PeterGreenMan
Wales
Posts: 43
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| Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 9:05 am Post subject: Making Country Wines |
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Is there anyone out there making country wines? I started because I didn’t know what to do with all the Gooseberries and Blackcurrants I inherited on my allotment. Since then, I have added Hawthorn and Damsons to my list. At about a bag of sugar per gallon please excuse my spellling.
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Peter
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Biita
Norway
Posts: 2048
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| Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 12:02 pm Post subject: |
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*holding up my hand*
Oh yes, oh yes, I sure do make wine. I love my wines. Sitting back in the evenings watching the sun, or talking to tourists. Now that i'm in the south, it will be just watching the sun and the neighbors,,, all around me,,, everywhere.
I make red, black and white current wines. Mjød, or a honey wine made with Sweet Meadow. Dandelion wine. Birch wine. Now that i am in the south i am hoping i can find some wild blackberries or bjørnbær, raspberries or bringerbær and some wild caraway or karve to try my had at aquavite. Or a potato liquor. Who knows what else i might find. Thats part of the fun!!
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toni
 Administrator
Plants Moderator
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North Texas, Zone 8a
Posts: 11709
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| Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 1:58 pm Post subject: |
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My husband has some Elderberry wine going now. In the past he has made Mead, Rootbeer wine  and a hot pepper wine that fried brain cells with just one sniff.
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bunkie
eastern washington
Posts: 1480
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| Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 2:40 pm Post subject: |
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count me in on the making of homemade wines! have a bunch of blackberries in the freezer that need to be used up, so will be starting a batch of Black raspberry wine today. i also make plum wine and apple wine every year. the elderflower wine i make is very strong, and is an excellent medicinal for colds and such.
in the past i have made all kinds of different wines. Marigold Wine tastes like the wine coolers on the market. Pea Pod Wine was tasty. Beet Wine, Tomato Wine, ok. you name it, i've just about tried it! haven't made Potato yet, tho. Rice Wine is delicious, and kind of whiskey like. so is homemade Parsley Brandy!
toni, Root Beer Wine??? can you post a recipe? pretty please?
and biita, tell your hubby i'm still waiting for that beer reciipe! 
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toni
Administrator
Plants Moderator
Regular Plants Contributor
North Texas, Zone 8a
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| Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 4:48 pm Post subject: |
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bunkie, I just posted the Root Beer Wine instructions in the Recipes and Cooking forum
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Droopy
Regular Plants Contributor
Western Norway
Posts: 9331
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| Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 5:25 pm Post subject: |
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*waving* We're on the country wine list too. I pick the ingredients, my husband makes it. We've got dandelion, rowanberry, redcurrant, elderberry, rhubarb, blueberry and some mix or other of grape/elderberry I think. Also we had some very nice apple-and-white-redcurrant wine, but that's all gone.
Next think on the "to-try"-list is elderberry flower wine I think.
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bunkie
eastern washington
Posts: 1480
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| Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 5:28 pm Post subject: |
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thanks toni! will check it out!
droopy, i forgot that we do rhubarb too...but there's another one, blueberry, we'll have to try!
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PeterGreenMan
Wales
Posts: 43
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| Posted: Fri May 08, 2009 8:09 pm Post subject: |
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Hi Droopy, hope I got that right.....
Never tried rowanberry, what's it like and do you mix it with something else? My wines are mainly made from mixtures of ... elder flowers in spring, then different combinations of hawthorn berry, damsons, blackberries, and black currants
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Peter
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Droopy
Regular Plants Contributor
Western Norway
Posts: 9331
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| Posted: Fri May 08, 2009 9:13 pm Post subject: |
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I like the rowan berry wine a lot. It's a nice, light, white wine that's good with an assortment of food. The trick is to freeze the berries to get the bitterness out of them, but that's all I know about the process.  That, and the picking.
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Biita
Norway
Posts: 2048
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| Posted: Sun May 10, 2009 9:51 am Post subject: |
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I make Rowen Berry wine also. Yep you have to freeze the berries first. Huge step that first one. When i make it, it is no different than any of the other wines. Same process. And Droopy is right it goes with almost any assortment of food.
I do "break" or mash my berries a little to help the process along better. other than that its just like making any other berry wine.
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PeterGreenMan
Wales
Posts: 43
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| Posted: Mon May 11, 2009 8:51 pm Post subject: |
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Hi Droopy hi Biita
Ok. I'm going to have a try at rowanberry, would like to try something different. Couple of questions.
Are we talking about the berries in the picture, from what I would also call a 'mountain ash'?
Do you need to add any lemons, oranges, or anything to it?
And do you get some of that red colour into the wine? Thanks.
Rowan or Mountain ash berries ( photo / image / picture from PeterGreenMan's Garden )
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Peter
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Biita
Norway
Posts: 2048
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| Posted: Mon May 11, 2009 10:06 pm Post subject: |
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yep those are the berries. The wine is a pale yellow or white wine. You can add the citrus to it. I add both the citrus to my dandelion wine, but i don't add it to the rowen. I have heard of mixing it with other berries, but have never tried that either. Maybe i need to expand my wine making...lol.
I did get a batch once that was a dark yellow, but i think that had to do with the natual pectin in that batch of berries,,,i don't know.
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PeterGreenMan
Wales
Posts: 43
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| Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 3:47 pm Post subject: |
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Hi Biita and every one
I've been looking at all the trees when I take the dog for a walk and have found only two with rather nice flowers on them. No mountain ash yet. Do you recognisee the flowers? My wife says that they have a rather nice scent so I'm thinking of wine........ what do you think?
Wine or no wine? ( photo / image / picture from PeterGreenMan's Garden )
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bunkie
eastern washington
Posts: 1480
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| Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 3:56 pm Post subject: |
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not sure what they are pgm, but, many flowers make great wines!
biita! i was thinking of you yesterday! it was a beautiful semi sunny day and i was out for an hour plus picking dandelions...about 20 minutes into it, it started snowing???!!! i managed to pick 10 quarts plus, and am following your recipe for Dandelion Wine!
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Droopy
Regular Plants Contributor
Western Norway
Posts: 9331
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| Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 8:18 pm Post subject: |
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| PeterGreenMan wrote: |
Hi Biita and every one
I've been looking at all the trees when I take the dog for a walk and have found only two with rather nice flowers on them. No mountain ash yet. Do you recognisee the flowers? My wife says that they have a rather nice scent so I'm thinking of wine........ what do you think?
Wine or no wine? ( photo / image / picture from PeterGreenMan's Garden ) |
Both flowers and berries will make a good wine, or so I've heard. We haven't tried it yet, since we just haven't gotten round to it.  There's plenty of Prunus padus around here, we just need to ask the ground owners for permission before wading in.
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