Wine from whole fruit
Blueberries are coming into season and these days they're cheap as dirt. I've heard that they make awesome wine so I'm going to give it a shot. I'm making 5 gallons. Here's the recipe and the process:
16 lbs blueberries
9 lbs sugar
1 tbsp pectic enzyme
2 1/2 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp acid blend
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1/2 tsp potassium metabisulphite
Wine yeast
First you crush your berries.
You also need to boil a couple of gallons of water and dissolve the sugar in it. Once your berries are crushed add the boiling water to them, top up with water to 5 gallons (I did 5.5 gallons) and mix in your potassium metabisulphite. You can also add a few pounds of chopped raisins or a can of frozen grape juice concentrate if you want your wine to have more body. Let the must sit covered for a few days. I use a lid with a hole in it. Some people just lay a cloth over the top.
After a day or so add the pectic enzyme, yeast nutrient, yeast and acid blend. You can also add some tannin. Also, check the gravity. If it's not at least 1.090 add sugar until it is. After 5 days or so you press the fruit and rack to a fermenter. The wine should start to clear within a few weeks. Once it's clear rack it to a secondary fermenter. Let it clear again. Rack it. Wash, rinse, repeat until the lees (the cake that develops on the bottom of the fermenter) is less than a half inch or so thick. You should only have to rack it two or three times at the most. Once it's clear and the lees is mostly gone bottle it. Let it age for at least 1-3 months.
16 lbs blueberries
9 lbs sugar
1 tbsp pectic enzyme
2 1/2 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp acid blend
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1/2 tsp potassium metabisulphite
Wine yeast
First you crush your berries.
You also need to boil a couple of gallons of water and dissolve the sugar in it. Once your berries are crushed add the boiling water to them, top up with water to 5 gallons (I did 5.5 gallons) and mix in your potassium metabisulphite. You can also add a few pounds of chopped raisins or a can of frozen grape juice concentrate if you want your wine to have more body. Let the must sit covered for a few days. I use a lid with a hole in it. Some people just lay a cloth over the top.
After a day or so add the pectic enzyme, yeast nutrient, yeast and acid blend. You can also add some tannin. Also, check the gravity. If it's not at least 1.090 add sugar until it is. After 5 days or so you press the fruit and rack to a fermenter. The wine should start to clear within a few weeks. Once it's clear rack it to a secondary fermenter. Let it clear again. Rack it. Wash, rinse, repeat until the lees (the cake that develops on the bottom of the fermenter) is less than a half inch or so thick. You should only have to rack it two or three times at the most. Once it's clear and the lees is mostly gone bottle it. Let it age for at least 1-3 months.
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