Brandied Strawberry Wine Recipes

HOMEMADE STRAWBERRY WINE RECIPE

Steps:

• Wash all your tools and sterilize to your desired level of cleanliness. Maintain this level of cleanliness throughout the process.
• In a big bucket, a large jar, or specifically designed fermenter, add the frozen fruit, cane sugar, and pectic enzyme (if using). Cover and let sit out until the berries are defrosted and the entire mixture is quite juicy-at least four hours, up to 24 hours.
• Using a potato masher or clean hands, mash the berries to crush them. No need for it to be a smooth puree.
• In a small bowl, combine about a cup of water with the yeast, set aside to wake up for 10 minutes.
• Add the wine tannin or black tea and acid blend or lemon juice to the strawberry mixture. Add in enough water to bring the total volume of the mixture to about 1 1/3 gallons-no need to be perfectly accurate.
• Pitch the yeast water into the mixture, and stir well to agitate. Close the lid on the fermenter and fit with an airlock.
• Place the fermenter in a spot out of direct light, but where you can keep an eye on it. Agitate the mixture well at least once per day by stirring or swirling.
• The fermentation should start within 1-3 days. Continue to stir or swirl thoroughly throughout the entire primary fermentation stage.
• When the bubbles slow down considerably in the airlock (usually around the 10 day mark for us with this wine, but it'll vary based on the heat of your house), your primary fermentation is done.
• Fit a funnel with a mesh sieve into the neck of a sterilized carboy. You can also use a special brewing funnel with a strainer if you choose.
• Using a large ladle, scoop out the whole and mashed strawberries and pour them through the sieve and funnel.
• Press the berry puree into the sieve to get as much of the early wine out as possible.
• When the sieve fills up, dump the spent must into the compost, and replace. Keep repeating until the majority of the fruit is out of the wine.
• Pour the remainder of the wine through the sieve and funnel.
• You want the wine to come to the bottom of the neck of the carboy. If you have too much, you can pour yourself a glass of not-yet-finished-but-still-delicious wine. If you have too little, you can top it off with more non-chlorinated water.
• Fit the carboy with an airlock. All this agitation will restart any sluggish fermentation quite actively, so I recommend placing the carboy in a place where you can keep an eye on it easily (but still out of direct sunlight).
• Once you know it's not going to geyser wine everywhere, you can then move the carboy to a dark, out-of-the-way spot to do the longer secondary fermentation.
• Secondary fermentation is complete when the wine is "still," meaning there is no carbonation in the wine, no bubbling in the airlock, and the wine has cleared. This can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to months, depending on a number of factors. Do not bottle until the wine is still.
• Using a siphon, transfer the finished strawberry wine-leaving behind the sediment-from the carboy to the bottling bucket (or the primary fermenter if it has a spigot).
• Fit the bottling container spigot with a bottle filler, if using.
• Fill clean, sanitized bottles using the bottle filler or just the spigot.
• Cap, cork, or close the top of the bottles. Label the bottles.
• Store in a cool dark spot (if using corks, turn the bottles on their sides to keep the corks wet) and age for at least 30 days, but preferably 6-12 months for the best flavor.

BRANDIED STRAWBERRY WINE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the honey, blood orange juice, and sugar and heat until the sugar dissolves. Add the brandy and simmer for about 5 minutes.
• Add strawberries and continue to simmer for another 5 minutes or until the strawberries have lost their firmness.
• Remove from heat and let cool.
• When the stawberry mixture is cool, place in a blender and puree for one minute or until smooth. Add wine and stir.
• Pour into wine glasses (with ice if desired) and garnish with a ripe strawberry.

STRAWBERRIES IN RED WINE

Steps:

• Place strawberries in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with sugar and lemon juice, and toss to coat.
• Add the wine and let macerate for 45 minutes or up to 1 hour.
• Spoon berries and wine into wide dessert glasses (or low soup plates). Serve at cool room temperature.

HOMEMADE STRAWBERRY WINE

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Wash and hull strawberries, removing any stem or bits of leaf.
• In a large earthenware crock, mash strawberries.
• Cover mashed berries with boiling water.
• Add lemon juice and quickly stir for about 2 minutes.
• If you want to add wine yeast, mix into strawberry mash once it has cooled to 85 F.
• Cover the crock with a clean linen cloth. Let crock rest in a cool, dark place.
• Give it a stir each day for one week.
• After one week, strain mixture through a double layer of cheesecloth into a large, clean bowl, discarding strawberry pulp.
• Combine strawberry liquid with sugar, stirring to dissolve sugar.
• Pour liquid into a clean crock and let stand another week, stirring daily.
• After the second week, pour strawberry liquid into 1-gallon glass wine bottles and cork loosely. If you have fermentation locks, you can use those instead of a loose cork.
• Let bottles rest in a cool, dark place for three months.
• When wine is clear and no longer fermenting (bubbling), pour it into individual bottles. Cork bottles and let them age for at least one year before drinking this delicious strawberry wine.

BRANDIED STRAWBERRIES

Steps:

• Combine the sugar, orange and lemon zest and 3/4 cup water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook 5 minutes, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
• Remove from the heat and stir in the strawberries and brandy; let cool to room temperature, 1 to 2 hours. Ladle the strawberries and syrup into a large jar (or multiple smaller jars) and refrigerate at least 24 hours or up to 2 months.

BRANDIED STRAWBERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, heat honey, orange juice and brandy to boil. Reduce heat and add strawberries.
• Simmer for 10 minutes.
• Stir in corn starch.
• Remove from heat and let cool. Refrigerate before use.
• Use as a topping.

LIQUOR-INFUSED CHOCOLATE STRAWBERRIES

Steps:

• Rinse strawberries and dry thoroughly. Use a syringe or clean marinade injector to inject about 2 teaspoons of brandy into each berry. Place them on a baking sheet, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
• In a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, combine bittersweet chocolate and shortening. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Stir in heavy cream and 1/4 cup of brandy. Place white chocolate in a separate bowl, and when the dark chocolate has melted, place the bowl of white chocolate over the pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Be sure to remove from heat as soon as it is mostly melted, white chocolate can be sensitive.
• Dip strawberries into chocolate, and let the excess drip off into the bowl before placing on waxed paper to set. When the strawberries have all been dipped in chocolate, dip a fork into the white chocolate, and drizzle back and forth over berries to stripe.