# Mulberry Wine



## MisterEd (Oct 15, 2016)

I have a couple mulberry trees on my property and I absolutely love the taste of their fruit. It would have to make a fantastic fruit wine the way I see it. The problem is collecting the fruit. There is no straightforward way to retrieve it. The branches/limbs won't support a ladder and placing a sheet/net on the ground won't work as my dog/critters loves them as much or more than me! The only way I see it is to install an elevated support system for a fine mesh net as the fruit is not very big. But that is a lot of effort unfortunately.
any ideas are very appreciated,

Ed


----------



## gratus_fermentatio (Oct 16, 2016)

Use a free-standing ladder to pick by hand. Keep your dog/critters away from the tree while you spread a tarp & shake the tree branches. If you have a few helpers, you could have them spread a tarp & hold it up off the ground while somebody shakes the tree branches. You might be able to use some sort of pole mounted berry picker, maybe something like this mounted on a pole:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007J3J6R4/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Regards, GF.


----------



## WVMountaineerJack (Oct 16, 2016)

We put a big canvas tarp under the tree and shake and smack the branches, sort thru them, stick them in the freezer until we get enough. Our dog also loves mulberries, so he gets a bone on picking day to keep him busy. Try to get enough to go with 100% juice, and we really like to use honey to boost the SG, a tiny bit of oak if you like it, and at least with our fruit we always have to give nutrient to the yeast more with mulberry than with other fruit for some reason. We planted several Illinios Everbearing just for making wine so we could prune it and keep the branches in reach. WVMJ


----------



## MisterEd (Oct 16, 2016)

gratus_fermentatio said:


> Use a free-standing ladder to pick by hand. Keep your dog/critters away from the tree while you spread a tarp & shake the tree branches. If you have a few helpers, you could have them spread a tarp & hold it up off the ground while somebody shakes the tree branches. You might be able to use some sort of pole mounted berry picker, maybe something like this mounted on a pole:
> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007J3J6R4/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
> Regards, GF.



I would need a *TALL* ladder to get to the upper canopy fruit. I like the idea of using a berry picker fastened to a long cane pole or something!


----------



## MisterEd (Oct 16, 2016)

WVMountaineerJack said:


> We put a big canvas tarp under the tree and shake and smack the branches, sort thru them, stick them in the freezer until we get enough. Our dog also loves mulberries, so he gets a bone on picking day to keep him busy. Try to get enough to go with 100% juice, and we really like to use honey to boost the SG, a tiny bit of oak if you like it, and at least with our fruit we always have to give nutrient to the yeast more with mulberry than with other fruit for some reason. We planted several Illinios Everbearing just for making wine so we could prune it and keep the branches in reach. WVMJ



So does the finished wine have a flavor that reminds you of when you bite into a mulberry?


----------



## Scooter68 (Oct 17, 2016)

Use the Kiss principle here(Low Cost) : 
1) Give the dog a long lasting bone as mentioned. 
2) get a 10ft piece of 3/4" Or 1" PVC and T-fitting. ( Lowe's prices currently 1" x 10f PVC $3.65, 1" T fitting $1.22) You don't have to glue the fitting on even, if it falls off tap it back on with mallet, or tape it. 
3) Spread a tarp under neath.


----------



## WVMountaineerJack (Oct 17, 2016)

Absolutely, fermented mulberry, very fruity and with the honey even more better WVMJ



MisterEd said:


> So does the finished wine have a flavor that reminds you of when you bite into a mulberry?


----------



## 1948man (Nov 24, 2016)

WVMountaineerJack said:


> Our dog also loves mulberries, so he gets a bone on



Wow! He does love mulberries.


----------



## hounddawg (Nov 24, 2016)

first a 8 to 14 step ladder, visqueen plastic on the ground and an extendable paint pole to whack branches to cause it to fall on your plastic, in my younger day i would stand on tip top of tall step ladder picking and eating mulberries with one hand a Ruger mark 1 22lr in the other hand, sadly i killed many a poor bird in my younger day, now i have got 7 mulberry trees , 
but this last 2 years the squirrels are eating all my pears and peaches, never had them take all like the last two years, plenty of acorns and pecans had not killed a squirrel in over 30 years this year i had my fill i have nailed 14 this year and still got a month to go. I'll share my pears and peaches but last year not one pear nor 1 peach, i was used to getting 200 to 300lbs of just pears a year till year before last, aw well keep calm and reload, my Ruger single ten i got in 2013 drives tacks, 
Dawg




MisterEd said:


> I have a couple mulberry trees on my property and I absolutely love the taste of their fruit. It would have to make a fantastic fruit wine the way I see it. The problem is collecting the fruit. There is no straightforward way to retrieve it. The branches/limbs won't support a ladder and placing a sheet/net on the ground won't work as my dog/critters loves them as much or more than me! The only way I see it is to install an elevated support system for a fine mesh net as the fruit is not very big. But that is a lot of effort unfortunately.
> any ideas are very appreciated,
> 
> Ed


----------

