52 bottles of wine.

[Gary350]

I have been making wine 40 years I use to pick my own fruit. I made Blackberry wine 6 years ago picked all the blackberries from my blackberry patch in the back yard next to the garden. It made some good wine. I tried to grow Blue Berries, Rhubard, Raspberries but they didn't make it. I have an apple tree but it does not make good wine. I planted a plum tree but no plums yet, plum and pear are both excellent wine. I have always wanted to make Beet wine I bet it is good. I made some Silver Queen Corn wine once it was good it tasted like white wine. I made strawberry wine 5 years ago it turned out like white wine too it was good and gone pretty quick. Now I make wine from kits it is much easier. I am getting older and the kits save me a lot of time plus it is better wine.

I made this wine November 2009 a year ago from Wine Expert Selections Internationale kits. This is good wine I have made it before it is equivelent to $50 a bottle wine. 26 bottles of Chilean Pinot Noir Gold Metal winner kit and 26 bottles of Chilean Merlot Gold Metal winner kit. I got all the empty bottles from the recycle dumpster. Wine was aged in the 6 gallon glass jub for more than a year, I bottled it yesterday. It is tasting pretty good already. The other time I made this it was extra good after it aged 2 years. Once it gets good it didn't last long. Last count I had 185 bottles of wine aging now I have 52 bottles more. The Blackberry kit and Raspberry kit are both excellent they are gone, I need to make more. Blackberry needs to age 3 years. I see looking at the photo I got the date wrong it was made Nov, 25, 09 now I have to change all the labels. Wine is very easy to make from $100 kits it takes about 1 hour then you wait. The wine cost me $3.84 per bottle.

Double click the pics they get larger.

[Francis Barnswallow]

Awesome!! Reminds me of the time my dad tried to make his own wine though. Lets just say he never attempted to make wine again.

[digitS']

Gary, that is lovely!

I've tried off and on to make wine for about that long. But, you know, I never made a grape wine - not once (unless using raisins counts).

I've thought that a grape wine would be far more likely to turn out good but, I suspected that what was available in the stores was better and more diverse than what I could come up with. So, I tried other "stuff."

Dad and I used to make beer. It took quite awhile before we got any good at it. It finally seemed that a "foolproof" method for us was to put about a pound of golden raisins in the 5 gallons. You see where this idea that grape wine might turn out better than my pear, apple, rice, etc. choices have?

Maybe yeast, even beer yeast, just likes grapes and the result is the right kind of taste for yours truly. A pound in a 5 gallon brew kettle isn't going to lend much flavor of grapes but . . . it sure seemed to work.

Now, about that pea pod wine . . .

Anyway, here is to your good health!

Steve

[Gary350]

There is probably a 100 different types of wine yeast. The yeast and the fruit is what determines the flavor. There are probably 500,000. possibilities for flavor with all those yeast and all the different fruits and combinations of fruit. You go into a wine store you can look for several hours the possibilities are endless. I like heavy body Red and White wine with low alcohol nothing with more than 11% alcohol. There are some wines with 6 to 8% alcohol those are nice. I like sweetness 1.000 to 1.010 on the hydrometer. Next time you go to the wine store buy a bottle of Rieslings Ice Wine this is so good you just can't amagine how it is possible that it is so good.

Next time you make wine try Red Star Cote des Blancs Wine Yeast in the GREEN package. This yeast is very slow working you will thing something is wrong and it is not working. It is special yeast for bringing out the very best flavor in fruit wine. You can not go wrong with this yeast.

Edited by Applestar to hide long link

[!potatoes!]

my folks used to make wine in the mid '70's...dandelion, 'jungle juice' (beet/carrot), elderflower, and a few others. they decided that the results were terrible, and for the most part left them to age in the basement since then.

we had a tasting a couple years ago, and now, they're pretty good...just goes to show the wonder of aging.

[DoubleDogFarm]

take one down, pass it around, 51 bottles of wine on the wall.

Looks like you have enough to share!


Eric

[garden5]

How many bottles can you make from a $100 kit? Does the kit include the bottles? I never even thought that you could make wine out of things other than grapes and blackberries. But then again, I wouldn't describe myself as a connoisseur by any means.

[Gary350]

How many bottles can you make from a $100 kit? Does the kit include the bottles? I never even thought that you could make wine out of things other than grapes and blackberries. But then again, I wouldn't describe myself as a connoisseur by any means.

I get all my bottles FREE out of the recycle dumpsters at the recycle center.

You can buy 5 gallon and 6 gallon kits. The last 2 kits I bought were 6 gallons that makes 30 bottles of wine. I usually leave out some of the water so my wine has better flavor so I only get 26 bottles. Here are the kits I bought last time you can get these at your local wine making supply store or order them online. These are both GOLD METAL winner of the year. I like to buy gold metal winners because you know it will be excellent wine equal to $50 a bottle wine when it is finished.


These are kits I have bought too they are both 5 gallon kits. They are intended to be low alcohol but I add enough DARK BROWN sugar to get the alcohol up to about 10%. I don't always follow the instructions I do my own thing. I sometimes add Currents, Cherries, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cloves, Spices, Juices. Go easy on the spices 1/4 teaspoon per 5 or 6 gallons of wine it is just of a hint of flavor thats all. If you have not made wine before you need to follow the instructions.

If your making your own wine from scratch use RED STAR yeast in the GEEEN package only 40 cents per package. This is the best wine for fruit it brings out the absolute best flavor and aroma. It ferments so slow you will thing it is not working at all.



When the wine is finished check it with the hydrometer to see how sweet it is. Wine will finish pretty dry about 0.992 on the hydrometer. I like to sweeten it to 1.000 but if you like it sweeter go as sweet as you like.

If you make PORT wine or SHERRY wine alcohol is 18% to 21% these wines are typically sweetened to 1.025 the sugar hides the alcohol taste. Use Champague Yeast in the yellow package. Sugar has to be added in 2 batches. Port is a nice wine you make wine with about 11% alcohol then you add enough E & J Brandy to get the alcohol to 15% or higher what every you like.

If you want to taste the full flavor of good wine you need to drink it at about room temperature 65 to 70 deg F, cold wine hides the flavor. You only drink bad wine cold it is easier to swallow.

Ice Wine is probably the best wine I have every made. It is only a 3 gallon kit but that is how they get so much flavor into one bottle of wine it is very concentrated, it is unbelieveable good flavor. Buy a bottle of this at your local wine store see for yourself before you buy the kit, ask for Riesling Ice Wine.

http://www.store.homebrew4less.com/prod ... variation=

[rainbowgardener]

Dandelion wine always sounded wonderful to me... a lovely delicate wine made from weeds people are always trying to get rid of.

So Gary, you have inspired me... Come dandelion season, I will try my hand at it. Found great instructions at wikiHow:

www.wikiHow.com/Make-Dandelion-Wine

No fancy equipment, use balloons with holes in them for airlocks...

I love it. My style of doing things.

And since I don't have much lawn, you can freeze the flowers while you wait to accumulate enough for a decent batch.

You are supposed to wait at least 6 months to drink it. That means that it could be part of the 2011 Christmas baskets...

[Gary350]

Dandelion wine always sounded wonderful to me... a lovely delicate wine made from weeds people are always trying to get rid of.

So Gary, you have inspired me... Come dandelion season, I will try my hand at it. Found great instructions at wikiHow:

www.wikiHow.com/Make-Dandelion-Wine

No fancy equipment, use balloons with holes in them for airlocks...

I love it. My style of doing things.

And since I don't have much lawn, you can freeze the flowers while you wait to accumulate enough for a decent batch.

You are supposed to wait at least 6 months to drink it. That means that it could be part of the 2011 Christmas baskets...

I hate to say anything negative but........I have made dandelion wine and I dumped it all in the compost. Flowers do not have much flavor only aroma. Dandelion wine looks like milky water with a slightly yellow tint. One drink is a mouth full of flower pollin it gave me a head ache and in a few minutes my head was spinning like I just stepped of the marry-go-round. My head felt like it swelled up twice it size. I was so dizzy I couldn't stand up and the head ache lasted for 2 days no amount of Tylenol or Bufferin would stop the head ache. That is one wine I will never make again.

[rainbowgardener]

Anyone else have any personal experience with dandelion wine? I've never heard that before. It sounds like maybe you are allergic?

Re the flavor. If you looked at the recipe:

1 cup (240 mL) orange juice
3 tablespoons (45 g) fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons (45 g) fresh lime juice
8 whole cloves
1/2 teaspoon (1.25 g) powdered ginger
3 tablespoons (18 g) coarsely chopped orange zest; avoid any white pith
1 tablespoon (6 g) coarsely chopped lemon zest; avoid any white pith
6 cups (1200 g) sugar

I take it the citrus juices and spices are too add some flavor to something that might otherwise be a little lacking in it. Did you make yours like that. Gary?

[garden5]

Thanks for the links, Gary. Your experiences with the dandelion wine makes me wonder: are there any hazards to making wine? Can you get seriously (permanently ?) ill if you do something wrong?

Rbg, I've heard from folks who've made dandelion wine and they never reported any negative effects.

[rainbowgardener]

Rbg, I've heard from folks who've made dandelion wine and they never reported any negative effects.

me too.

But I don't (yet) have any personal experience. I think I will still try it this spring. If I end up dumping mine out too, oh well, that's the way we learn.

[applestar]

I've never tried making wine but I make Dandelion Flower syrup --

- dandelion flowers, only yellow flowers plucked out (or green bracts and base cut off with a knife)
- sugar (80~90% by weight of flowers) -- I think! I'll change this if it's not
- water to cover the flowers

Prepare the blossoms. Put in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil, then simmer gently 10~20 min (recipe varies. one said to turn off heat as soon it it boils then cover). Here again, recipe varies from strain immediately to allow to steep overnight then strain. Add sugar and bring to boil for 10~15 min.

You drink it 1:4 mixed with water. My kids LOVE this.

I've thought about making wine (or cordial or liquor -- simpler I think than wine), but the dandelion syrup disappears as quickly as I make them and I never seem to have enough blossoms left for *my* drink.

[grondeau]

I'm not sure how to make wine, but its just as good to make friends with a wine maker! I'm looking forward to see what comes of the 50 lbs. of honey I gave to my neighbor. He makes a blackberry / mead - he wanted local blackberry honey to go with the local blackberries. I can't wait to see what comes back!