Making an elderberry elixir

I love that moment when I've just made some new potions. I get to watch over them for the weeks it takes for them to be ready, and then have the anticipation of straining them off and trying them. I share this because I've just made two elderberry potions in readiness for the winter months. The first is simply an elderberry tincture - elderberries in vodka. I've made this for the last couple of years and taken it throughout the winter to help ward off sniffs and snivels, particularly nice in this warming winter tea.

The second is an Elderberry Elixir, which I haven't made before. I went gathering on a early morning walk yesterday (isn't it wicked how the biggest, juiciest elderberries are always at the top of the tree!) Just hearing the list of ingredients gets the taste buds tingling: elderberries, cinnamon, ginger, rosehips, orange peel, brandy and honey. Yum! I've followed a recipe from Sarah Head, which she in turn has based on a recipe from Kiva Rose. You can read the full recipe on Sarah's blog.

I can't wait to taste this as apparently its scrumptious. In terms of how to take it, Sarah writes:

Take 1/4 - 1/2 dropperfull of Elixir every two to three hours at the first sign of illness. You MUST take the Elixir frequently rather than having a bigger dose further apart, it just won't work that way. Use the same dosage if you are actively ill. For a general preventative dose, I suggest 1/3 dropperful every four hours or so.

I wonder why it needs to be taken so frequently to work? I'm making this mainly for my mum as she isn't so keen on tinctures. I like the idea of having this in a dropper bottle as it will make it easy to carry around and take frequently.

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