Dry elderberry wine

[cwrw]

Hi,
Has anyone got a dry elderberry wine recipe, as I am thinking of making one this year, and am not into sweet wines; also will anyone have an idea how much lemon juice I would need to add to about 4 gallons, in order to act as a preserving aid (similar to elderflower idea?). Whilst I'm at it has anyone tried to make a fizzy version of elderberry?
I'm more into beer making than wine making but love a go at something different! :drunk:

 

[Tim_Crowhurst]

Hi,
Has anyone got a dry elderberry wine recipe, as I am thinking of making one this year, and am not into sweet wines; also will anyone have an idea how much lemon juice I would need to add to about 4 gallons, in order to act as a preserving aid (similar to elderflower idea?). Whilst I'm at it has anyone tried to make a fizzy version of elderberry?
I'm more into beer making than wine making but love a go at something different! :drunk:

I wouldn't use lemon juice as a preserving aid. It will muck up the acid levels in the wine too much, and they need to be quite precise, varying only slightly depending on the style of wine. This is because during the early stages of fermentation acid acts to suppress the growth of unwanted bacteria, while promoting growth of yeast, so you need enough acid to kill off the bacteria but not enough to harm the yeast. That places relatively tight upper & lower limits on how acidic a wine should be.

Acid also has a big effect on flavour, especially in white wines as the lack of tannin means that acid plays a much bigger role. The more tannin there is the less important acid becomes - and there aren't many wines with as much tannin as elderberry.

 

[cwrw]

Good starting point :thumb: So this means the wine will age well over two to three years without going off?

 

[oldbloke]

Heh. Many elderberry recipes need 2 or 3 years for the tannin to fade to drinkable levels!

 

[graysalchemy]

My elderberry wine used to be for one gallon

2lb of elders
1lb of blackberries
0.5 lb of raisins
1kg of sugar.

If i couldn't get enough blackberries I would use apples or damsons.

It did take 2-3 yrs for the tannin to subside, but was best after 5-6 yrs. :thumb:

 

[Tim_Crowhurst]

Good starting point :thumb: So this means the wine will age well over two to three years without going off?

As long as it's above ~10% ABV, the alcohol is what prevents the wine going off. The acidity is only crucial during the first few hours or days, while the yeast is multiplying and producing alcohol. Once the alcohol level reaches 10% it becomes the main thing the prevents infection by bacteria (although there are some exceptions).

Some wines can last for decades, even centuries, if stored correctly. There was a cargo ship found off the coast of Finland a few years ago that had been carrying cases of champagne bottles. The ship was wrecked around the 1820s and, with the exception of a few bottles that had cracked or whose corks had corroded, the champagne was still delicious after 180-190 years, because the conditions at the bottom of the Baltic were ideal for storing wine. It was fascinating for wine-makers and -historians because the champagne in the bottles was rather different from modern champagne - it was much sweeter. Other more recent cargo ships carrying champagne have been found on the bottom of the Baltic, including one sunk during WWI, and the wine on them has also been in perfect condition.

 

[cwrw]

Flippin heck! Not only sound advice but a fascinating history lesson....didn't see that one coming :electric: thanks!
Any takers on the 'dry' twist to the production method?

 

[Tim_Crowhurst]

Any takers on the 'dry' twist to the production method?

The trick is to get the right amount of sugar in the must, and use the right yeast.

You want a yeast with a high tolerance for alcohol, and that means choosing a yeast that includes its alcohol tolerance on the packet. Ideally it should be over 15%, and I've found four that are suitable for red wines - Lalvin RC212 Burgundy (16%) and Vintner's Harvest VR21 (15%) and SN9 (18%) and Ritchie's port (in theory ~18%).

You also want to be sure there isn't enough sugar in the must to reach whatever ABV the yeast can cope with. I'd leave a biggish margin of error, and for the sake of flavour it's probably best going for a lower ABV anyway, so I'd aim for a specific gravity of ~1080 in the must when you pitch the yeast. Some of the sugar will be coming from the fruit, and you can't be entirely sure how much, so I would add the sugar using a sugar syrup (boil 1.5Lbs/700g sugar in 1/2pt/300ml water until the sugar dissolves, then leave to cool) and add it in stages, stirring thoroughly each time and checking the SG as you go until it is the level you want.

 

[cwrw]

many thanks :thumb: I'm on my way!