# How much are you guys paying for strawberry, blueberry, etc?



## geek (Jun 5, 2014)

I called a farm that will have pick your own strawberry in the next few days here in CT. The girl wasn't sure but said she thinks the price is around $2.50/lb.

I saw strawberry at the supermarket for $1.99/lb I think.

Not sure about blueberry, blackberry and raspberry.

..


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## cmason1957 (Jun 5, 2014)

I haven't verified the price this year, but generally U Pick Places around the Missouri area have charged something like $2.50-$3/lb. I am lucky, the fruit stand around the corner has my phone number on speed dial. When they are just about ready to throw fruit out, they call me. I picked up 5 cases of blackberries or about 50 lbs for $40.


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## jojabri (Jun 5, 2014)

I seriously need to contact my local fruit stand.

As far as price, I've noticed strawberries on sale for $1 to $1.33 per pound lately.

Not sure about other berries as I haven't bought any lately.


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## geek (Jun 5, 2014)

Strawberry at $2.65 here for pick your own starting this coming Monday....
Sounds expensive... 

You're lucky man.....


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## geek (Jun 5, 2014)

I think someone said 10 lbs yields a gallon of juice, so for a 5gal batch 50lbs= $132.50 

That is to not use water...


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## Runningwolf (Jun 5, 2014)

I got 207 gallons per ton which translates to 9.6 lbs per gallon, so I would say your source was right on. Look to see where the closest produce auction is around you. I have two of them within 60 miles. This is where the grocery stores and roadside stands buy there fruit from. It's an opportunity to buy a quantity of fruit at cost. I did this when I made my jalapeno wine.


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## TinyPirate (Jun 5, 2014)

That is a great idea. Can random people usually turn up and just buy 100 pounds?


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## Runningwolf (Jun 5, 2014)

Yes they're usually open to the public. That's one of the places people go that do a lot of canning.


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## bkisel (Jun 6, 2014)

Any of you "guys"




know when peaches come into season here in the north east and what they generally go for US$ per pound?


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## geek (Jun 6, 2014)

Bill,

At Lyman Orchard is late September:

http://lymanorchards.com/orchard/pick-your-own/peaches-nectarines/

Also, here's their PYO calendar to the bottom of this page:
http://lymanorchards.com/orchard


.


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## geek (Jun 6, 2014)

Thanks Dan, I will check that.

I cannot believe that supermarket have strawberry for 1.99/lb, cheaper than the orchard.....


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## bkisel (Jun 6, 2014)

geek said:


> Bill,
> 
> At Lyman Orchard is late September:
> 
> ...



Thanks. Checked the link you gave and season actually starts late July.

Ref: "*Availability:* Late July - Late September"


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## Deezil (Jun 6, 2014)

Runningwolf said:


> I got 207 gallons per ton which translates to 9.6 lbs per gallon, so I would say your source was right on. Look to see where the closest produce auction is around you. I have two of them within 60 miles. This is where the grocery stores and roadside stands buy there fruit from. It's an opportunity to buy a quantity of fruit at cost. I did this when I made my jalapeno wine.



I wish we had produce auctions out here... But most of the fruit here goes for top-dollar, every where else.. So it's U-Pick, the farmers market, or the grocery store... 



geek said:


> Thanks Dan, I will check that.
> 
> I cannot believe that supermarket have strawberry for 1.99/lb, cheaper than the orchard.....



I can.. The price difference is in the quality.. You want picked-before-they're-ripe-so-they-dont-spoil/immature fruit from some other state/country, at the grocery store.. Or do you want plant-ripened, fresh, local (and sometimes organic, or at least less spraying) produce?

The only saving grace at the grocery store, is the freezer section. Those fruits were froze because, when picked, they were too ripe to make it to market without spoiling... But everything else? It's picked like bananas - how they're green in Panama, but yellow on the shelf.. 

Peaches are rock-hard/knock-you-out-hard when picked for the grocery store, but the juice will run down your arm trying to get them off the tree from a U-Pick..

Blueberries, blackberries and raspberries can be netted, allowing the farmer to wait a little longer and making for better berries... But you end up paying for it, in the higher prices..

Mostly, you get what you pay for..
And as far as the wine is concerned - you only get out, what you put in..


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## ibglowin (Jun 6, 2014)

The Farmers Market in ABQ is running ads on TV for Strawberries. An 8lb Flat for only $5. Thats only $0.63lb!


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## geek (Jun 6, 2014)

Manley,

I'll be making (I think to start) a 3gal batch with strawberry.

Do you have a good recipe. 
I want to make my first fruit wine without water, just juice.

..


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## jojabri (Jun 6, 2014)

cmason1957 said:


> I haven't verified the price this year, but generally U Pick Places around the Missouri area have charged something like $2.50-$3/lb. I am lucky, the fruit stand around the corner has my phone number on speed dial. When they are just about ready to throw fruit out, they call me. I picked up 5 cases of blackberries or about 50 lbs for $40.



Thanks for the idea! I stopped at our local produce stand today and asked what they do with their fruit that is going bad, she says they just toss it. So I asked if there would be a possibility of being able to pick up fruit there at cheap to free rather than them throwing it out. She was cool with the idea. I gave her my business card and she said she'd call, she even gave the kids a fre banana, LOL. Too bad I didn't catch this yesterday when she said they threw out about 50 pounds of apples.


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## Deezil (Jun 7, 2014)

geek said:


> Manley,
> 
> I'll be making (I think to start) a 3gal batch with strawberry.
> 
> ...



A 3 gallon batch of strawberry, for me, looks something like this:

Shoot to make 3.5 - 4 gallons of must; you'll lose some during racking, and some to sediment, but should end with at least 3 gallons of finished wine.

40lbs of strawberries, after slicing; probably start with 50lbs whole

Mash them into mush, and add sulfites to keep the fruit from browning/spoiling.

Add either Lallzyme EX or Lallzyme EX-V; you'll want the smallest package of one of the two.. EX if you want to craft this more in line with a 'white wine', or EX-V if you want to make it more of a 'red wine'. This is the beginning of two separate paths I'm going to lay out for you, either of which, I wish I could try myself. 

If you go the 'white wine' route, I'd suggest additions of Booster Blanc and Opti-White; the 'red wine' route is Booster Rouge & Opti-Red. You'll really only need 1/2 of the smallest packages they offer, but I dont think it would hurt to use the entirety of the packages, being that you want all-fruit here. 

The object of these additives is to stabilize the color, improve the mouthfeel, enhance the aroma, and 'fill in the blanks' somewhat, on the structure.. I find it really helps with fruit wines, that can seem to come off somehow 1-dimensional, or lacking complexity. Dissolve and add them to the must, before you pitch the yeast.

Re-hydrate the yeast with Go-Ferm

If you want the 'white wine', I'd go with 71B-1122 or Rhone 4600
Or the 'red wine', RC 212 or ICV-D254

You'll want to look into the yeast you choose, I can help if you wish, to look up its nutritional demand - low/medium/high - to know how intense of a nutrient schedule you'll need. In any case, the Booster & Opti products have some organic forms of nutrients, very minimal however, but it's enough that you dont/wont need to add any nutrients to the must until after the 'lag phase'.. Basically, you wont need to add nutrients until there's a cap formed on top. 

When you do add nutrients, I would separate the total amount of nutrients needed into 2-5 doses, spread out over the length of the fermentation. The length of the fermentation is dictated, a lot, by the temperature. For a 'white wine', I'd keep it cooler, in the 68-72F, but for the 'red wine', I'd go for 74-78F.. In neither case, would I want to let it creep above 80F. 

I personally reach for Fermaid-O, but others have had success with Fermaid-K.. And it's partially dependent on the yeast strain. 

I've made a lot of berry wines, but not strawberry yet, so I'm not certain on the specific acidity level that you'll want, but I do know it's something that you'll want to address before you pitch the yeast. Hopefully someone can chime in with that tidbit, but other than that, most of my fruit wines generally follow these guidelines, although I do swap out a decent variety of yeasts as well as introduce some tannins to particular batches.

Don't run strawberry 'hot', keep it around 1.080 - 1.085 SG; under 12% ABV

That's my general format for a fruit wine though. No water; I tend to use honey over sugar; adjust acidity pre-ferment; keep the yeast healthy; use Booster & Opti additives to stabilize color, aroma and mouthfeel; keep temps reasonable; and never forget to have patience.


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## geek (Jun 7, 2014)

Thanks for the info..!!

-do you wash the berries once picked or bought at the store?

I was/am planing to :
-discard the green leaves from the top
-wash them thoroughly
-chop them in smaller pieces
-add some sulfites
-freeze them in zip lock bags
-once frozen then thaw them and wait for room temp to start the real process

The acidity: I wonder what can I expect from strawberry so I can order online whatever I need to adjust the level.

I want to back sweeten like I do with DB.

Lastly....my wife who works at Costco was saying "*why are you going to drive 30 miles to pick your own strawberries and pay $2.65/lb when you can get a 4lb package at Costco for $7, and the strawberries are selected with great quality...etc. etc."*
I guess she may have a point as Costco sells good stuff.

..


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## ibglowin (Jun 7, 2014)

Yes they do! Unless you just really like bending over or getting on your hands and knees picking fruit for several hours in the hot, humid sun……. 

We have Costco Strawberries as well as the giant Clamshell of Blueberries in the fridge right now. Really great quality fruit at a really great price!


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## geek (Jun 7, 2014)

and by the way, it would be better to just buy the frozen ones in the 4 or 5lb bag, right?
No need for washing, removing leaves on top, cutting up before you freeze them.....makes sense??


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## Deezil (Jun 7, 2014)

geek said:


> Thanks for the info..!!
> 
> -do you wash the berries once picked or bought at the store?
> 
> ...





geek said:


> and by the way, it would be better to just buy the frozen ones in the 4 or 5lb bag, right?
> No need for washing, removing leaves on top, cutting up before you freeze them.....makes sense??



Whether I wash the fruit or not, depends on the fruit I'm working with. I'm not scared to wash strawberries, but do it before you cut them at all. If washed after you cut into them, you're possibly diluting or washing flavors away. 

Freezing your fruits is always preferable; I somehow overlooked that originally.

The acidity.. I want to say I remember reading something about a pH of 3.3-3.4.. But I cant recall any TA information.. 

How do you backsweeten your DB? I'm not a SP/DB-maker, but this is going to be a 'different animal', in multiple aspects. You'll want to give this time to age (12-18 months) before you cross the backsweetening bridge. Let it show you what it already is, before you dump sweetness on it trying to make it what you imagined it would be. 

Then, you'll find yourself sweetening it into balance, drawing out the hidden nuances that come with a little residual sweetness... Instead of sweetening it so much, that you pass up that narrow window of hidden nuances, hiding them again behind the excess sugars..

Where do the berries at Costco come from? And are they larger than a golfball? People in the stores like to buy big fruit, that all looks the same.. What they dont tell you - like Thompson Seedless grapes you get in the store - they're about 80-85% water. They're "large" because they're over-watered. You're buying watered down flavor. And watered down color. Sure, they look great, they are great when smothered in dark or white chocolate... But they arent the best choice for wine. They'll make decent wine, sure, but one could do better. 

If that's the case.. You're better off in the freezer section. 

What you *can* find at the right U-Pick, are smaller strawberries.. They'd fit inside a golfball, if you could find a way to make it work.. Small, with a deep red color, and ripened on the plant.. Those, are hard to beat. All you have to do is eat one, to believe me. Might want to call around to the U-Picks though and ask them if they have larger berries or smaller


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## Bnew17 (Jul 4, 2014)

.75 cent a pound for peaches
1.25 a pound strawberrys
1.50 a pound blackberrys but i also pick alot of wild ones

Everything i pick is from farms.


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## NoobVinter (Aug 4, 2014)

Paid $10.50 for 7 lbs of strawberries tonight. Washed, cut, covered, and put in the freezer for a three day period. I have no idea how to make a strawberry wine, but I got three days to figure it out.  I think that's a good price though. Good luck finding a good deal! 


Sent from my iPhone using Wine Making


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