Looking for a recipe for kale wine.

[Breakinbonesben]

I have huge amounts of kale. Was hoping for a recipe. Looked all over only saw a post of someone trying but with no recipe or outcome.

 

[ceeaton]

I think the outcome would be too healthy for me.

 

[Scooter68]

I guess it might be interesting around St Patricks day but beyond that...

At the risk of sounding snobby or closed minded - Just because you CAN make a wine out of something, doesn't mean you should or that it will be good. Just sayin

 

[Breakinbonesben]

I just have so much. It would be a cheap exsperiment.

 

[Scooter68]

Juice and freeze it? Not sure if that's a viable idea but I understand kale juice is supposed to super healthy - Sorry folks don't toss me off for talking about making healthy drinks.

 

[Breakinbonesben]

I usually saute it with garlic and have it as a side dish. I guess im going to have to get a juicer now.

 

[Scooter68]

I usually saute it with garlic and have it as a side dish. I guess im going to have to get a juicer now.

Be sure you get the right type of juicer. I got an Omega for my purposes but I'm not sure if it would be the best for kale. I did some reading and for juicing Apples and fruit the Omega is fantastic. Not sure about greens - different process I think...

 

[BernardSmith]

OK- I have never made wine from kale, but talk of juice is not the first approach I would think that kale calls for. I make wines from flowers and leaves and even roots (elderflowers, chamomile, nettles and marshmallow (the plant) you don't juice those. You extract their flavor either by making a tea (so heat and water) or you use alcohol to extract the flavor. The first approach might be to take a couple of gallons of kale and a gallon of water, add say, 2.25 lbs of sugar and boil this for ten minutes to make a tea. (if you are using honey - a kale mead - I would add the honey AFTER the tea has cooled). Not sure how flavorful this tea will be so you need to decide whether to strain the tea right away or allow the kale to stay in the must for two or three days or for a week.. I would pitch your yeast. Perhaps a Belle Saison yeast. You might want to add lemon zest and tannin. And then ferment dry and taste - It may want back sweetening. This may also need some lemon juice to give it a kick
The alternative is to make a traditional mead (honey, water, nutrient and yeast) . This could be 12% ABV or it could be a session mead (say 6%) and when you are ready to rack to the secondary you add the kale and use the alcohol to extract the flavors. Now you have much more control over the process as you can taste this every day or so and determine whether the kale needs to sit in the alcohol for a week or a month. or... ? Again, this will need tannin and acidity.
Of course, this may taste like crap... BUT I have made zucchini wine and that was delicious and I have made a turnip wine and that too was wonderful.
There is a third approach you might consider and that is to cover a quantity of kale with some cheap vodka and agitate this a couple of times a day for say, two to three weeks and then taste the vodka. If the kale vodka excites your palate you know that kale wine has potential. If the vodka is awful then the wine may not be the direction in which you want to take this kale.

 

[kyle5434]

My suggestion - If you don't already have one, get a dehydrator (Excalibur 9-tray models can process quite a bit at a time). You can crush/powder the dehydrated leaves for use in a wide variety of things (soups, smoothies, chicken/tuna/egg salad, scrambled eggs, etc.). Just store the dried, powdered kale in canning jars and it will keep for a year or two easily.

 

[Breakinbonesben]

Thank you.
I have enouph to try a couple different things. Ill post how it turns out.

 

[meadmaker1]

 

[meadmaker1]

Sorry couldnt help it.

 

[Breakinbonesben]

[emoji23]