Topic: Tartaric Acid for Elderflower cordial

[samela]

Yes, thanks goodlife. Think I'll try your recipe too. Sounds yummy :)

[artichoke]

It can be fiddly back at home cutting the stalks off, and if you don't they seem to add their horrible smell to the mix. I grab a head of flowers on the tree with one hand, slice it off the tree with scissors with the other, very close to the flowers, and drop the handful of loose flowers into a bag slung over my arm. It's quite quick, just in case  it's useful to anyone else.

I always add citric acid to bring out the lemon flavour, and because it doesn't keep for very long, I freeze the syrup in yoghurt pots. Because it is syrupy it stays slightly soft, and a frozen teaspoonful in a glass of water is cooling and delicious.

[artichoke]

http://www.meridianstar.co.uk/citricacid.html


Thank you very much for putting up this website - the citric acid arrived in about 3 days, and is a much better price than buying fiddly little packs at the chemist (who tend to run out at this time of year).

[BarriedaleNick]

http://www.meridianstar.co.uk/citricacid.html


Thank you very much for putting up this website - the citric acid arrived in about 3 days, and is a much better price than buying fiddly little packs at the chemist (who tend to run out at this time of year).

No worries!  I just made up a batch of goodlife's recipe - well at the weekend - was just sat in the garden with some sparkling cordial and it's lovely!  The trick is definitely to use as many flower heads as possible...

[caroline7758]

Thought you might like to know, having tried Wilkinson's and my local home-brew shop to no avail, I got some from Tesco's- one with a separate pharmacy. Just made my cordial- hope ie's better than last year's- think I left it too late in the season, wasn't nice at all. >:(

[greenstar]

Does anyone know whether I can add the citric acid after the cordial's been bottled?  I made a couple of bottles the other week - my first attempt ever - and forgot to put it in.  And how long does the cordial keep - I see a few people are saying to freeze it.

Should I just chuck that lot and start again? :-\

[artichoke]

You can't chuck it! I don't see why it makes the slightest difference if you put the citric acid in after bottling, and shake it up a bit.

I freeze mine because I intend it to last all year round, and I know it doesn't unless frozen, citric acid or not.

[greenstar]

Thanks artichoke, I'm off to experiment.  Any idea how much citric acid I should put in a 75cl bottle?

[artichoke]

I have been using 50gm citric acid to 1.2 l of water (plus the sugar and flowers) so although I can't do the sum I'm sure you can. Let's say a teaspoon per bottle!

To be honest, I add it for the sharp flavour in lieu of buying and squeezing masses of lemons. So if a teaspoon in the first bottle tastes good to you when diluted, I would follow your taste buds.

Lots of people say they never use citric acid anyway, so it's a matter of personal tastebuds rather than a crucial factor in the recipe.

[sunloving]

This year was my first year of making this yummy stuff which im very proud of. But finding the citric acid was a problem the worst place was boots pharmacy where i was scowled at by a middle aged lady with to much make up who said loudly to her collegue , "its for drugies that citric acid"

after being charmed by the boots ladies i popped into the brew shop in lancaster and had a nice chat with a gorgeous assitant who said he'd had lots of people comming in with simular anecdotes and was happy to serve me with mine. I bought 500g becuase i hated going in chemists to be looked down at so it will do me for years to come!


unfortunately the blosoms over here! oh well. can you make elderberry cordial?
x sunloving