Elderberry wine

[fivebk]

This season I was able to get out and harvest some wild elderberries. I finally got around to steam juicing them and ended up with 7 1/2 gallons of juice. I am looking to make the best wine I can with this juice and have been wondering.

Is it best to just make a straight wine? Maybe a blend with another fruit ? If so........ What fruit goes best with elderberries and what ratio would you use? I think some oak in it would be good either way.

BOB

 

[ffemt128]

I make mine just Elderberry. I do add 3 cans of grape concentrate per 5 gallon batch. I would say with what you have you could easily make 10 gallons of very full flavored Elderberry wine. My 15 gallons this year was made from 9 1/2 gallons of steamed juice then I took the skins post steaming and added 1 1/2 gallon of water to them. Total water added for the 15 gallons was 3 1/2 gallon. Very full flavor. I add medium french toast oak cubes. Generally start with 2-3 oz for a month then check flavor. If needed I'll add back in.

 

[SBWs]

I have my recipe for elderberry and wild blackberry/elderberry on my blog also great info on elderberries at WV Elderberries

 

[pjd]

I was able to make 10 gallons of elderberry wine this year and although I love elderberry wine i plan on blending it with the Fredonia and Catawba wines. The Fredonia and Catawba are both screaming with acid and the elderberry is quite low. Blended together seems better than any of them by them selves. I also made 5 gallons second run elderberry which blended with Steuban is excellent. I wont know what to call any of them but they sure are good!

 

[WVMountaineerJack]

Get yourself a gallon and a quart of good honey, not X_Mart stuff, and add 4 gallons of your elderberry juice to it, its really easy with the steamed juice. I also like to take a port kit (3 gal kit) and add 2 gallons of elderberry juice to it, toss in a few strawberries and some blackberries or raspberries for acid and you have a great port style. You can ferment the rest by itself, adding some oak to them all makes it even better. My berries did poorly this year but I did get enough to make a dried elderberry mead, its in our top 5 favorite wines.

CC

This season I was able to get out and harvest some wild elderberries. I finally got around to steam juicing them and ended up with 7 1/2 gallons of juice. I am looking to make the best wine I can with this juice and have been wondering.

Is it best to just make a straight wine? Maybe a blend with another fruit ? If so........ What fruit goes best with elderberries and what ratio would you use? I think some oak in it would be good either way.

BOB

 

[garymc]

I have some muscadine wine that's too high in alcohol, so I'm thinking about blending it with some elderberry. I bought a can of Vintner's Harvest Elderberry Fruit Base. It's supposed to make a 3 gallon or 5 gallon batch. I was thinking I'd make a 3 gallon batch and then add 7 gallons of muscadine to it to make 10 gallons. Is a 30 to 70% ratio a good blend for red muscadine? Is dry elderberry/muscadine any good?

 

[lonesomechicken]

made a 3 gal elderberry last year with 1 gal of juice 4 lbs golden raisins and 3 lemons. very good.

 

[Jolly_Roger]

I just bottled my 2010 elderberry batch which is my first elderberry, I will do some testing, but just wondering how you all drink it. Cold, room temp, with beef, chicken? anyone us it to cook good recipes with? Made mine with pure elderberry--3lb per gallon

 

[WVMountaineerJack]

Anyway YOU like it. We add some to marinades of red meat, drink it on the deck in the evening on Fridays after work as a special treat, and all the other days as a normal treat WVMJ