We stayed with friends just outside Brighton and got up early on Sunday morning to walk up to the cliff top and explore the green lanes for elderflowers. We make elderflower cordial every year but a couple of years ago had a problem getting one of the ingredients. In Boots the Chemist, Husb asked an assistant (who looked like she had just left school) for some citric acid,
Assistant “What are you going to do with it?”
Husb “Make elderflower cordial.”
Assistant “What’s that?”
Husb “Cordial made with elderflowers. Why are you asking?”
Assistant “Because drug dealers use it.”
Husb “Well, I want to make elderflower cordial so can I have some citric acid please?”
Assistant “Sorry, we don’t sell it anymore.”
Luckily, our local Asian grocer sold it in large bags on the spice rack.
I had to scribble very quickly, focussing only on the most important lines to capture the movement in my pink recycled sari sketchbook (size A5) using a Faber Castell Pitt pen, size F.
Elderflower cordial is addictive though. Especially when the sun is out! I’ve always wondered, because I’m such an ignorant townie, is the abundant overgrowth of those roadside green plants with upside down umbrellas of little white flowers, is that THE elderflower of the cordial?
Our are they blossoms from the elder tree? I even googled this but haven’t found any conclusive answer perhaps because I’m not trying hard enough… because surely Google knows everything!
Love the sketches. Such great tiptoeing stretching drawings! 🙂
They’re the blossom of the elder tree (sambucus nigra) that turn into elder berries in Autumn. But the trees are widespread in Britain and there’s even a pink variety with black leaves – Black lace. Lots of people have it but don’t make cordial with it. It’s so easy 🙂
So you can make cordial with the Black Lace variety too? I saw that recently and was wondering how easy it would be to grow because it’s so pretty!
I haven’t tried with black lace but I’ve been told you can. Worth trying a small batch to see.
Lovely with ice and a sprig of fresh mint on a very hot day 🙂
My Grannie used to make something called Elderflower champagne…a fizzy variety but non alcoholic as far as I can remember! Luckily we could pick our own elderflower … drinking this cold on a hot summer’s day … one of the fabulous memories of country life…I was the elderflower champagne maker’s assistant !
I haven’t tried making the champagne because of stories of exploding bottles!
Cordial the new drug. Hahaha… funny dialogue. 😀 And your sketches are nice. Have a nice day! 😀
Thank you. maybe we should start selling it on street corners 😀
Haha! Love that conversation between nosey unhelpful assistant and your husband. Maybe she thought cordial was some form of crack…
I know. She had absolutely no idea what elderflower cordial is.
It never ceases to amaze me that you are allowed by husb and others to scribble away while they do all the work! I expect that you will be partaking of the cordial even though you clearly have not done your part in harvesting the elderflowers. What a slacker!
Yup. I got the best end of the deal there lol 😀