This is really a very easy wine to make, and is best made with the earlier rhubarb - apparantly it can go a bit jellyish if you use later stuff. I made some late june last year and it was vaguely hazy for a long time, but has cleared now.
Ingredients:
3lb rhubarb stalks (not leaves) 3lb granulated sugar Water to make 1 gall 1 tsp wine yeast 1 tsp yeast nutrient
STAGE ONE.
Firstly wash and finely slice your rhubarb - do not peel. I sometimes slice mine in a food processor (I have this time) but last year I just did it by hand. Both are fine. Put into a large bowl. Cover with the sugar then pop a tea towel over the top. Leave for at least 24 hours, or until most of the sugar has dissolved. Sometimes I give it a little prod after half of the time!
STAGE TWO
When the sugar is all liquid, dissolve half tsp sugar in half a mug of barely lukewarm water (cold tap water plus boiled water from kettle, not warm from the hot tap), add the yeast and a pinch of sugar and stir. Cover and leave to go frothy for 10 mins or so.
Meanwhile, sterilise your DJ and a plastic seive/straining bag, funnel, airlock and dj bung and rinse in cold water. Strain the rhubarb into the dj. Add a little water to the remaining rhubarb pulp and stir, strain into dj again. Repeat until all sugar is in the dj with the liquid. Make up to almost 1 gallon with cold tap water.
Add your (now frothy) yeast mixture, dissolve 1 tsp yeast nutrient ina little water and add that too, then top up dj to 1 gallon. I usually leave about 2 inches gap at the top to begin with, just to see how wildly it ferments! Once it is calmer after a few days, I top up with cold water with just a splash of boiling added to take the chill off.
Half fill your air lock with sterilising solution, attach to bung and pop the bung into the neck of the dj. Ferment out until no more bubbles pass through.
STAGE THREE
When you are SURE there are no more bubbles going through, and there is sediment at the bottom, leave for a further 2 weeks then rack into a clean sterilised DJ, adding a campden tablet.
STAGE FOUR
After at least 6 - 8 weeks, your wine should be clearing and sediment on the bottom rack again and add another campden tablet.
STAGE FIVE
After another month or so your wine should be sparkling. Bottle, and store for 6 months to a year.
Remember - sterlise equipment and keep things covered
I will post pics and comments as I go through the various stages, so good luck eveyone! Any questions, please ask away!
Mallard wrote:I've made the same way, but never used more than one bag (1kg/2.2lbs) of sugar as it tended to be too sweet!
I like dry wines and this certainly isn't too sweet. If your wine is fermenting well Mallard, this amount of sugar should all be eaten by the yeast anyway and it will just increase the alcohol content, not make the wine overly sweet.
If yours was too sweet, I would say it didn't ferment out fully.
It's ok - did another mug of yeast and that has started for some reason.
Have added it to the wine, along with the nutrient, air lock and bung inserted, wine labelled.....off we go!
I noticed that the wine was green, which is quite odd as it is usually pink until I add the yeast! Mind you, I am a month earlier with the rhubarb this year as Bailey kept sitting on it last year! I am hoping in a few weeks to get enough rhubarb for another batch. It is a well tasty wine.
Hopefully, tomorrow, fermentation will be well underway, and I will post another pic.
Ooops! Should have left a bit more space in the DJ!!! As you can see, fermantation has well and truly started and it has bubbled up through the airlock! I will just wipe the outside for the moment, and redo the airlock in a day or two. There is absolutely no point in doing it now as it will fill up again instantly!
I will be lucky if it doesn't overflow down the sides of the dj too. It's a nuicance not a real problem though.
EDITED IN: Whoops too late! All down the sides too. Leave more than 2 inches space guys!
Mine is pink like pink grapefruit (ermmm, or like rhubarb ) and fermenting really well. I am hoping, once it rains, to get a second batch in a week or two. I am very pleased with it so far
I don't know if this will be useful but when I picked my first 3 lb batch, I used 16 sticks - some substantial, others not so ( I used every scrap!!!).
Hurry up though or the elderflowers will be here!
Mind you, probably easier just to source another demijohn!! Get looking......for at least one......maybe two.....
Elderflower wine is almost free! Just 3 lemons and 3 lb sugar per gallon ( I think without checking), so a DJ or two is a good investment.
