Lemon Balm Wine - I'm going for it!

[Raptor99]

My lemon balm wine is bulk aging right now. I tasted it today, and it has a mild lemon flavor and good body. I added the juice and zest of two lemons. That gave me an initial pH of 3.4, which is just right, so I didn't add any other acid. I added 1/8 tsp wine tannin in primary, so there is not much tannin. The estimated ABV is about 12%.

With a little bit of sweetening, the acid/alcohol/sugar balance is about right. But the flavor is not very strong, so it is not very exciting. I used 6 cups (100 g) of fresh lemon balm for 1.5 gal primary.

I'm wondering how I can improve on this, to give it a more robust flavor. More lemon balm? Other ingredients? Age it on oak?

 

[suzyq2]

I would be tempted to make an extract so you could have control of additions. That may bump your ABV though which I'm sure you're more knowledgeable than I am.

 

[Terryfirma]

I made some recently- added extra Balm “tea” the day after the initial 6-7 cups of balm -trying to get max flavor. It is very mild.
I used black tea for tannin/ depth which helped some. Lots of sugar and 4 lemons.. it was in the dessert wine range. I saved out some extra for a finishing “cold ferment” after 2 weeks . I tasted it just now. It is lemony and mild. Wish it had more herbal taste.. but I’m not getting that.
Reminds me of Dandelion fizz that I’ve made- refreshing and the alcohol content seems high..but, not in a bad way
I made Lemon Balm Mead 2 years ago. I was frustrated with the lack of flavor and over-reacted and added Strawberries.. ( don’t do it!!)
it was horrible for awhile.. ( I dislike bad Strawberry flavor! ) 2 years later, it is drinkable - but I still don’t like the Strawberry flavor. Had I left it as Lemon Balm mead I’m sure it would have been subtle but potent in alcohol. ( I forgot that mead takes much longer to develop so early trials were awful and I nearly pitched it all!!)
Always learning…!

 

[Raptor99]

I have lemon balm coming up right now all over my property, so it was time to taste the wine that I made from it last year. Last year's batch was started on 4/8/23 and bottled on 1/21/24 (I got busy...). Today it has a good but subtle flavor. It is like a white wine with a hint of lemon and something else difficult to define. There is a lingering fruity or herbal after taste that is quite pleasant. It is a little better with some more added sweetness.

I want to try another batch this year, possibly with more lemon balm. I should bench test first by making some tea with various amounts of lemon balm to find the point at which it gets too herbal.

I am also getting ready to make some hard lemonade for the summer, and I had the idea of making some from lemon balm + lemon juice + a bit of ginger. That might be very nice at about 5% ABV, sweetened, and carbonated.

 

[Jovimaple]

I am also getting ready to make some hard lemonade for the summer, and I had the idea of making some from lemon balm + lemon juice + a bit of ginger. That might be very nice at about 5% ABV, sweetened, and carbonated.

Ginger may make the must environment difficult for yeast to ferment.

 

[Raptor99]

Ginger may make the must environment difficult for yeast to ferment.

Yes it does. I discovered that when making hard ginger ale. I eventually got it to ferment, but it was a struggle.

This time I am using only a small amount of ginger, and step feeding my starter with must to help the yeast acclimate to the adverse environment. If I have trouble with that, next time I will add the ginger tea in secondary.

 

[winemaker81]

Yes it does. I discovered that when making hard ginger ale. I eventually got it to ferment, but it was a struggle.

What about fermenting the wine without ginger, adding it for post-fermentation maceration?

 

[Raptor99]

What about fermenting the wine without ginger, adding it for post-fermentation maceration?

That's what I will try next time, if I have trouble getting this to ferment.

 

[BigDaveK]

I've made 2 ginger wines, added it to a few others (I like it with pear) and never had a problem. Because of it's antimicrobial properties I simmer it first.

 

[Raptor99]

I've made 2 ginger wines, added it to a few others (I like it with pear) and never had a problem. Because of it's antimicrobial properties I simmer it first.

I simmer mine as well. I read somewhere that simmering it will destroy the anti-microbial properties. I haven't been able to verify that from a reputable source, so I'm not sure whether that is true or not.

For my hard lemonade, I used only the "tea" from simmering and steeping the ginger. I didn't include the ginger bits in the primary. I'm not sure whether that makes a difference to the yeast or not.

 

[Raptor99]

It's supposed to be in the mid-80's this weekend, so my lemon balm will go to seed soon. It's time to use it or lose it.

I did some brewing trials with fresh lemon balm to determine the best brewing temperature. After two sets of trials, I concluded that 160 degrees probably gives the best flavor. I steep it until the water is completely cool. I also tried cold brew, which is pretty good as well.

The lemon flavor seems to be very volatile. There is a very nice lemon fragrance when you squeeze a fresh leaf, but I have not been able to capture that in any steeped tea. There is an herbal taste that is nice, and some body, but very little lemon flavor. I will probably use some lemon balm as a background flavor in my hard lemonade, but add plenty of lemon juice as well.