Home made Claret type...what to use?

[Crosbie]

I've got shed-loads of elderberries; would I need some kind of grape concentrate as well?

If I could get it to taste like a good cheap Claret I'd be pretty pleased.

I'm a newbie amateur in a sense - I used to make dreadful wine when I was a teenager...my palate is a touch drier now

Crosbie

[Mrs Dobby]

According to my bible (CJ Berry's First Steps in Winemaking) you need 3lb of Elderberries, 3 1/2 lb sugar, 1 gallon water, yeast and nutrient, and thats all!

Crush the berries lightly (once removed from stalks), then pour on the gallon of water (boiling), let it cool to 21C (70F) before added the yeast and nutrient. Let it sit covered for 3 days, then strain onto the sugar and then into a dark demijohn (not fully filled as fermentation is vigorous) and fit a cotton wool bung. Once initial vigorous fermentation is finished, fit airlock and leave until fermentation is complete. Siphom off into clean dark bottles and store, best if left for at least 6 months before consumption!

HTH

[zazen999]

Winemaking with Elderberries (Sambucus Nigra) - Wines at home

Have a little look through this lot......

[Two_Sheds]

I've made 3 or 4 wines with elderberries, and find that if you use a lot of them, fermentation stops.
They make a very sweet heavy, port like wine on their own (which is nice: just add the sugar in stages so it doesn't overwhelm and kill the yeast).

Or, mix 50/50 with blackberries or something. I'll rummage in the old thread and bump any recipes for you to look at

[Crosbie]

Thanks for the advice.

Fantastic link Zazen - thanks.

I guess I'd like to aim for a really dry wine - about 13% vol. - if this is possible - like the 'good ordinary Clarets' you get in the shops.

[Hilary B]

I don't think you'd get a claret from elderberries unless you used a lower-fruit recipe. Mostly it seems to be a very full-bodied red.
Elderberry-and-apple might do the business, but I haven't got a recipe. If I wanted to try I would find good, similar-method recipes for apple wine and elderberry wine, halve the quantities for each recipe and then ferment it all together.

[SarzWix]

Elderberries are very high in tannin, so should give a pretty dry finish to a wine made from them. If you want to up the 'sharpness' a bit, try using some sloes too - they also are quite high in tannins, but have a bit more acidity to them.

[Two_Sheds]

elderberries [make]... a very full-bodied red.

Yes, both my elder brews are very port like

Elderberries ... should give a pretty dry finish to a wine

That's interesting, because both my elder brews are pretty sweet, heavy: definitely porty

[SarzWix]

Really? I always thought it was tannins that gave a dry 'finish' to a wine, and they are definitely tannin rich... Hmmm... Mebbe I've made a mistake there then?

Sloes will definitely add to the acidity though. I think...

[Crosbie]

I don't think you'd get a claret from elderberries unless you used a lower-fruit recipe. Mostly it seems to be a very full-bodied red.

Thanks for pointing this out; I thought Clarets could be full-bodied - that is, if you wanted them to be. I'd be very pleased if I could achieve a full-bodied elderberry wine - really dry about 13% ABV.

Re: Sarz/tannin - I made an elderberry wine in the days before I was allowed to vote; it completely fermented out dry...it was so tannic it made the enamel on your teeth squeak. Maybe a port-type elderberry wine would balance out - or mask - the effects of tannins better - as Two Sheds' results have borne out.

[SarzWix]

If you want to add body, add a banana. Since we discovered that advice in a book somewhere, we add a banana or 2 to all of our red wines. It makes a real difference, particularly if you aren't using any grape concentrate.

[Hilary B]

Thanks for pointing this out; I thought Clarets could be full-bodied - that is, if you wanted them to be. I'd be very pleased if I could achieve a full-bodied elderberry wine - really dry about 13% ABV.

Re: Sarz/tannin - I made an elderberry wine in the days before I was allowed to vote; it completely fermented out dry...it was so tannic it made the enamel on your teeth squeak. Maybe a port-type elderberry wine would balance out - or mask - the effects of tannins better - as Two Sheds' results have borne out.

My understanding is that Claret MEANS 'light red', so if it is full bodied/deep red (as elderberry would be), it isn't 'Claret'.

[Two_Sheds]

Sloe wine (Claret-style dry red)

This makes 5 gallons

5.4kg ripe sloes
1.8kg sultanas, chopped
1.8kg honey
5 litres red grape juice
3 tsp nutrient
3 tsp pectolase
Bordeaux yeast, a whole pack (for 5 gallons)


1) cover the sloes in boiling water, leave to cool, then slip the stones out
2) chop the sloes, add them and the sultanas to a fermenting bucket
3) Add honey and 3 gallons boiling water
4) when cooled to 20c add yeast & nutrient
5) stir daily for 3 days, then strain equal amounts into clean DJs (5 of them)
6) top up DJs with grape juice

rack & ferment as usual


adapted from a recipe in A Step by Step Guide to Making Homemade Wine: Amazon.co.uk: Judith Irwin: Books