Strawberries!

[cohenhouse77]

So living in Central Florida has its perks. My fruit dealer just called me and offered me flats of strawberries which are about 12 pounds beach for $7.50 a flat. I may even get them cheaper before the season is out.

I have a friend that makes wine that told me he would never use more than 3 pounds of strawberries per gallon because more than that is way too much so he adds rhubarb instead of extra strawberries for found it. Then I see other recipes that call for three and a half pounds per gallon, then recipe for 5 pounds, 6 pounds, 8 pounds. I see some people on here say that they use more and of course it after age longer than some say that they use a lot less and then use an F pack at the end and swear by that.

I am going to buy some serious strawberries and add them to my freezer, but wanted to see what the consensus was and if anyone had any strong feelings about using more than 3 pounds per gallon like my friend.

Being a fruit winemaker primarily, it seems like using anything less than 6 pounds per gallon might as well just be Skeeter pee. Thoughts?

 

[novalou]

So living in Central Florida has its perks. My fruit dealer just called me and offered me flats of strawberries which are about 12 pounds beach for $7.50 a flat. I may even get them cheaper before the season is out.

I have a friend that makes wine that told me he would never use more than 3 pounds of strawberries per gallon because more than that is way too much so he adds rhubarb instead of extra strawberries for found it. Then I see other recipes that call for three and a half pounds per gallon, then recipe for 5 pounds, 6 pounds, 8 pounds. I see some people on here say that they use more and of course it after age longer than some say that they use a lot less and then use an F pack at the end and swear by that.

I am going to buy some serious strawberries and add them to my freezer, but wanted to see what the consensus was and if anyone had any strong feelings about using more than 13 pounds per gallon like my friend.

Being a fruit winemaker primarily, it seems like using anything less than 6 pounds per gallon might as well just be Skeeter pee. Thoughts?

I have not made a strawberry/rhubarb, but I have made strawberry wine with 4 lbs per gallon. The color and taste were light. My next batch will have 6lbs per gallon.

 

[jswordy]

I have not made a strawberry/rhubarb, but I have made strawberry wine with 4 lbs per gallon. The color and taste were light. My next batch will have 6lbs per gallon.

In my experience, better go higher than 6 a gallon if you seek robust flavor. Strawberry is a great summer wine because it is light and easy drinking, with that gorgeous strawberry nose. You can get quite smashed on it before you know it because the flavor is so light with little lingering aftertaste.

If you want a thicker strawberry flavor, I recommend you use 8-10 pounds/gallon and also press and save the juice from additional berries so you can backsweeten with it. It takes about 2 gallons of juice per 6 gallons of wine.

You can accomplish the back end by warming the juice to boil it down before adding it, or by using a higher SSG with 71B1122 or a higher ABV yeast, then blending with the juice as-is.

By experience, I also recommend bananas in strawberry for body. Cut them up in 1-inch segments, skins on, bag them and toss them in the must.

Sugar has a boosting effect on strawberry. If you like sweet wines, don't be shy about trying a high sugar backsweetening. Strawberry responds really well to using extracts at the end (something I learned here from Runningwolf, IIRC), but caution, they do add a harsh alcohol flavor if you use a high amount.

IMO, the wine tastes its best after a minimum 9 months resting, preferably a year.

 

[WVMountaineerJack]

My last batch had 50 pounds in 6 gallons of mead, 10 more pounds added at the end of the primary a couple of days before transferring to the secondary, very nice strawberry flavor, acid balanced out with honey in backsweetening. Recipe on our website, we also did chapatalization with more honey and it stood up very well, the berries at the end boosted teh flavor even more, when you open a bottle the room fills with strawberries. I cant even imagaine how weak 3 lg gal would be, might as well drink koolaid WVMJ

 

[saramc]

My last batch had 50 pounds in 6 gallons of mead, 10 more pounds added at the end of the primary a couple of days before transferring to the secondary, very nice strawberry flavor, acid balanced out with honey in backsweetening. Recipe on our website, we also did chapatalization with more honey and it stood up very well, the berries at the end boosted teh flavor even more, when you open a bottle the room fills with strawberries. I cant even imagaine how weak 3 lg gal would be, might as well drink koolaid WVMJ

Mmm, now this I would love to sample!

 

[Kramnuko]

Last season I used six pounds per gallon, this year I will raise it to ten pounds per gallon.

 

[Turock]

We always use 10 pounds per gallon and the flavor is just like eating the berry. We seem to get better color when using higher poundage,too. Our strawberry is red--not orange like some people report.

Be sure to taste the fruit and choose the ones that have excellent flavor--this is key to a great strawberry. Test and adjust the PH pre-ferment. You'll probably want to be around 3.4 and maybe a tad higher. Strawberry is not a pleasant wine if it has too much bite.

 

[saramc]

We always use 10 pounds per gallon and the flavor is just like eating the berry. We seem to get better color when using higher poundage,too. Our strawberry is red--not orange like some people report.

What yeast are you using? Some will help retain color. Any other additives outside of pectic enzyme, k-meta?

 

[DaveL]

We always use 10 pounds per gallon and the flavor is just like eating the berry. We seem to get better color when using higher poundage,too. Our strawberry is red--not orange like some people report.

Be sure to taste the fruit and choose the ones that have excellent flavor--this is key to a great strawberry. Test and adjust the PH pre-ferment. You'll probably want to be around 3.4 and maybe a tad higher. Strawberry is not a pleasant wine if it has too much bite.

I've yet to make strwberry wine but I have eaten tons of strawberries and the difference between seasons and evedn time of season harvested can be dramatic. I am surprised it took as log as it did for someome to suggest that you should taste the strawberry before determining poundage.

 

[jswordy]

Thread needs a pic!

 

[dralarms]

Very nice.

 

[novalou]

Thread needs a pic!

Wow, great color!

 

[TahunaJR]

Ok. I finally need to ask. Thinking about backsweetening my 5-gal batch of strawberry. Lots of reading here and maybe too much!

Granulated sugar, brown sugar, flavored syrup, Karo syrup or white grape concentrate? So many choices.

I know bench testing is a must. Need to add sorbate and wait a few weeks before bench testing again. Rule of thumb to shoot for 1.010 SG? I also liked the idea of a touch of vanilla. I will add that option to the bench testing. But, any suggestions for a first time choice of backsweetening?

 

[Turock]

Sara---We use Montrachet on our strawberry--always use pectic enzyme too but no other additives.

Over many years of making strawberry, we discovered that fruit quality is the number one factor in making a delicious strawberry wine. We get our fruit at the fruit auctions and I prowl around tasting all of them and only bid if they pass the flavor taste. If they don't--we won't buy any and then wait until the next week. We favor the smaller berries that are really ripe and very red. I hate the flats that have a lot of berries with pale flesh, and always pass them by.

I would think you wouldn't want to use brown sugar because it flavors the wine and sometimes seems to tamp the flavor. Table sugar is your best bet. Try some bench trials and you'll see what I mean. Brown sugar lends a carmel flavor which SOUNDS good, but often isn't. We like our strawberry around 1.015 or so---the sugar really brings out that strawberry flavor. Vanilla might be OK if it's way in the background. Try some bench tests with it and see what you think. Strawberry is so good on its own that we don't like to add any other flavor. The best vanilla comes from making your own extract---8 vanilla beans and a bottle of vodka---the best vanilla you ever tasted and the flavor holds up very well in the bottle as it ages.

 

[jswordy]

Wow, great color!

Thanks. That wine has been in bottles for 9 months now. We are beginning to drink it. I made 120 bottles and had already promised away 24 the day the must was started, so surely SOME OF IT will survive into summer where it will be the perfect hot day drink.

Turock is correct. These berries came out of the field at my friends produce farm and they were literally red all the way through - no white inside. I used 71B1122 yeast and used regular table sugar in the whole process.

 

[novalou]

Thanks. That wine has been in bottles for 9 months now. We are beginning to drink it. I made 120 bottles and had already promised away 24 the day the must was started, so surely SOME OF IT will survive into summer where it will be the perfect hot day drink.

Turock is correct. These berries came out of the field at my friends produce farm and they were literally red all the way through - no white inside. I used 71B1122 yeast and used regular table sugar in the whole process.

I used the white flesh strawberries for my last batch. It turned out ok, this summer I'll look around for the red strawberries like you use, can't wait!

 

[jswordy]

I used the white flesh strawberries for my last batch. It turned out ok, this summer I'll look around for the red strawberries like you use, can't wait!

Get to know any local berry farmers, cuz those berries that are dead red ripe on the plant are NO GOOD to them, really. They usually result from a week or more of solid rain, when the berries can't be picked unripe. Unripe berries are what stores and such want because they keep longer.

So the farmer is left stuck with ripe berries he can either market to winemakers or have picked off and dump. They usually try #1 before resorting to #2.

Water is the single most important ingredient to berry flavor. Too much and they have little taste at all. If your berries are red ripe after just a few days of delayed picking due to the timing of the rain, those are usually ideal. Good luck!

 

[saramc]

JS....how did you finish yours? Dry, backsweetened, etc?

 

[Turock]

Js's comment on water made me realize I hadn't mentioned that we use no water in strawberry. That technique is very important in making a great strawberry wine.