for my hobby!

I mashed the fruit with a potato masher, added 3 lbs of sugar and poured over 6½ pints of boiling water. On Tuesday morning I put in a teaspoon each of nutrient, pectolase and tannin (I can't imagine that it needs any additional acid) and added the yeast. I then left the wine in its bucket until Saturday morning, 7th April, mostly forgetting to stir it twice a day.

On Saturday I got up early - Claire has just got a new phone and her alarm turns out to be a rooster call, which refuses to be turned off - and did my wine-making jobs before ten. Transferring the wine to its demijohn was straightforward and I could have reduced the water in the initial mix by a quarter of a pint - but at that level it won't make a difference. I am pleased that the wine has a distinctly green tinge, albeit on the greyish side. Claire thinks it looks like summer pond water - full of algae but (hopefully) no fish.

Rhubarb Wine - Thirteenth Bottle (B6), 10th March 2018

Richard & Linda came round for a meal, and what a meal it was. We started with a carrot & orange soup accompanied by walnut sourdough bread. Our main course was a smoked mackerel quiche with potato slices roasted in lemon juice and rosemary. We broke for a cheese course and then finished up with rhubarb fool and ginger shortbread. Claire made it all (other than the cheese) and my contribution was shopping and tidying. I feel I got the better deal.

I opened a bottle of rhubarb wine on the basis that Richard prefers dry whites. He was really impressed with this one - thought it was one of the best of mine he had drunk. A grand evening.

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!

Blackberry Wine 2014 - Final Bottle (B2), 24th September 2017

I wrote myself a list of jobs for the day. Saturday had been wasted arsing about on the computer and napping; Sunday had to be better. So I baked bread, made Mediterranean lemon squares for work on Monday, paid bills, tidied, cleaned and swept. Consequently I felt rather better about myself and opened this final bottle of blackberry wine as a reward. It was sausages, onion gravy and mash for tea therefore the wine had to be red. In fact, this wine has aged badly - and it was never the best vintage of blackberry anyway. It was drinkable with more than a hint of blackberry taste, but its flavour has started to decay and, unlike the day, the wine was disappointing.

Blackcurrant & Raspberry Wine - Seventh Bottle (B3), 17th-18th August 2017

I took this bottle to Rydal with me, but there it remained undrunk (unlike me). Instead, Claire opened it while I was out playing trios with Pat & Peter. I had a good-night glass on my return, leaving half the bottle for Friday night, where it was shared with Bob & Judith as our first drink of the evening. This was known as 'tidying up' and therefore a helpful thing to do. The wine is still very good: the fruit taste is abundant and whilst lighter than a true red wine it manages to avoid thinness.

Rhubarb, Elderflower & Mint Wine - Fifth Bottle (B2), 25th February 2017

I think this is one of the best white wines that I have ever made. It is light, refreshing, summery and has a subtle mint jab. Just delicious. I put it in the fridge because I thought Claire deserved a treat after bad news about her job on Friday. In other attempts to win the "Best Husband 2017" award, I spent the day shopping, tidying, washing clothes, sorting through compost bins (not as disgusting a job as I had anticipated) and cooking a meal of Greek-style fish stew, pan-fried new potatoes and spinach. (Claire was at a viola masterclass in Ilkley for much of this.) The fish stew was lovely, and simple - always a good combination.

Fig Wine - Fifth Bottle (2), 2nd-3rd July 2016

I have just counted up. We had 44 people through our doors this weekend. Having owned the house for exactly a year, we though it high time that we throw a party. This meant getting every room tidy (it took a week), buying more cheese than was strictly necessary, baking three types of cake and 2 types of biscuit, and opening seven bottles of wine. Fig was one of these, and as good as always. Many peopled were intrigued by this flavour and I heard someone compare it to port.

Blackberry Wine - Eleventh Bottle (C2), 27th-28th June 2016

I have been grumpy all evening. Mostly through a combination of existential worries about our nation and having to cook. Plus I have spent some of this evening tidying the attic in anticipation of the housewarming this weekend. Fizzy, dry blackberry wine (not my best vintage) helps a little. We would not ordinarily have a bottle on Monday & Tuesday, but the weekend was stuffed with concerts and therefore wine-free. Saturday was the Pontefract Castle Proms concert. Playing Land of Hope and Glory was particularly inappropriate.

Blackberry Wine - Fifth Bottle (A6), 13th December 2015

It has been a long time since Claire and I had a quiet Sunday. But for the first time in months, we didn't have to go anywhere, paint anything or visit the tip with armfuls of junk. We did tidy the attic, but much of that was fun - consolidating personal history and looking through family albums, including letters written in the 1860s from one ancestor to another.

The wine was drunk quietly in front of the stove, as we watched flames dance around logs. Blackberry is a fine winter wine, made for evenings like this.

Rhubarb & Elderflower Wine - Fifth Bottle (3), 13th September 2015

We wanted something specifically associated with this house to drink in celebration, for today someone has put in an offer to buy it. This means that we no longer have to keep it spotless at all times, make sure the washing up is done and put away, and we can move the cat food back to where it needs to be. So today has been a Good Day. Exhausting too, what with the gardening, wine-making, bread-making and our final tidying session.

The wine was really good, with hints of spice (which is unexplained). We both drank too much, though, because we still had a bottle of rose petal to finish.

Rhubarb Wine - Eleventh Bottle (A2), 2nd September 2015

Wednesday nights are not whole bottle nights. Or at least they shouldn't be. Somehow we managed to finish this rhubarb wine. It took little effort. But Claire has the week off work. When I had a week off by myself I went galavanting to Wales. Claire has stayed at home to put the house in order before it goes on the market. Mostly this involves decluttering. I think I got the better deal.

Blackcurrant & Red Gooseberry - Fifth Bottle (2), 30th August 2015

Sunday is meant to be a day of rest. I spent it washing floors, tidying rooms and digging soil. It is a hard life. The cleaning tasks are in preparation for putting our house on the market. Until we get a buyer, we are going to have to live without clutter and mess. It will be a challenge. The gardening was at the new house, where we met more neighbours. There is a definite feel of community there - and it turns out a former colleague lives two doors down.

We drank this wine to two splendid curries, one of which involved mutton, and the wine was suitably fruity. It is another one which matures well.

From this ...

... to this

Kiwi Fruit Wine - Fifth Bottle (5), 25th May 2015

Claire was sufficiently impressed with this bottle to describe it as "like cheap white wine". I could ask for no better compliment. (And, in fact, I think it reaches into the mid-price range.)

We drank this on bank holiday Monday, which was anything but a holiday. Cleaning and tidying was the order of the day, virtually without let-up. But now our house is tidier that it has been since we moved in 17 years ago. I walk into each room just to admire its order. How long we can maintain this is another matter. I think 48 hours will be pushing it.

This level of untidiness is not atypical

Elderberry Wine - Eighth Bottle (A3), 24th May 2015

Claire cooked lamb koftas and a bottle of rich, sweet elderberry was the right choice to complement the heat and the spice. We deserved it, though. Sunday marked our second of three days spent cleaning and tidying. Our attic is now clear of all the carpet offcuts left by previous owners, though we have kept the rather splendid 1970s curtains found in a bag. The kitchen counters are clean and we have generally de-cluttered. We are a long way from minimalism, however.

The 1970s curtains, as modelled by me in a break from tidying.