[Jararvellir] FW: elderberries

[Mary Hoffman]

-----Original Message-----
From: Mary Hoffman
Sent: Monday, August 27, 2007 6:16 PM
To: 'northshield at northshield.org'
Cc: 'lazurus106 at aol.com'
Subject: elderberries

Cnut and others:

If you don't want to venture out on the highways and get fruit that may be covered with whatever the local traffic is spewing,  you can come to my house and pick the ones in my back yard. (DeForest WI, about 10 minutes north of Madison) I really won't have time for them this year and was going to leave them for the critters.  My bush was loaded last time I looked.  The mosquitos are also quite fierce so come prepared.  You can call me on my cell which I'll send out by reply email.

Thanks,

Marian Elizabeth Wollenschlager
Barony of Jararvellir


Message: 5
Date: Mon, 27 Aug 2007 10:06:41 -0400
From: lazurus106 at aol.com
Subject: [Northshield] Elderberrys are ripe now in Southern Wisconsin
        Picking class announced
To: northshield at northshield.org
Message-ID: <8C9B6CAA098562E-498-6FFD at WEBMAIL-DB13.sysops.aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Greetings Kinsman,

This weekend I finally stopped and picked a 3.5 gallon bucket full of elderberry sprays. Most berries were dead ripe from the 3 bushes I picked. That ?took about 10 minutes. As always getting the tiny berries from the stems is a lot more work Like 2 hours with a fork and one of my brewing pots.
It occurs to me that more people would use this fruit if they knew exactly what they looked like and how to use them.
?To whit I will take any interested parties out to pick elderberries from the many bush's lineing hwy 19 West of Waunekee, if your interested let me know?
I'm currently planning on going out again thursday evening around 6 pm. I don't have to mention that they make good pies, jams, liquors and winter potions (very high in vitamin c).
?The 3.5 gallon bucket of sprays gave me a gallon of berries. Which after being frozen will give me right around a quart of juice (the berry is about 1/2 seed) That quart very nicely flavors a 6 gallon batch of wine or mead if you have tried my Elderberry mead or wine That's how they are flavored. It gives a wine a truly glorious red color.
Cnut
PS If your not from Southern Wisconsin and want a elderberry picking class. We could do another on the weekend if you want to come down.
PPS keep in mind that as with most intensly flavored wines this needs at least 2 years ageing before it come to its potential. thats why I start at least one batch a year to keep up with use.

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