Strawberry wine

[JDesCotes]

I'm getting a LOT of strawberries tomorrow and want to make strawberry wine.

I was planning on using Dave's DB recipe, but that calls for frozen berries...

Do I need to do anything special to kill the natural yeasts? I assume I need to husk the berries and wash them, but should I also add some p-meta? If so, how much?

Also, how ripe can the berries be? Mushy = still good (preferred I would assume), fuzzy = too far?

 

[dralarms]

Yes, fuzzy would be too far. Also use more strawberries than you think you need. And use NO water (or at least very little)

 

[JDesCotes]

Should I invest in a larger primary fermentation pale? Mine is just enough to fill a 6 gallon carboy an still have an inch or two headspace.

 

[sour_grapes]

You probably would be happier with a larger primary. Less risk of foaming over the top!

 

[bkisel]

My suggestion is that if you still intend to use Dave's DB recipe then simply clean and freeze 6 pounds of the strawberries. I think I read that you need to freeze 3 days or more in order for the cell structures to be be broken down/changed by the freezing. I'm thinking that if the berries are large ones halving or quartering might make sense before freezing.

If you've changed your mind about making DB then forget Dave's recipe and find one for "Strawberry Wine".