2 bottles o' wine cup - Breidablik Away edition.

[NaeMairNeeps]

The plan is for me tae get a 4 gallon batch o' Honeydew Melon and Apple wine on the go this week ...... as a back up, because it's bloody fine stuff that disna need much maturin'

[NaeMairNeeps]

Well, that's the Melon and Apple wine on .... 4 gallons. The hardest part was humffin 4 melons, 4 bags o' sugar, 3 litres o' Aipple juice ... along wi a four pack o' beer and a few ither bits an' bobs, between a rucksack an' twa cairrier bags, on foot, fae LidL on Wellington Road tae Ferryhill ... Holy fk! .... they say fit disna kill ye maks ye stronger .... it wis touch an' go for a wee bit!!

[Shetland Don]

����

[NaeMairNeeps]

... Nae bother, jist gies a shout fan yer ready tae organise

[NaeMairNeeps]

Onywye, Ah need tae dae an inventory o' ma stash, but Ah'm certain Ah can now extend the offering o' prizes for at least all Euro and League Cup games.

... and maybe, jist maybe, the Scottish cup games .... we'll see fit like

[NaeMairNeeps]

Most recipes I love are simple .... per gallon - 3lbs of fruit (brambles, elderberries, rasps, plums, ... or 3lbs of any combination) ... 1kg sugar, one teabag, yeast, nutrient, pectolase .... a good squirt o' lime juice if the fruit is not acidic enough, and away it goes

Another simple 'reckoner' .... 1 - 1.5 litres o' a pure juice instead o' the fresh fruit will almost always work.

Gets a wee bit mair complicated when usin dried fruit ... like sultanas, raisins, dates, currants etc .... esp in combination wi other fruits, then there's the flower wines .... usually 250g of Sultanas and a couple o' pints o' flowers/petals (not pressed down) tae replace the fresh fruit in the first sentence above ....

... I rarely think about recipes tho .... when yev been makin' wine for a long time, ye develop a feel for what's too much or nae enough.

The most common reason for a 'honkin' wine tho, is too much sugar, or usin a high sugar (high alcohol) recipe, but addin all the sugar at the start.

Old recipes tend tae be for wines which will end up around 17 to 18% alcohol .... near enough the theoretical maximum - if they actually get there! .... if yev a cold hoose ... ye could be waitin a lang, lang time for such a wine tae ferment.

I aim for an alcohol content between 12 and 14% .... usually finishes up within 2 weeks .... then sits a while before finings added tae get it clear (sometimes a wine will quickly clear on its own).

Some wines, like rhubarb, Melon, Elderflower, bramble, are pretty pleasant to drink as soon as cleared - but, yeah, they do improve with age..... but, there's a point where they don't improve anymore - despite anyone tellin you otherwise ... typically, whites, six months ... reds, 12 months. Depends on conditions tho.

.... The other myth is that the wine gets stronger as it matures. This will only happen if you bottle too soon and the fermentation continues in the bottle ... the most likely result is more likely a burst bottle or cork poppin oot --- rather than any level o' drunkeness

..... so if anybody tries tellin ye o' the time they had a bottle o' wine which was matured for such a length o' time it was as strong as whisky ... pretend yer mobile phone jist vibrated in yer pooch, look shocked at the screen, an' say "sorry mate, Ah need tae go!"

[Shetland Don]

Most recipes I love are simple .... per gallon - 3lbs of fruit (brambles, elderberries, rasps, plums, ... or 3lbs of any combination) ... 1kg sugar, one teabag, yeast, nutrient, pectolase .... a good squirt o' lime juice if the fruit is not acidic enough, and away it goes

Another simple 'reckoner' .... 1 - 1.5 litres o' a pure juice instead o' the fresh fruit will almost always work.

Gets a wee bit mair complicated when usin dried fruit ... like sultanas, raisins, dates, currants etc .... esp in combination wi other fruits, then there's the flower wines .... usually 250g of Sultanas and a couple o' pints o' flowers/petals (not pressed down) tae replace the fresh fruit in the first sentence above ....

... I rarely think about recipes tho .... when yev been makin' wine for a long time, ye develop a feel for what's too much or nae enough.

The most common reason for a 'honkin' wine tho, is too much sugar, or usin a high sugar (high alcohol) recipe, but addin all the sugar at the start.

Old recipes tend tae be for wines which will end up around 17 to 18% alcohol .... near enough the theoretical maximum - if they actually get there! .... if yev a cold hoose ... ye could be waitin a lang, lang time for such a wine tae ferment.

I aim for an alcohol content between 12 and 14% .... usually finishes up within 2 weeks .... then sits a while before finings added tae get it clear (sometimes a wine will quickly clear on its own).

Some wines, like rhubarb, Melon, Elderflower, bramble, are pretty pleasant to drink as soon as cleared - but, yeah, they do improve with age..... but, there's a point where they don't improve anymore - despite anyone tellin you otherwise ... typically, whites, six months ... reds, 12 months. Depends on conditions tho.

.... The other myth is that the wine gets stronger as it matures. This will only happen if you bottle too soon and the fermentation continues in the bottle ... the most likely result is more likely a burst bottle or cork poppin oot --- rather than any level o' drunkeness

..... so if anybody tries tellin ye o' the time they had a bottle o' wine which was matured for such a length o' time it was as strong as whisky ... pretend yer mobile phone jist vibrated in yer pooch, look shocked at the screen, an' say "sorry mate, Ah need tae go!"

Thanks, must try this sometime!

[NaeMairNeeps]

(By the way .... this melon and apple juice wine ... If anybody is thinkin aboot gettin intae makkin wine ... or has got beyond the 7 day kit experience .... this is a good one! It's been 4 hours since Ah put it together, and the airlock is bubblin like fkn crazy! ... there is rarely a second between a burst o' bubbles. It'll prob be drinkable in 5 or 6 days!

If ye like yer hangover tae cost ye between 10p and 30p .... ye need tae start makkin wine )

[Shetland Don]

Cheapest ever! ����

[Auldtoontoby]

Neeps, what kind of tub / bucket do you use to do the original mix?
See several types, thinking of giving it a go but unsure on kit required .