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| Here is just one view down 'our' Loke. A loke is a Norfolk word for a short, narrow lane which becomes a farm track that eventually leads to a dead-end. Ours fits that description with the bonus that it ends up as a fabulous footpath which includes some very fruitful hedgerows - great for foraging! |
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| The colourful ingredients above are all collected from the loke - including Sloes, Rose Hips, Haws and Blackberries. You may notice that the berries are thawing out; this is because I have frozen them which helps to break down their structure and yield maximum juice. The pulp in the middle is my extra-special ingredient - this is what is left-over from Karen's amazing Spiced Blackberry Liqueur Syrup!! When she makes it she just lets it drain in a muslin bag without squeezing which means that the remaining pulp is still full of the yummy intense spicy Blackberry flavour. |
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| My next task was then to pour over some boiling water and leave this to steep overnight. The following day I added sugar and yeast and left this in the brewing bucket for a further 7 or 8 days. I love the way it all takes on such a fantastic colour! |
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| During the initial fermentation, the yeast loves plenty of oxygen, but as fermentation slows the liquid is then strained into a demijohn and air is excluded using an airlock. Above you can see that I have gathered all the remaining pulp and berries into a muslin bag... |
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| ... and used our press to extrect every last drop. This is also where the maximum flavour is produced in the creation of (little drum roll) my Spiced 'Loke' Wine :) So what has this to do with next Christmas? Well using such fabulous ingredients it deserves to be left at least a year to mellow out before relaxing with a glass... |
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| ... and thinking of the lovely place where the fruit came from!! |
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| Happy Christmas and I pray that as we celebrate the greatest gift of all, he will fill the lives of all my friends in 'blogland' with many blessings throughout 2015. |
