Conversation:

Hi,

I made Elderflower Champagne according to River Cottage Bloke's Recipe only I added a few handfulls of wild rose petals as well.

I only left it to ferment in a bucket for 2 days and there was only a little foam when I bottled it a month ago. Now its all cloudy and full of pale yellow gunk sitting at the bottom and floating around in clumps and tiny cob-web strands.

I opened a bottle and it was really fizzy.
I sniffed it and it smelled wonderful.
I dipped my finger into it and it seamed OK.
I took a sip and it tastes great.

The yellow stuff could be yeast, is it safe to drink?

thanks.

This is yeast from the elderflowers and you may wish to re-think your filtering...buy a jelly/jam bag from a large chemists or from a wine dept at your local store or supermarket.I use 2 large hankies in the funnel and it seems to work.
*You need the yellow in the bottom of the bottle as this was the worker that made the Fizz!
Also..why the rose petals??This reminds me of age 6 perfume/slime made under the bed.
If the champers is too dry for your taste try a little blackcurrant juice (non-alocholic Kir) and fight off the takers.

I agree with the extra filtering suggestion. I buy bulk packs of Jay cloths (as they're really cheap and you can throw them away afterwards). I double layer them too. Be warned though, if you're using them for recipes that need you to squeeze all the juice out, like Elderflower Cordial (I've a collection of recipes for Elder at http://www.theelderbook.com), you have to be careful the often warm/hot gunk doesn't spurt out the top and cover you (covered my daughter with jam gunk before now!)