# Prickly Pear Wine ?????????



## jobe05 (Sep 25, 2007)

Had an employee out on a job today that found a few huge cactus bushes nearby. He stopped and asked the owner if he could pick a few of the prickly pears off of them for his boss who makes wine, the old man said he could pick as many as he would like, just bring him a bottle of wine.

So he picked me a box full, containing about 2 bushels of them......







These are a sample of them. Having never had prickly pear, or the wine of, I was at a loss for information on how to prepare them. So I did the next logical thing a man (or woman) could do............. I called George! Mark answered and I told him of my delima........ he kinda laughed and said that George is gunna have to answer that one, so George came on the phone wanting to know why on earth I would want to do prickly pear wine??????? Well............ It's free.............. 

Anyway, George said that I had to burn off the little prickly's, peel them :






Then dig out the pith and the seeds in the center......... Very hard to do:






There are a lot of little seeds in them that are like little rocks! Very hard seeds, and very hard to dig out of the delicate flesh that is left:






After talking with George, and following his preperation advise, I did the only logical thing a good boss could do, I reprimanded my employee and sent him home with a box full of prickly pears and said HOW DARE YOU! Don't come back till these are cleaned and ready for wine making!

Looking for a good recipe.

Stay Tuned! 

*Edited by: jobe05 *


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## Waldo (Sep 25, 2007)

Look this one over buddy
http://scorpius.spaceports.com/~goodwine/pricklypearwine.htm
What do they taste like?


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## jobe05 (Sep 25, 2007)

Thanks Waldo, I will look at the recipe to see if tis works.

The taste?.......... Very good taste, flavor? Depends on ripeness. I had one that was ery ripe, very soft and it had a grapeish - floral taste, with a deffinate pear after taste. I had another one that was ripe, but not overly (the one pictured that is cleaned out). I had my wife, my son and myself try a peice. My wife said it tasted like kinda like a mild blackberry (or berries), my son said it tasted like a musk melon (green melon) with a slight cherry taste. I thought it had a cherry / Grape taste and we all agreed that we tasted the pear in the end, So the flavor is mixed, yet interesting. 

If you need a couple bushel picked, cleaned and ready I can let you borrow my employee for a day or two


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## Wade E (Sep 25, 2007)

<h2> Prickly Pear Cactus



</h2>

<center>_*"Be careful with the spines or the wine could have a bite!"*_</center>








*The Texas prickly pear cactus is the Opuntia lindheimeri. The broad leaves, called pads or nopalitos,
produce pretty yellow to red flowers in spring, which in turn produce
red to purple fruit in fall. Both the pads and fruit are edible, but
both have tufts of spines protecting them. The spines can be long and
large on the pads, but those on the fruit are usually extremely small
but just as painful. The peeled fruit has an aroma similar to
watermelon. The fruit is the part of the cactus from which wine can be
made. *



*One word of caution. There is a substance in the pigmented fruit
of the prickly pear cactus that nearly 1% of the population has an
allergy to. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Food
Safety &amp; Applied Nutrition lists the Opuntia species of the Cactaceae genus on their "Vascular Plants List"
of the "Poisonous Plants Database." This listing simply means that
toxic effects have been associated with the plants listed by one or
more researchers and should not be cited as a definitive conclusion of
safety or toxicity. I have drank large quantities of this wine and
suffered no ill effects, but you may be among the 1% that would suffer.
Thus, you have been advised....*



<center><h3>PRICKLY PEAR CACTUS WINE</h3></center>
<ul>*
*[*]*5-6 lb. prickly pear fruit
*[*]*2-1/2 lb. granulated sugar
*[*]*1 tsp. acid blend
*[*]*1 gallon water
*[*]*wine yeast and nutrient
*[/list]


*Put prickly pear cactus fruit in large crock or pail. Pour one
gallon boiling water over fruit. Wait two minutes (to loosen skin) and
drain off water. Allow fruit to cool and carefully peel skin off, being
especially watchful not to touch spines. Cut fruit into pieces not
larger than one inch, put in pot, add 1/2 gallon water, bring to boil.
Reduce heat to maintain gentle boil for 15 minutes. Cover pot and allow
to cool to luke warm. Pour fruit and juice into large nylon grain-bag
(fine mesh) or sieve and squeeze juice into primary fermentation
vessel. Discard pulp. To juice, add sugar, acid blend, yeast and
nutrient and stir to dissolve sugar. Cover well and set in warm place
for seven days, stirring daily. Siphon off lees into secondary
fermentation vessel, top up with water, fit airlock, and let stand
three weeks. Rack and top up, then rack again in two months. Allow to
clear, rack again if necessary, and bottle. May taste after one year,
but improves with age. [Author's own recipe.]*

*This is off Jack Kellars site Jobe just so you have a few to compare.
*


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## JWMINNESOTA (Sep 25, 2007)

Ive had jelly from Prickly Pear cactus when we lived in AZ, never a wine from them, would think it would be good if the flavors come forward in it, what in the world are they doing growing in your neck of the woods?


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## jobe05 (Sep 25, 2007)

They grow everywhere here. I had never really noticed them for some reason till this year. Now, everywhere I look I see a huge prickly pear cactus growing right out in the open. I would guess if I just spent a day driving around my normal areas in a day, I could fill the bed of my truck with these things in a days time. Most people don't even know what they are, some of the older people and the Mexicans however know what they are, they'er tighter than a tics butt in letting you have them also.


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## dfwwino (Sep 25, 2007)

A deceased winemaker friend used to make outstanding prickly pear wine. I loved it. I just never had the patience togo a bit West and spend an afternoon picking prickly pears and then burning off the thorns. But if you have slave labor, it is well worth the effort. My friend made a slightly sweet blush with the fruit.


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## le_tex (Oct 2, 2007)

I actually have some prickly pear wine in my primary fermenter right now using the recipe from Jack Keller's website. The SG was good by itself, but I had to add some acid blend for the acidity.


It was easier than I thought to pick and process the fruit. With heavy rubber garden gloves, I just picked them, washed them, cut them in half and threw them in my steam juicer. I didn't do a good job weighing the fruit, but I estimate out of 20 lbs. I got 8 quarts of juice. The juice from the steam juicer had a slightunderlying vegetable taste that I didn't taste when I triedeating the fresh fruit, but it was still sweet with teh distinct prickly pear taste. The juice is afun neon pink color.


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## jobe05 (Oct 2, 2007)

Le tex, I was thinking of doing the same thing with about 1/2 of these, then go ahead and mash some in a straining bag to ferment with. Burning off the the little prickley things seem to be the easiest way, but I'm concerned with the flames scorching the fruit and leaving an burned taste in the must, and later wine.............. Still gonna do it though, just scorch lightly as I think most of the color and flavor is in or near the skin. Does the color pigment fall out during the clearing stage?


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## le_tex (Oct 2, 2007)

This is my first batch of prickly pear wine, so I don't know about the color later in the process. I'm five days into primary fermentation and it is still a pretty bright neon pink.


I didn't do anything about the spines or glochids when I processed the prickly pearsin the steam juicer (the juice ended up pretty clear). I figured any spines that got past the steam juicer, I would filter out through racking and then finally a gravity filter. I've never used a gravity filter before so that may be naive, but right now that's the plan.


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## jobe05 (Oct 2, 2007)

I agree with your plan, and now I'm thinking of just running them through my crusher on my press to grind them up and throw them in a bucket with some yeast........... Decisions........ decisions.......


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## Wade E (Oct 2, 2007)

le tex, the gravity filter does an awesome job but takes awhile. It typically takes 30-45 minutes to run 6 gallons through.


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## jobe05 (Oct 2, 2007)

Wade, someday I'll take a picture of my process for filtering with a gravity filter, but it's pretty simple. The higher the holding carboy (wine to be filtered) is, the faster it will siphon and the more pressure it gives you through the hose to the filter. I can filter a 6 gallon batch, somewhat clear to start with, in about 15 to 20 minutes. Second batch through the same filter will take longer, 3rd, will take me about 45 minutes. I also only filter my whites, not the reds,I found them to difficult to filter, just filter tem with age in the carboy.

But on my work bench, I built a shelf that is high up. It leaves me enough room to get a siphon wand in it with the orange cap. Get everything ready, then just stand on a chair and blow in the other tube of the cap.


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## jobe05 (Oct 6, 2007)

All I can say is that I hope when I get ready to make the jelly, that it comes out as good as the must smells so far............ CUZ I AINT EVER MAKING THIS AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Should have listened to George............ 

But it sounded so easy........... But no one ever said "How Many" of those little prickly things a prickly pear could have, but regardless of how many 1 pear has, you ultimately end up with 1/2 of them on you somewhere.

I burned and sent them through my crusher, then pressed them, so contact was minimal.

Anyway......, now I have 3 gallons of a light purple / florescent pink kinda must with an SG of 1.075. I added 3 pounds of white raisins, so I suspect by tomorrow the SG will be higher.

And I still have about 10 pounds left for Jelly............... and I'll have to peel and pit those............... I'm not sure I'm gonna like the jelly.........


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## Waldo (Oct 6, 2007)

Could you not just crush them with the prickly thing still on them jobe? *Edited by: Waldo *


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## jobe05 (Oct 6, 2007)

The burning was kinda the easy part. I took a 3/4" wooden dowel and screwed on a 1/4 X 6" wood screw, then ground the tip down to a point. Set up the Turkey fryer burner and just stabbed one, rolled it over the fire and then used the box to pull it off. That was outside and I sat upwind of the work area. It was getting all those little buggers into the crusher that set the remaining prickly thingy's in motion......


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## pkcook (Oct 7, 2007)

Jobe/Waldo,


A friend of mine in New Mexico makes prickly pear wine regularly. The first time he tried not burning the spines off,all went well until he sampled it for the first time and got a terrible burning sensation in his throat. Needless to say he drank some spines from the pears. The pears have a very fine spine like hair that in fluid cannot be seen. He ended up filtering it all out and the wine was spared, but from that time on always burns the spines before he makes wine.


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## jobe05 (Oct 7, 2007)

Thanks pkcook, I had a fear that could happen, you just confirmed them. Even after burning there are still spines that come out of them. Most however are no longer barbed like a fish hook, the burning makes them smooth so they come right out. Filtering is going to be a must (no pun intended) with this wine.

Since this is my first try at prickly pear (and most likely my last), I was thinking of splitting the batch up after fermentation into 3, 1 gallon batches. One I will sweeten, one I will Oak and the other???????? Dunno yet.


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## JR Smith (Oct 11, 2007)

I had picked probley around 100 lb, of the pears. by hand. I had a insulated winter glove on but the spines went through these on a regular basis and I had to stop and take the glove off and remove what I could. I am throwing the gloves away. I would recomend a metal tong or even a snake catcher device for this. and my back hurt like the devil. I had to do nothing else but wash them and put them in the steamer/juicer and give it about 2 hr. per batch When they turn paleish and collapse they are done. I let the juice run into a metal bucket as it melted off. the juice is a deep red color. I did this 7 times to get my 4 gal. I had to return to the patch one more time for a reload of a couple more buckets of about 3 gal each. I have one to cut and taste in a day or so. There is still a few thousand left at the patch. and this is inAmarillo, TXat a railroad overpass just a few blocks from downtown.


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## jobe05 (Oct 11, 2007)

I used heavy duty leather bound work gloves that the prickley's came right through, and yes, bending over those bushes to get the pears can be very back braking. You bend over, get 4 or 5 on your glove and now have to stand up to put them in your bucket.

I put mine in a box, lined with a plastic garbage bag. When full, I closed the bag and let it sit in the garage for a week. When I opened the bag, no rotten ones, no soft ones, but the juice was just running out of them. I didn't weigh mine, but I would guess about 30 to 35 pounds, or just shy of a 5 gallon pal full. I ran 1/2 of those through my crusher, then pressed them and got a full 2 gallons of just juice, and after pressing, about a gallon size brick of skins and seeds. Mine is a neon purple color right now. Not a color I really want to see in a wine glass, but I have read that the pigment falls out during clearing, at least some of it.

Heres a pic of mine so far:






*Edited by: jobe05 *


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## JR Smith (Oct 12, 2007)

I am thinking about going back and get some more and take down a few specks on what I am doing for future projects. I will half to borrow the juicer/steamer again. now the wife wants a qt or so for jelly, and next the other kin will want in on it to. oh well, it holds down the bickering someone said something about making pancake surpe out of it also. I may half to buy a house on the border to get enough pears. this wine making is getting costley


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## uavwmn (May 18, 2009)

jobe, I live here in SE AZ. We have prickly pear everywhere!!! So.....I was wondering how your prickly pear wine turned out? Did you happen to take notes? And if so, could you share them with me? Pretty please??


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## deerdude (Jul 14, 2012)

I live in south texas and have 640 acres of prickly pear my wife makes jelli every year and i have 5 gal of juice left anyone have a way to just use the juice she likes sweet wine!! how long does it take to make?? thanks


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## saramc (Jul 15, 2012)

*Have prickly pear cactus juice-needs a recipe.*

_


deerdude said:



I live in south texas and have 640 acres of prickly pear my wife makes jelli every year and i have 5 gal of juice left anyone have a way to just use the juice she likes sweet wine!! how long does it take to make?? thanks

Click to expand...

_ 
Well, since you already have the juice...you have the hardest part done. 
**I would recommend bringing the juice to a BOIL and then immediately remove from heat, cool, and strain because the juice has a tendency to be very mucous-like if you do not heat treat first. Now, if the juice was obtained by steam-juicing, you are good to go. 


Ingredients for FIVE gallon batch:
Prickly Pear juice2 tsp. Yeast NutrientSugar to obtain OG of 1.0855 lbs. chopped raisins 2 tsp. Acid Blend5 tsp. Pectic Enzyme1/4 tsp. Potassium Metabisulfite 1 pkg. Cotes de Blanc Yeast  

Directions:

In primary fermenting bucket: place chopped raisins in straining bag, add juice and all remaining ingredients, EXCEPT yeast. Stir well.
Cover primary (to keep bugs, etc., out). Ideal temp: 68-72F.
Wait 24 hours, then add yeast and lightly re-cover primary.
Stir daily, check S.G. and press raisins lightly.
When S.G. has decreased by 2/3 from starting point (usually 3-5 days), lightly squeeze all juice from raisin bag-remove and discard. Then rack into glass carboy, leaving any sediment in primary, and attach airlock.
When S.G. reaches 1.000 or SG has not changed after checking for 3 consecutive days (usually about 3 weeks), fermentation is complete. Rack into clean glass container, leaving any sediment on bottom prior carboy. Re-attach airlock.
As long as the wine continues to drop sediment you will need to rack every 60-90 days to aid in the clearing process.
When wine is clear and no longer dropping sediment after racking, you can proceed with back-sweetening, stabilizing and bottling.
To sweeten your wine, add 2 1/2 tsp potassium sorbate and 1/4 tsp potassium metabisulfite and stir. Then add 1/4 lb. dissolved sugar per gallon (or to your taste) and stir again. Re-attach airlock and allow to rest for 7-10 days, using your hydrometer to check for refermentation. If no signs of refermentation, rack one final time, filter if desired and bottle. Age for approximately 6 months (again at your discretion).
I used this recipe but made a mead instead of wine. If your juice was obtained by way of steam-juicing, you do not need to add the k-meta at the start of the ferment, but do add it when you transfer from primary to secondary/airlock for the first time. It is not a mandatory requirement but an option since your juice was obtained by steaming.


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## snowgirl812001 (Aug 14, 2012)

I am VERY new to this but I also make prickly pear jelly and have lots of juice i have frozen. I want to try to make it into wine but am having trouble with finding a recipe to go from. I am going to be doing a 1 gallon batch. I've seen many recipes that have the fruit in them, I guess I am looking for help on exactly how much of the juice to use. Any help would be greatly appreciated!


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