Beginning of the Summer wine

Last Beginning of the Summer wine - yes, it must be summer because I'm dreaming of sitting in my garden sipping a glass of ice cold white wine in the evenings...

I don't very often drink these days - mainly at Christmas, or if I'm out for a meal with friends (a rare occurrence now!)

But I've been fancying a glass of white wine for a while now.
We have a few bottles of red in the house left over from Xmas - but I've decided I'm going to make some of my own wine for this summer!

I'm going to make 3 white wines:
- An elderberry flower wine - from a kit which will be ready in late July!!!
- An Apple and grape juice wine - ready in about 3 months
- A Lemon wine - ready in about 6 months!

I'm also going to make:
- a Rose wine from a kit
- A Rose Red grape and White grape juice wine - ready in about 3 months
- and a Ginger wine - ready for Xmas!! (recipe here)

Don't worry - I'll be passing on some of these wines for Xmas presents!
It's only the kit wines that will be drunk over the summer months (between ourselves and friends!)

If these go well then I might experiment with more wine making next year - more of my grow your own /make your own lifestyle!!!!

I also want to pick sloes this year and make some Sloe Gin for Xmas:

Sloe Gin Recipe

Pick sloes from blackthorn hedges in October or November.
Cut or prick the sloes and drop into an air tight glass container, e.g a Kilner Jar
Cover your sloes with gin and add 1-2oz sugar per pint.
Seal
Turn or agitate the bottle daily for a week, then weekly for a month or two
Keep for as long as you can before drinking!

To Serve - strain liquor into small glasses and add a few sloes for effect!