A little pre-planning

I have wine to make in quantity and I was not at all happy with the state of my fermenting bin when I checked on it the other day and so I am waiting for new ones to be delivered together with some other bits and bobs.  They are 5 gallon fermenting bins so will be ideal for some bulk sessions of wine making.

Last week I bought another couple of demijohns for the stash from the Charity shop and two days ago I received a surprise present from friends who knew I dabbled and they had procured me another two demijohns.  I therefore need to get started with the wine.  

I have already sourced quite a few oranges so it will just be a matter of getting a wriggle on when the fermenting bins arrive.  One of our main wines is orange carton wine which is a simple one to make, we have also used lemon (and PJL juice) and Grapefruit and a mixture of all three and it all thus far has come out well.  So now I have to be patient and wait - I am trying to sit on my hands honestly but truth is when I get an idea in my head I get terribly impatient.  I also want to get some apple and raisin on the go as well.

There are also a couple of more kits to make up as well.  I am determined to have quite a bit of wine ready for Christmas.  To tell the truth there are only certain wines that I do like, but for easy drinking I prefer homemade country wines they are light and have a lot of flavour.  So I am eager to getting stuck in again.

One of the bonuses if you produce your own fruit is that if you have too much of it on the food side then it can be frozen, or turned into home made wines.  So it never really goes to waste.  This is what my grandparents used to do.

I also have a couple of beer kits to get on the go as well.  So just waiting on the fermenting buckets before I can get started.

This year's rumptopf is also on the go - this is a favourite at Christmas for us served with cream.

I have also ordered some more Hex sauce bottles.  I use these for storing cordials and syrups and different sauces and vinegars in and I am mindful that I have a lot planned but was not sure whether had enough or not so some have been ordered from my regular supplier C Wynne Jones who are based in Wales, but who I have been using regularly for the past five years or so.   There is a link here to the company.

https://www.cwynnejones.com/

I also have two water barrel steps ordered and another water barrel is also on its way together with the linking/connecting kit for both barrels. The garden for next year is going to be a productive one way or another but one thing I have realised with this recent hot spell is that we need an extra source of water at all times and that I need the water butts as well to ensure that my plants get watered regularly.  I have to organise guttering for the shed but that will not be a problem as I also need some guttering for sowing peas in next year and so I can buy them together.

My idea for the potager has come together far too late for this year but not for next. However needless to say that with the bits and bobs I have grown this year things have come out well. There are still things I can do, but my main focus is on getting the garden cleared as much as I can and the greenhouse so that I have a head start for next year.  

I have a lot of canning and bottling to do as well so one way or another I think I am either going to be kept out of mischief or I will be in it right up to my neck as usual.  Would not want it any other way.

Catch you soon.

Pattypan

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