# Tea berrie's



## TB1 (Nov 20, 2008)

Hello I am new to this board but I have been home brewing for several years. This past summer I happened on to a good find and I was able to pick three gallons of tea berries. I was wondering if any one would happen to have a good wine recipe for them?


----------



## petes (Nov 21, 2008)

Tea berries. WTF?
So, I Googled. 
Even they didn't tell me.
I 'spose the obvious is tea bushes may grow berries, but so far I'm no wiser.


----------



## TB1 (Nov 21, 2008)

A teaberry is the berry from the American wintergreen plant. It has a flavor all its own like the old time teaberry gum, some may even remember teaberry ice cream (YUM) usually only find a handful here and there, I hit the mother load


----------



## petes (Nov 21, 2008)

Thanks for wising me up, don't think I'm going to find them down here. Sound interesting but from response so far looks as if you might have to get inventive for your recipe. Have to say keep us posted if you do.


----------



## TB1 (Nov 22, 2008)

Yup! Its looking that way. Probably after the holidays I will pull them out of the freezer and do something with them.


----------



## Sacalait (Nov 23, 2008)

Do you know the botanical name or the proper name of the tea berry? I tried googling it and came up empty.


----------



## TB1 (Nov 23, 2008)

Gaultheria procumbens 

I think?


----------



## Sacalait (Nov 23, 2008)

Thanks, that was interesting. Unfortunately I live outside it's growing area.


----------



## Luc (Nov 23, 2008)

He guys,

I just read Jack Kellers wineblog and he had an entry which stated:

*If I had them, I would have posted them (except for winterberry, which my research indicates may be slightly toxic to poisonous, depending on the species or variety). *

On his website however I found an article about making
teaberry wine .........

http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/request126.asp

So whatever you do be carefull.
I will e-mail jack about this and ask his opinions.

Luc


----------



## TB1 (Nov 23, 2008)

Yes I have read Jacks recipe. something doesn't sound right to me. 4 to 6 lbs to 6 1/2 half pints water. I picked the berries in a dryer time of year that would be about 1 1/2 gallons of berries to 6 1/2 pts water. I think the time of year may have a lot to do with it. I was hopeing to find a recipe using a volume measurement 

So fare I only have one other recipe to use as a guide It was a hand written on a scrap of paper I got with a recipe book from my wine lady (rest her sole) and it goes drastically the other way so I may have to use a happy medium between the two as a guide line. She said it was quit good. 
3qts teaberrys to 1 1/2 gal water

So I guess I will just have to write another recipe somewhere in between the two and see what happens.


----------



## Luc (Nov 25, 2008)

Jack just posted a new blog in which he clarifies this:

Het states that the berry he warns against is the winterberry and the berry he posted a recipe for was wintergreen berry.
The wintergreen berry is also called tea-berry. So there was a
mix up on my side I think.

Must be a language barrier as both names are much alike.

Luc


----------

