From kits to...um... Help?

[Wraeccan]

I've now done about half a dozen or so kit wines.
My idea was to get a general feeling af the process and get somethings that mature a little quicker on the go before progressing.

Now, I'm looking to do that progression. I want to continue with a few kits (to keep drinking stocks up) but move on to longer maturing stuff.

My busget is very, very tight. To this end, it seems like a good idea to try my hand at fermenting from tinned/canned fruits.
I have CJJ berry's books, including the 'canned and dried fruit' one (priced at 5/- ) but seem to recall that the recipes in there are not particularly well regarded.

So...Does anyone have any good advice and/or recipes for this kind of wine? I'm thinking of starting with an apricot wine and possibly a lychee wine. Both at the 1 gallon level.

Cheers chaps and chappettes.

 

[oldbloke]

It's wild berry season in the south, and will be soon in the north. Elderberry can be really good. Blackberry. Raspberry I hear can be bubblegummish but I'm going to make one this year. Currants too. Rosehip later in the year. Carrots and parsnips are pretty cheap all year round in any supermarket/grocer.
Too late this year but my dandelion is delicious and it's not even been bottled yet!

 

[Wraeccan]

Thanks oldbloke.
The rosehip is definitely on the agenda when I get my head around the mashing side of things.
I've heard alot about the wines using vegetables, but I seem to have trouble getting my head around the idea. Any notes on taste?

I'm pretty sure I can cobble recipes together for using tinned stuff, but still have to take the leap of faith required. I'm mostly worried about the extremes of ending with a flavourless or too over-flavoured beverage. :?

 

[graysalchemy]

Try wurzels orange wine as a stop gap. Just do a search it is on here somewhere.

 

[oldbloke]

I've heard alot about the wines using vegetables, but I seem to have trouble getting my head around the idea. Any notes on taste?

Apart from "like wine", not really. I only started last year... I remember a mate's dad did parsnip 40 years ago, it was a very nice dry white. I happened to have some dark sugar in the cupboard when I made mine and it's come out tawny and tasting like sherry (oxidation? Perhaps a little but it's not deteriorating). People seem to like it. Not yet tried carrot but I hear it's nice.

 

[golder247]

Tea wine is a corker... nicest smelling wine I have done yet, It was some speciality tea we were given for Xmas but wow I can't wait. Rhubarb is a winner and as oldbloke says there is an abundance of things just ready to pop outside the front door.

I am with oldblode too in regard to the carrot, I want to do a carrot beer as I cannot imagine it will be tough to do and will likely be cheaper than Chips!!!

Happy brewing!

 

[Moley]

If your budget is very, very tight you can't get ingredients much cheaper than for free.

I'm guessing the elderflowers have probably finished by now down South but the blackberries can't be too long away. Get out around the country lanes or along the canal towpaths and keep your eyes open. Make a mental note of any stone fruit trees, plums are already filling out.

Check out your local supermarkets just before closing time and look for the last-minute reductions on fruit & veg.

I think I tried canned fruits once or twice in the dim and distant past but I never use any of those recipes nowadays.

 

[oldbloke]

Oh, yes, tea wine - I did an Earl Grey which came out nicely.
Some friends had a plum tree that went crazy last year, when young the wine from that was OK but had something odd about it. Now it's 9 months old it's lovely.

Carrot wine, yeh - carrot beer I'm not so sure about. As my wife is coeliac I've done an experiment with millet which came out well, but that is a grain, not a root. Sometime I'll be trying quinoa. But I did spend some time a while back googling the nutrient profile of peas - quite a lot of sugar in there, though it may take amylase to get it out. Thought pea wine might make more sense than peapod wine - the amount of pods you need is just crazy. But also wondered if a beer could be made from them.

 

[golder247]

I have seen a number of articles on carrot beer and if you can make nettle beer why not I think?

I am unfamiliar with what difference it would make, why it is that a grain would make the beer more beerlike than perhaps carrot? or perhaps why grain is the key ingredient perhaps. That is accounting for the nettle beer as an example. searching a little to try and make sense of what I am trying to say (been up since 5.. long old day!!)

 

[oldbloke]

I dunno. Try it and let us know!
One thing that might matter is you can't really roast a carrot to get a darker "malt".
Or maybe you can - chop some finely, toast it till it's brown...
Got links to the articles about it? Fascinated now...

 

[bluebell]

You could also try to locate a local fruit and veg wholesaler. They are often as cheep as chips expecially for things like carrots mine sells sacks of carrots for animal feed (only because they are big and dont look great) for £2.99, Cost co frozen strawberries are cheeper then picking them at local PYO - £4.50 for 2.2Kg Markets when they are closing up are a good place to look for a bargain.

 

[Cussword]

I've done tinned pears a couple of times now, but you usually only get 41/2 to 5 bottles out due to the pulp :thumb:

 

[aberreef]

Oak leaf wine is one of my favourites. Cheap and easy to make and tastes good. Perfect :clap:

 

[golder247]

http://brookstonbeerbulletin.com/dead-r ... manly-men/
http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/c ... eer-recipe

I had a few others that have gone, But I am thinking bugger it I will. I will hold you entirely responsible Old Bloke :)

as bluebell said I am just going to get a bag of Horse Carrots make a batch and see what the heck happens, Carrot wine too (gonna have a fair few of them)

Whats to be lost? Not much I reckon... will let you know when I get the bugger going :)

 

[oldbloke]

Bookmarked for the future - the wild berries are just starting up here so I think all my demis are going to be busy for a while. Not going to use my 5g vessel for something that's just experimental! Maybe a spare 2 litre PET tho...

 

[golder247]

The demi's do seem to get used up quick, I gave some away a while back and rue the day I did.... need to get me more for the years development of my cellar...

hopefully will have an extra FV soon which will give me 3 to play with.. Brilliant!!

 

[oldbloke]

http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/chefs/hugh-fearnley-whittingstall/carrot-peeling-and-spruce-beer-recipe

"
a flavour that can best be described as unusual
"

Might skip that one then. No idea where I'd get the spruce tips anyway.
Googled a bit but apart from the C4 one, only finding otherwise ordinary beers with carrot juice replacing [part of] the liquor. Think I'll stick to wine for now.