Very Wild Berry Mead

Raw local honey
Blaeberries (Vaccinium myrtillus)
Brambles (Rubus fruticosus)
Geans (Prunus avium)
Ling Heather flowers (Calluna vulgaris)
Water
Wild yeasts from all of the above

The alchemy of wild fermentation transforming and interweaving these wild ingredients into The Blood of Life

The smell wafting from the airlock is promising, the outcome utterly unpredictable and unrepeatable... Only time will tell if this is something wonderful or something minging!

Blaeberry Mead step 2

Straining off the must

 Fermentation is properly under way and I have strained the the juice out of the berries. It's smelling good, looking good and bubbling through the airlock convincingly...

First ferment with airlock

Blaeberry Mead

Fermentation slowly begins...
Perhaps the wild yeast is shy? I will be patient, wait and watch, keep it warm and stir regularly.

Gathering Blaeberries

Testing birch polypore plaster

 Interesting to see how the polypore stood up to being worn in bed over night, wetted with blaeberry juice, scraped by heather twigs and generally coping with rough usage while I was out wild gathering. It's looking a little ragged and has lost some of its width, but its still covering and protecting the wee cut on my finger.

Blaeberry Gathering film still

Fine Art Foraging

Expanding on my exploration of primitive ways, a new aspect of my art practice this term is foraging. As I found last year, it's the Process that is the Art, any object is just evidence of the Work.

My plan is to make a Blaeberry mead, using wild yeast off the berries to start the process, local honey for extra sugar and some heather flowers for extra flavour... The magic of fermentation transforming ordinary to extraordinary. Another form of alchemy.

As usual while out gathering, my eye is open for anything I can work with or eat. This time I picked up a young Birch Polypore off a fallen branch, thinking that I would have a go at making tinder or a knife strop. However, as I dinged my finger off of something it came in handy as a first aid plaster instead!