The days are getting longer (just about), the birds are getting noisier, and the ground is—well, still a bit too cold to do much with. But that doesn’t mean we’ve been sitting around twiddling our thumbs.
This year, we’re getting serious about elderflowers. We’ve planted more trees to add to the wild ones scattered around the farm, so hopefully, in a few years, we’ll have even more blossoms to turn into pressé (and maybe something a little stronger—watch this space).
Speaking of stronger drinks, we’re also testing out different vine varieties and locations, taking the first tiny steps towards our long-term dream of producing small-batch wines. It’s early days, but you’ve got to start somewhere, right?
And in the meantime, we have made beer! Bootneck Brewery is officially up and running—though thanks to the joys of licensing, we can’t actually sell anything just yet. But rest assured, we’re busy perfecting the brews (and doing plenty of quality control).
For now, we’re just waiting on the land to warm up so we can get stuck into another growing season. Bring on spring!