[DeepSouthBamaGRITS]

Have you ever had or made elderberry syrup before now? Elderberries can be very tart to bitter depending on the variety. In my area we have wild native elderberries that are extremely bitter. They have an “earthy” fruity smell when dehydrating but it isn’t offensive. I add other ingredients to my elderberry syrup to make it more palatable. These ingredients include homegrown culinary ginger & turmeric, cinnamon, cloves, and freshly grated nutmeg. After it has cooked down, cooled & I have strained it, I add local raw honey as a sweetener and then bottle it up. This year I’m going to try another spice, Star Anise, that has medicinal benefits and has a light black licorice taste. I did not like the elderberry syrup without a sweetener added as it was too bitter for my liking. I will also make a cup of hot tea using dried elderberries & whatever spices I have handy but I also let it cool a bit then add the local raw honey. Adding raw honey to any hot liquid will reduce or destroy the medicinal benefits of the honey.
Did your elderberries have a BEST IF USED BY “DATE” that might have been expired or close to expiring? Sometimes they can have a strange smell if they are old and why I keep my elderberries vacuum sealed in mason jars with an oxygen & moisture absorber. I reseal the jar by vacuum sealing after each use to help preserve their freshness.

[SunshineKid-GardenCoach]

My hubby just made me some Elderberry syrup using Melissa K. Norris’ recipe, here is the link to her YT video on making the syrup: https://youtu.be/R_l7OGi4YNk

I asked him not to add any spices like cinnamon or cloves, just the elderberries and honey and it is very yummy! He used a brand of 100% Organic Dried Elderberries, brand is Purify Life. The dried berries do have the earthy berry smell but with the honey the syrup tastes great. We are growing elderberry plants to start harvesting our own berries next year. Used honey from our honey bees.

I woke up Friday morning with a sore throat with redness and white spots on my tonsils. I started taking some Echinacea tincture in tea and a tsp of the Elderberry syrup every four hours. I was also using a mouthwash rinse that has hydrogen peroxide. It’s now Friday night and the redness and white spots are gone and just a hint of soreness left in my throat. First time using echinacea and elderberries and am pretty impressed with how well it has worked in a short period of time.

[Dairyfarm-granny]

Best by was 7-2023 ordered off of Amazon. I have made Turmeric tea recently. For the Elderberry I added cinnamon, ginger, cloves. Simmered, cooled, added local honey. Think I will just do the Elderberries with nothing added but honey or cane sugar. If it still tastes bad it will make some expensive chicken feed or compost.

Thanks for all the comments