Elderflower Cordial and a Soft Summer Day

A moment in the garden.

The elderflowers were just opening. Not the brash bloom of high summer, but that quieter stretch where the hedgerows start to whisper instead of shout. I gathered a basketful that morning, careful not to take too much from any one plant. The scent was honey and hay and something just shy of citrus and it felt like a good day to bottle the season.

From garden to kitchen.

Back home, the blooms were rinsed and shaken, then dropped into a big bowl with sugar, water, and a mess of sliced lemons. I stirred it gently with a wooden spoon, watching the petals swirl and settle like confetti in slow motion. The whole kitchen smelled like a solstice party.

It sat for two nights, quietly steeping. A soft fizz built at the surface and the lemons turned translucent like sun through stained glass.

The taste of it.

The first sip is always a surprise. Bright, floral, and so unmistakably June. We poured it over ice, added sparkling water, and drank it with dinner for a week.



Elderflower Cordial

20 heads of fresh elderflower

1.5 litres water

1kg sugar

2 lemons, sliced

50g citric acid

Boil the water and pour it over the flowers, sugar, lemons and citric acid, in a large bowl. Cover with a clean tea-towel, and steep for 24–48 hours. Strain, bottle, and store in the fridge. Keeps for a few weeks, or freeze in ice cubes for longer.