The Forager's Guide To Winemaking

[RobWalker]

Thinking it would be a good idea to post information here about ingredients that you can forage for winemaking, as me and my dad quite like doing it and it will help people from using cow parsley instead of elderflower etc and to let them know what's available at the time of year.

Elderflower - April/May

Large bunches of white flowers that grow on the Elder tree. Flowers are small and white with yellow parts. They will turn into Elderberries later in the year if left alone, but make a great wine, cider and beer flavouring. Leaves are oval and spikey. Flowers unmistakebly fragrant. Try to pick them on a sunny morning for maximum flavour. Remove all stalks before using for home brew.

Elderberry - August/September

See information on Elderflower for tree identification. Bunches of small, dark purple/red berries, the stalks will turn purple by the time the berries are ready to pick. Wait for most of the berries on a single bunch to ripen before cutting away.

Blackberry - August/September

Found on spikey brambles and very common in overgrown areas. Leaves are oval, spikey and will sting upon touch. Stems feature thorns that will also cause pain, so caution should be exercised when picking. Blackberries ripen from Green to Red to Black, then become very soft when over ripened.

Just a start but any details send them my way and I'll add to the main post :

 

[wilsoa1111]

ive also used sloes, nettles and young blackberry leaves(for tannins and in twinings fruit teas). not used but recipes are there for burdock, dandilion, heather(sub for hops), pine needles and gorse flowers, probably more i missed. having had a play with some i honestly can only recommend the elderflowers and berrys the rest requires more skill, time and patience than i can usually muster, destemming 1-2kg of berries is bad enough when the wine goes right and heart breaking when it goes wrong. incidentally the berries are available dried without the agro if anyones keen and doesnt want to stain the place from stepping on spilled berrys.

 

[narmour]

Has anyone any experience in using japanese rose hips for winemaking?

they are plentiful here but dog rose hips are proving more difficult to find.

 

[PD]

I once made a rose hip wine from the large type rose hips. Was not very nice but it was a recognised recipe.
To me it tasted like the bottled rose hip syrup you can buy to help cure colds and sore throats. Very slimey taste.

 

[Gurgle]

I once read you could use Rose hip syrup to make wine I don't know if it's true or not
I think it was Hugh fernley whitinstal ( what a name)but then he'll use anything :electric:

 

[Rolfster]

My father recently told me a story about making rose hip wine, in which they broke a blender preping the rose hips.
When it was ready it was like syrup, and almost went down the drain because of it.
Then on a hot day he mixed it with lemonade and it was like pims and they loved it.

Just a thought.
R

 

[goan]

Check out Andy Hamiltons 'Booze for Free' lots of recipes in there, plus lists what can be forraged/used this time of year

http://www.bbcshop.com/food/booze-for-free-hardback/invt/9781905811700

 

[oldbloke]

Dandelions - traditionally St Georges Day but they're never ready up here then... I rather like dandelion wine, do a couple of gallons every year.
Gather a gallon of heads when fully open in sunshine, snip off all stalk and as much green as you can be arsed, do the rest of the 1gallon recipe you looked up.

Nettles - the top 3 pairs of leaves of young fresh nettles are supposedly best but I've managed with almost-flowering ones. Around the same time as the dandelion season.
Again, a gallon of nettles makes a gallon of wine. One time I didn't boil them (or not long enough) and the yeast failed, maybe due to the formic acid? I do a gallon of thi every year.

Raspberries - we get quite a few good wild ones here, and lots of good ones in the garden, both summer and late canes. Some people reckon straight raspberry wine isn't too good, can be bubblegummy, but I've done decent wine with it. However if you're short of other berries, half rassies makes a good base.

Redcurrants - we get enough off the bush in our garden to do a gallon and still have some left for jam.

Blackcurrants - never had enough to do a straight blackcurrant wine but adding 4 oz or more to a wine based on other berries improves the final product quite a bit