What a difference water can make to a glass of cordial. Like Helen Savage’s blog below, I first tried the Strawberry and Elderflower Cordial with some not-that-cold tap water and was really disappointed with the resulting long drink. Then I gave it another go with some nicely chilled fizzy water and it made such a difference. This way, the strawberry in the cordial really tasted like fresh strawberries and it was delicious yet thirst-quenching. 

I have to say that I didn’t get the same result with the Pomegranate and Elderflower Cordial though. My thought is that pomegranate just doesn’t enhance elderflower and it just tastes a bit wishy-washy, even if I increase the cordial to water ratio. The colour of the liquid in the glass isn’t attractive either. This one isn’t for me.

However, it’s good to be doing some tasting because we are on the summer break for the press wine tastings I go to for work, so I need something to keep my palate in training!

Sandra Clement, Beckenham

One of my friends always drinks her white wine with ice in it, so when she came for dinner last Saturday, I added cubes to a glass of chilled Sauvignon Blanc. That got me thinking that, since many Sauvignon Blancs have elderflower characters, I could create an elegant-looking non-alcoholic alternative for the drivers among the guests by serving Elderflower Cordial topped up with sparkling mineral water and ice in a wine glass. And it worked!

Obviously, it’s not as dry as a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, but if you go carefully with how much Elderflower cordial you add, it’s a pretty good option. The bottle the cordial comes in helps too – it’s elegant enough and the label simple yet stylish enough to have on the table if guests want to add a little more cordial themselves to taste.

Sandra Clement, Kent

I’m one of the few wine writers who travels to France with almost as much wine as I bring home. Samples are part of the job, newspaper deadlines don’t respect holidays and anyway, my French neighbours in the Limousin love trying Chilean Syrah and Hungarian rosé. This year I added a box of Bottlegreen goodies to the boot. I don’t think the neighbours will get a look in.

Work in the sun has already hastened the demise of the Cox’s Apple sparkler and the new Williams Pear and Elderflower fizz.  Both hit the spot, although the Cox’s has a welcome tartness – perfect when you’re hot and dusty from weeding. The sweeter-seeming, richer pear drink is best really cold instead of coffee at elevenses.

We’ve also made serious inroads into two cordials. The new strawberry and elderflower was a bit disappointing when we first tried it with (not too cold) tap water, but came into is delicious own with fizzy water well chilled in the fridge.  It really does taste of strawberry – and not strawberry jam as it seemed with the tepid tap water. But we love the pomegranate and elderflower cordial. The slight astringency and greater impression of dryness makes it as refreshing as a cup of tea on a hot afternoon.

I don’t buy squash because every one I’ve tried tastes artificial, so Squeezy Squash was a refreshing change – and in every way as it wasn’t too sweet either.

The label design appeals to adults, but it’s definitely fun for kids with the squeeze factor. A couple of boys came over to collect their hamster, who’d had his holidays with us, so I opened both Blackberry and Apple and Apple. Both preferred it a bit stronger than it suggests on the label and each had a different favourite.

Flavour preference seems just to be down to personal taste as it was the same with my husband and I. Hubby really liked the Apple squash and thought it was just like having fresh apple juice. I’ve been back for several glasses of Blackberry and Apple. Like the boys, both of us liked a bit of a bigger measure.

Have to say though that adults – well certainly us – are having a few more issues with the squeezy bottle than the children as we are so conditioned to pouring drinks rather than squeezing them out. Yes, pathetic, I know, but both of us managed to squeeze squash in an arcing jet over the worktop instead of into the glass! And it’s really sticky, so took several wipes to clear up. I’ll make sure I remember next time!

Sandra Clement, Kent

Thank you to everyone who commented on our blog post, you have definitely help us with the decision making process for our new flavour (there is a clear favourite).

Congratulations to Julie Kenny, you have won a luxury Bottlegreen hamper!

Continue to follow our tweets to keep updated on our next competitions!

Love Bottlegreen

WE NEED YOUR HELP!…

We need you to tell us what flavour you prefer for our next squeezy squash.
Please comment on this blog to let us know which ‘flavour you favour’ out of the following:

- Orange & Mango
- Orange & Pineapple
- Orange & Passion fruit
- Strawberry

We at Bottlegreen love to hear what you, our customers think and really value your opinion. So we want to know what we can do for you and incorporate your opinion and taste into our next drink.

Comment on this blog and be in for the chance to WIN a Bottlegreen hamper full of the drinks of your choice.

ENTER NOW!! Competition closes TOMORROW at 4.30pm. HURRY! And Good luck!

Hi!

We’ve been basking in the sunshine recently and have developed a taste for delicious barbecued food. Here, at bottlegreen, we can’t wait for the next dose of sunny weather, not to top up our tans as you might expect but to dust off our barbecues and get grilling our veggies.

In the press recently it has been made apparent that fruit and vegetables can give you a natural glow, which I’m sure you’ll agree is a far better way of increasing our radiance than running the risks associated with sun beds. So, why not ditch the sun beds and chow down your ‘five a day’ instead- it’s great for your skin and contributes to a healthy diet!

To help get you started, we’ve produced a quick, easy and delicious recipe that you can whip up in no time and includes the all-important pepper.  Now described as a  ‘skin superfood’, the pepper not only adds natural sweetness to the dish but is packed full of vitamin C. Don’t despair if peppers aren’t your thing you can still top up your vitamin C levels with bottlegreen Still, all three flavours (elderflower, pomegranate & elderflower and apple & ginger) contain over half the RDA of vitamin C!

Give this recipe a try as part of your ‘5 a day’ and let us know if you see a glowing difference…

Barbecued Summer Vegetables with a Sweet and Spicy Pomegranate Dressing

These make a very tasty accompaniment to griddled meats, or simply add some barbequed halloumi cheese for a light and summery vegetarian meal.

Serves: 4
Preparation time: 20mins
Cooking time: 15mins

1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
200g cherry tomatoes on the vine
1 courgette
150g asparagus
1 red onion
2 sweet corn cobs
2 tbsp bottlegreen Pomegranate and Elderflower Cordial
4 tbsp olive oil
Juice of ½ lime
1 large red chilli
Handful coriander

Method:
1. Core, de-seed and cut the peppers into quarters, divide the cherry tomatoes into bunches, slice the courgette into thick strips, trim the asparagus and cut the onion and sweet corn into wedges.
2. Mix together the cordial, olive oil and lime juice. De-seed and finely slice the chilli, finely chop the coriander and add to the dressing.
3. Barbeque or griddle the vegetables until softened, spoon over the dressing and serve immediately.

Congratulations to our winner Martine!

You have won a luxury Bottlegreen hamper and a green & spring holiday prep set with this great tip:

“My favourite drink is Bottlegreen elderflower cordial which I serve with my home made lemonade, with crushed ice cubes, very refreshing. I also add elderflower cordial to my strawberry and cucumber salads as part of the salad dressing, with lemon juice and black pepper- it never fails to receive compliments.”

This is great and we love it!!

Thank you for entering the competition! Your tips were great and we are pleases they can be shared with everyone else and were so glad all of you are enjoying our drinks!

If you didn’t win this time look out for future competitions as we have more Bottlegreen and green & spring goodies to give away!

Have a great summer! (Despite this weeks weather!

Love bottlegreen and green & spring

Summer Greetings!

How would you like to have the perfect body for the summer holidays?..

With summer just around the corner, Bottlegreen have teamed up with Green & Spring, the all natural, British bath and body brand, to help you prepare your skin for the holidays.

We are offering the opportunity to win a luxury Bottlegreen hamper and a wonderfully indulgent collection of products from Green & Spring.  The hamper will include a full selection of our refreshing natural drinks as well as Green & Spring’s Indulging exfoliating body balm, Revitalising exfoliating body wash, Relaxing body lotion and Skincare deep face scrub; the ideal products to prepare your skin for summer with natural ingredients inspired by the British countryside.  The value of the entire hamper is over £100.

To enter this competition simply comment on this blog post by answering the following questions:

What is your favourite Bottlegreen drink for summer?  Do you use any Bottlegreen drinks in a cocktail?  Do have any top tips (we love adding some gin to our strawberry & elderflower cordial in a tall glass with some ice and sparkling water – scrumptious!)?

Enter now – don’t miss out on these fantastic Green & Spring products to revitalise your body this summer!

Competition closes on 04-06-2010, so hurry!

 

I took a bottle of the Party drink to my friends house last week where we celebrated her sister’s birthday.  As I was driving I wanted to take something to drink that still made me feel part of the party without drinking alcohol.  The Party drink was perfect.  The taste had a touch of cider about it and I didn’t feel in the least bit left out by my boozy friends!  I let them have a taste and they all agreed that “Party” is the best name for it.  Even the bottle is festive!  I love it and I won’t be waiting for another party to drink another bottle of “Party”.

Helen – Cardiff