Oddbottles

20/12/2024

Day 1 at National Trust Calke Abbey Christmas Market 🎄✨️🎄✨️ with Curly Magpie & Friends & Firehound Forge

18/12/2024

Seasons greetings from OddBottles! 🎄⭐️🎄⭐️🎄⭐️

The organiser, [Curly Magpie] has kindly allowed me to have some last-minute space on my partner's Blacksmith stand [Firehound Forge] at this weekend's Christmas Market at The Riding School at Calke Abbey 🥰

There is a always a wide range of quality, handmade crafts, local foods, and festive drinks, so you're sure to find a gift or two, or at least another mince pie!

OddBottles will mainly have my:
- Blackberry Vodka (deceptively easy drinking, so go steady!)
- Two-year aged Sloe Gin (which is definitely worth the wait)
- Blood orange marmalade (zesty & good for waking up n the morning)
- Rhubarb, date & orange chutney (wonderfully warming flavour)

At the next Calke market, I'll have my whole stock back, freshly made (assuming the kitchen gets finished by then)!

I hope to see you there, but either way, have a safe & fun holiday x

Where: Calke Abbey, Ticknall, Derby, DE73 7LE
When: Open 10:00 to 18:30, Friday 20th - Monday 23rd December!

The market itself is free to enter, but Calke Abbey entrance prices apply.
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/peak-district-derbyshire/calke-abbey/events/43d20044-4be5-46d6-8226-650faeba4011

10/12/2024

Truly amazing! I know otters would appreciate this on many levels 😃

The molluscs are remarkably good at detecting pollution

09/12/2024

08/12/2024

Kitchen rebuild update:

The building works continue to be delayed from July...to September, then October and are now progressing, but it's anyone's guess which actual days are going to make progress until a few days before hand so planning has been 'interesting'. 🙇‍♂️

However, progress is being made. I no longer have the option of falling the best part of 3ft into the kitchen which my spine is grateful for (having fallen twice in August). 🤕

There is now a solid floor, the electrics & plumbing are in and the roof is insulated, although it's still damn cold! This coming week (if all goes to plan🫣) there will be insulated plasterboard and 'maybe' even plaster. The following week might include flooring, but I'm not holding my breath.

If it's all done (bar painting & refitting the kitchen) I'll be very happ(ily surprised)!

08/12/2024

Good news everyone!

Oddbottles has all sorts of lovingly handmade preserves available & I'm always happy to make batches of things I don't normally do.

Current stock includes Elderflower Cordial, Marrow & Ginger jam, Caremelised Onion marmalade, Blood Orange marmalade, Sweet Tomato & Chilli chutney, Rhbarb Date & Orange chutney, Sloe Gin & Blackberry Vodka.

I'm always happy to make small batches of the ever-popular Bramley-lemon curd. Just shout if you'd like anything!

The attached shows details of what I can make at this time of year.

Wishing everyone Otterly wonderful holidays! 💚

21/11/2024

17/09/2024

Thank you to everyone who came to Firehound Forge at Empire to try & buy my preserves.

Also, thanks for the lovely feedback about my triple choc GF brownies at The Spilled Tea tea room in the Brass Coast!

I hope you enjoy them. I'm always trying to improve, so please feel free to post feedback. 😄

08/09/2024

OddBottles will be at Empire for the first time at E4!

Some of you may have seen us at Curious Pastimes or at LarpCon.

I'll not be selling my alcohol (sloe gin & blackberry vodka) but will have a range of preserves in a little window of the side of Firehound Forge's hut just inside the OOC trade area.

Current stock includes:
- Raspberry balsamic vinegar
- Elderflower cordial
- Blackberry jam
- Blood orange marmalade
- Marrow & ginger jam
- Piccalilli
- Caramelised onion marmalade
- Rhubarb date & orange chutney

I won't bring the lemon n apple curd as there's nowhere cold for me to store it properly, but it'll be back at LarpCon in November!

There will be tasters for everything, so come & try some things!

17/08/2024

I know it's nothing to do with preserves, or even 'orange jam' as a friend keeps saying, but it's very silly & had to share.

Maybe it will inspire some of us to play back with scammers rather than get annoyed. It sens there's much fun to be had if you have the time.

Happy hunting!

17/08/2024

Whilst my brain is still working ( I don't know how at 02:00), my long standing plan is to get the OddBottles Etsy shop up & running so that I there's a better way to get tasty things out to people rather than wait for events.

It's 85% there, but as you can see from earlier posts, the fairly serious building works have changed the plan to more of a 'pl..'!

All being well, once my LARP season is over (end Sept) I'll have a bit of spare time and should have it up & running by early-mid October...this year!

17/08/2024

In case anyone is worried about the food hygiene side, I've done whole new risk assessments about how to maintain hygiene levels in the temporary kitchen/dining room/conservatory, because I can't physically work in the building site that was/will be the kitchen.

It does mean that I'm making less at the moment, but I'll hopefully be able to make stock for LarpCon UK in November.

There will be updates on the Oddbottles page as the kitchen goes back together. :)