Cranberries

[Cherie_Trifle]

Hi - I'm fairly new to wine making but have achieved some success with brambles, plums and elderberries. I bought loads of cranberries after Christmas when they'd been reduced and they're sitting in the freezer. Does anyone have any recipes to make use of them? Happy just making a gallon at a time.

 

[MattN]

Here you go (from wine making guides)

2 lbs / 900 grams cranberries (fresh or frozen)
1 lb / 450 grams raisins
3 lbs / 1,350 grams granulated sugar (about 6 3/4 cups)
1/4 teaspoon pectic enzyme
1 1/4 teaspoon acid blend
Wine yeast
1 teaspoon yeast nutrient / energiser
1 campden tablet
8 pints / 1 gallon cooled, boiled water

METHOD - WHAT TO DO

Wash and roughly chop cranberries to allow the juice to leave the fruit. Transfer crushed / chopped cranberries to clean winemaking fermentation container and add all of the other ingredients, except for the wine yeast. After allowing the cranberry wine mixture to stand for around 12 hours, add the activated wine yeast. Stir each morning and evening for five days. Stain and squeeze the solids, transferring the cranberry wine mixture into a demijohn, complete with winemaking airlock.

Rack after around one month, when the fermentation process will have slowed dramatically. Rack once more after three months, and then two more times until the cranberry wine is clear and approximately 12 months old. Bottle the cranberry wine and if possible, leave to stand for over 12 months.

 

[Cherie_Trifle]

Brilliant. Thank you. That's Christmas 2015 sorted :

 

[tonyhibbett]

I recently used frozen cranberries and found that even in small quantities (250 g per gallon) they imparted an undesirable bitterness and astringency to the wine. To correct this, I had to blend it with other wines. As a result, I don't intend to use cranberries again.