Hi all, so we grow a lot of Elderberry in our landscape. We propagate via cuttings for our own planting as well as for sale through our nursery business. Consequently we have copious amounts of berries and we make a good syrup to help bolster the immune system. My question is how to make it more stable and store better without just adding a ton of sugar. Has anybody tried canning it?? - Rory, Folk Rock Farm
Is fermenting possible in your situation?
Canning would destroy beneficial enzymes, but probably a viable option until the can is opened, then it might grow bacteria pretty quickly. Probably similar to canned peaches in light syrup. Sugar is a preservative and is a good option for what you are doing(making syrup). If you werent doing syrup, you could always alcohol extract, then add it into a syrup/honey or whatever you want when you need it. That would provide really good shelf life as long as you keep it in a dark cool place.
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Interesting idea…perhaps an Elderberry kombucha? Thanks for the input. I’ll check that out a bit further!
True, a tincture sounds like it could be a viable option!
Add the sugar. 76% and sugar becomes anti microbial.
Just add the sugar.
Even if you want to make elderberry kombucha later, The safest way is with juice and your going to need to use the syrup over time you dont just make one big batch of kombucha like you would a wine.
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I can mine, always.
I essentially cook down the berries, strain, and add honey (I’d have to hunt around to find the recipe to detail volume of honey to volume of berry juice) and cinnamon sticks, bring to a boil and ladle off into clean canning jars, place lid & ring, invert for 5 minutes then flip. They seal and will keep for years in the pantry… though I can’t vouch for efficacy.
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make a sugar based syrup and freeze it in small batches. thaw it when you need it… it will last a very long time. i do that with cherry and black currant juice in plastic soda bottles. they will stretch some when they freeze if you didnt leave enough headspace. ive never had one burst. elder, ginger, cinnamon and a splash of lemon will fight your worst pestilence. i sometimes add b currant or aronia also. a tincture works good also and the alcohol aids in its quick absorbtion.
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I wish there was a way to do it without intense sugar or heating the honey. I want the benefit of the raw honey, so I let my berry reduction cool before adding honey. We don’t like ultra sweet, so I only add about 1T honey per cup of berries and it definitely ferments in the fridge. But, it doesn’t mold and I prefer the way the flavor changes. Maybe next year I’ll leave a batch to see how long it can last. I’ll be reading to see if anyone has a better way to do it as it’s a bit of a pain making a new batch every month.
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try freezing it like i mentioned above. find some 12oz. plastic bottles and freeze in that. this way you dont need as much sugar. i stack mine on top of each other in my stand up freezer. you put them standing, without the cap then once frozen i cap them and stack them on top of each other.
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Interesting tip about not capping until frozen. I will have to try this!
The syrup part is easy . Using a candy thermometer or digital probe. Boil your sugar water until the temperature hits 230F.
The hard part is figuring out how many flowers to use. You should be able to mix 1 part syrup and 5 parts water for a tasty drink.
25 head
1kg of sugar
1kg of water
1tsp of cream of tartar to speed the inversion of the sugars.
boil till temp = 230F
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I juice mine with a press, sometimes before simmering and sometimes after. (I label which, and always simmer it before consuming since most of mine is Marge, a European cultivar). I freeze in plastic deli containers, thaw as needed and usually drink without adding sugar/honey.
I also use it to make 3 gallons of wine annually, usually mixed with blackberry. Not sure if there is any medicinal properties in the wine but I usually feel better after drinking some 
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