Rå bringebærsaft, Norwegian Berry Drink

I thought about making Glögg for our Norwegian dinner, that world-famous mulled wine of Scandinavia, but since it's primarily a Christmas thing, and we're well past the holidays, R and I decided on this berry drink instead. R's family drinks this regularly with any dinner, and he always remembers it being homemade, because of the abundance of berries in his grandparents' garden. You can buy it at the grocery store in Norway, but of course we also prefer the home made version around here. And since I don't really drink (alcohol) very much, I just love the idea of having a delicious, non-alcoholic drink to enjoy with a meal.

I'll admit that this isn't quite the season for a drink made primarily out of totally non-seasonal berries, but it was totally worth it. Totally. Expensive, as a result, but worth it.

Rå bringebærsaft, Norwegian Barry Drink
From the Haugesund Husmorskoles Kokebok

1 kilogram berries, your choice. We used raspberries for this version and I recommend them.
4 dl water (about 2 cups), plus more for serving.
3/4 - 1 kilogram sugar, we used 500 grams
16 grams of tartaric acid (only if you want to store it. If you're going to drink it right away, don't bother)

Mash the berries, then mix in the sugar and the 2 cups water. Pass through a fine-mesh sieve to separate the seeds and any pulp. Chill for several hours before serving. Before serving, thin it out with additional cold water. We used 2 parts water to 1 part berry juice, but that's according to personal preference.

Note: if you use blueberries instead of raspberries, increase the water to 8 dl, or about 4 cups.