ELDERFLOWER CHAMPAGNE
Elderflower Champagne holds a special place in our kitchen, a tradition we've upheld for the past five years, and we're eagerly looking forward to continuing it for many more.
The process of crafting this delightful ferment is as enjoyable as the end result itself. We're thrilled to share this beloved recipe with you.
If you're keen on embarking on a culinary adventure, why not try your hand at making this elderflower creation? It's certain to add a touch of magic to your kitchen!
ELDERFLOWER CHAMPAGNE
-15ish elderflower heads (strip the flowers off with a fork)
-8 lemons cut into pieces and juiced (organic/unwaxed)
-3kg of white sugar
-5g of champagne yeast
-8tbs apple cider vinegar
-4L hot water
-12L cold water
SPEACIAL ITEMS
-sterilised fermenting drum (with an airlock valve ideally)
-sterilsed muslin
-alcohol hydrometer (to measure the % of alcohol after ferment)
NOTES
-sterilisation is an important process don’t skip it
-also this can be a very active ferment so we recommend to use plastic bottles until you get the hang of things (to avoid any exploded glass bottles)
METHOD
1. Add sugar and hot water into a bowl to disolve sugar once disolved add to cold water to cool down. Set aside to cool to 20degrees celcius as you don’t want to kill the yeast when you combine later on.
2. Chop & juice lemons and add both rid and juice to your sterilised ferment container with your elderflower. Try to not include the green stems as much as possible, you really just want the flowers.
3. Dissolve yeast in room temp water and add to ferment.
4. Once sugar water mixture has cooled to 20 Degrees Celsius add to ferment container. Place lid on top, add water lock and seal to prevent contamination.
5. Store in a dark cool spot and leave to ferment for roughly 48hrs, stirring twice daily, you should start to see it bubbling on top.
6. Bottle into plastic bottles with twist top lids (be sure to strain it through sterilised muslin as you are bottling to remove any sediment.
7. Set bottles aside for one week in a cool dark place, then move bottles to the fridge for 1 week- throughout this process be sure to burp bottles at least once a day for the first week and then occasionally once they move into the fridge. Burp bottles by opening them slowly to release the pressure build up.
At this point you can test the alcohol % and enjoy. Note that unless you pasturise your champagne it won’t last too long!
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