Handcrafted Apple Wine
My Handcrafted Apple Wine is meticulously crafted from a selection of fresh, locally-sourced apples at Al Ferri and Sons. This delightful apple wine is a truly natural product, boasting a unique blend of ingredients that have been recognized for their ability to fortify the immune system and support overall health. Additionally, its consumption is associated with the potential to reduce the risk of heart and cardiovascular diseases.
I highly recommend apple wine for its versatility in enhancing the flavors of meats through marination and sauces in my culinary endeavors. Its subtle sweetness and acidity add a unique depth to dishes, making it a valuable ingredient in my kitchen. Try my recipe for Rabbit in Apple Wine Sauce.
My apple wine journey began on November 19, 2021. After the first racking on December 10, 2021, and the second racking on February 18, 2022, the apple wine was finally bottled on May 1, 2022. When freshly bottled, apple wine may taste a bit sharp, requiring time to mature in the bottle. Typically, it becomes enjoyable after about five months of aging and reaches its full potential at nine to twelve months. My plan is to let it age for at least a year. The initial tasting on October 10, 2022, revealed a vibrant fruity aroma reminiscent of freshly picked apples, with a dry yet slightly harsh taste. Recognizing its youth, my husband and I decided to age it for an additional six months to allow the flavors to further develop. Patience is key, as like fine wines, apple wine improves with time.
My recipe is low in sugar because most of my apples were sweet apples and I prefer dry white wine. Typically, 1 liter of apple must or juice contains at least 100 g of sugar. To reach my desired alcohol content of 10-14%, I needed around 241 g of sugar per liter. With the natural sweetness of the apples, I only had to add an additional 141 g of sugar per liter. For my 14 liters of apple juice, I ended up using just 2 kg of sugar. It's essential not to dilute the juice with water to boost wine yield; quality should always be prioritized over quantity. I simply added enough water to dissolve the sugar without compromising the flavor. Hope that clarifies things!
Please ask questions in the comments section and I will be happy to answer.
Basic Process of Wine Making for all wines:
Day 1: Harvesting the fruit.
Day 2: Crushing and pressing the fruit or herbs you are going to use. Preparing the must(fruit pulp, water plus sugar). Sterilizing all the equipment. Preparing the mother yeast starter.
Day 3:Adding active yeast starter to must . Waiting 4 days during this initial fermentation.
Day 6: Straining the must into the carboy and placing the airlock.
Day 6 onwards: fun part of watching fermentation (approximately 5-6 weeks)
Day X: ‘Racking’ is a medieval-sounding term for a simple task of transferring the fermented must from one carboy, also known as a demijohn, to another. and leaving the sediment or lees (leftover yeast particles from autolysis) behind. Racking helps to clear the wine and it is done when no more bubbles appear in the airlock, fermentation is over and the wine must be rack. Racking is done with help of the syphon. An optimal temperature of around 55°F (12°C). Use your cold cellar.
Day Y: Within a few weeks, the wine will be clear and must be racked for the second time.
Maturing: All maturing wines are kept in a cool and a dark place and need to be racked every 2 months. Regular racking is also essential to prevent from re-fermentation when the weather gets warmer. If wines are bottled too early, the bottles my burst under pressure, which can be messy and dangerous.
Bottling: You will require wine bottles, corks or stoppers and the syphon All equipment must be properly sterilized.
Apple Wine Recipe
By Zosia Culinary Adventures | Date: Oct 10
Preparation Time: starting wine 6 days, fermentation 5-6 weeks; racking 5-6 months; bottling after 6 months; consumption after 12 months
Yield: 19 bottles x 750ml each
Equipment for all wine making (it is an investment) available at the wine equipment stores or restaurant equipment store
sanitizer (One Step No-Rinse Cleanser)
15 liters carboy glass or demijohn ( need at least two - the second one is for racking
2 large buckets made from food grade plastic (18.9 L)
stock pot to boil water
airlock and rubber bung or stopper that will be inserted into the mouth of the fermenter
plastic strainer and a funnel
long handled spoon
syphon
corks size #8 fits all basic wine bottles, wine bottles, the corker and the heavy duty carboy brush
hydrometer to check alcohol level (optional)
Ingredients:
17 kg assorted different apples cut up into small chunks/cubes just prior to making wine to avoid the apples going brown. I suggest removing the seeds and core to prevent the wine from becoming bitter. DO NOT PEEL THE APPLES.
2 kg sugar dissolved in 1 liter of boiled water to make sugar syrup
2 kg sultana raisins, minced
1 tsp Acid blend
1 tsp Yeast Nutrient
1/2 tsp Wine Tannin
1/4 tsp Sodium Metabisulfite is a common additive used to preserve and stabilize wines
1 sachet of Yeast Lalvin EC- 1118
Instructions:
Sanitize everything that will be used during wine making process.
Making Mother Yeast Starter: Find a small well sanitized bottle with capacity of 0.5 litre, no cork is needed, just a cotton wool. Bring 250ml water to boil, when cool to internal temp no higher than 25°C, (otherwise yeasts will die), pour it into the bottle. Add 1 tsp sugar, squirt of fresh lemon, a pinch of yeast nutrients and finally the full package of yeasts. Plug the mouth of the bottle with cotton wool. Leave it till next day or until it starts to "work" (bubbles form).
Wash apples, make sure apples are healthy. Remove the seeds and core. Dice or slice the apples
Use juicer to get fresh juice. Measure the juice and pour it into a carboy glass. Do not discard the pulp.
Pour the pulp(must) and minced sultana raisins into a plastic bucket with the lid. IMPORTANT: Make sure to measure your must. The amount of sugar is determined in relation to the volume of the must/juice (RATIO: 141g of sugar per liter of must/juice).
Dissolve all required sugar for juice and mush in 1 liter of boiling water. Pour hot syrup over the apple pulp (mush) and let it soak for at least 6 hours, then strain and pour back the strain mush into the sanitized plastic bucket and add apple juice. Cover well with the lid until next morning.
Next morning add all remaining ingredients: acid blend, yeast nutrient, wine tannin, sodium metabisulfite and yeast Lalvin EC- 1118.
Stir well all ingredients with a wooden spoon. Ferment in the plastic bucket for 4-5 days at temperature of 22 °C, stirring 3 times a day.
Strain the must into the carboy and place the airlock.
After 6 weeks, or when the fermentation has weakened, rack the apple wine and rack again as soon as the wine is really clear. Regular racking is essential to prevent - re-fermentation when the warmer weather returns. Also, add 1/4 tsp of Sodium Metabisulfite after each racking to preserve and stabilize wine. It is really your choice but I hate to see the wine going to waste.
After 6 months, the wine is poured into clean dark glass bottles, tightly corked and sealed. A piece of paper with a date and description is stuck to the bottle. The maturation period of apple wine can last several years.
Store wine at 10°C in the cold cellar.