Uncooked Black Currant Syrup

Recently I got this question from my black currant jam loving 5-year old grandson. With his most pleasing voice he asked: "Grandmother, do you know how to make black currant syrup?"

I immediately knew why he asked because we never seem have any berry syrup in the house. We usually don't drink sweet syrups at all. However, I decided to make an exception for his sake.

My four black currant bushes produce a fabulous crop every year and this berry syrup is so easy to make. It can be made without sugar if it should be necessary for medical reasons. I found it best to mash half the berries at a time. I didn't remove the stalk and flower-remnants.

Black currant berries are a good source of vitamin C. This vitamin is easily destroyed by oxygen. Cold, fresh tap water directly from the faucet contains oxygen. It can partially be removed by boiling the water.

INGREDIENTS
* 5 liters/5000 ml fully ripe black currants, fresh or frozen
* 2 liters/2000 ml water, boiled and cooled
* 3 teaspoons citric acid
* 600 ml sugar per 1000 ml of black currant juice

METHOD:
1. Bring the water to the boil, add citric acid, and set aside to cool.
2. Meanwhile, put the berries into a large thick plastic bag.
3. With your hands and fingers, mash the berries to extract the juice.
4. Then pour the mash into a large stainless steel container.
5. Pour the water over the berries, and give it a stir.
6. Cover with a lid and leave the mixture in a cool place to infuse for 24 hours.
7. Strain off the juice through a jelly-bag or a very fine sieve.
8. Measure, add sugar, and stir well to dissolve the sugar.
9. Pour into suitable, rather small, plastic bottles, and store in the freezer.

Note: 5 liters berries = 2500 grams = 5.51155 pounds

Now I have about 2 ½ litres (2500 ml) uncooked black currant syrup. If you want to make less than what this recipe yields, consider making only half of it. The black currant syrup is meant to be served diluted with water.

In the United Kingdom, blackcurrant juice is sometimes mixed with cider to make a drink they call Cider and Black. I believe it is an alcoholic drink which is made like this: They pour a splash of sweet blackcurrant juice into a glass, and then they fill the rest of the glass with strong dry apple cider.

Real cider is a wonderful thing but much of the cider products I find in my stores are non alcoholic and far from the real thing.