Myrtle wine

[steevw]

I live in Corfu and the headlands here are are covered in arbutus and common myrtle (Myrtus communis). I usually make liqueurs from myrtle which can be picked right now, but the 95% raw spirit available in French and Italian supermarkets is not available in Greece.

I would like to make wine from it, but cannot find a recipe anywhere. Myrtle is astringent like sloe and maybe I can adapt a recipe to suit. Has anyone here ever made myrtle wine?

 

[LJPelletier]

I have never made it, but I think the basic principles would be the same. Have you made other wines before? Do you have all the equipment needed, including a hydrometer?

 

[LJPelletier]

AND you are sure nothing in the myrtle plant you are using is toxic, right?

 

[steevw]

I have made wine before and myrtle products are widely available in Europe, even the leaves are used in cooking. As I am in Greece. maybe I should adopt the Greek approach to measuring gravity - place a fresh egg in the wine, see how quickly it sinks, and then argue with my neighbours about how much sugar to add ...

 

[LJPelletier]

Is it leaves that you are making the wine with, or some sort of flowers or berries? What does it taste like?

How much of the myrtle do you have to work with?

I would likely start by crushing the myrtle a bit, then freeze it in plastic bags to help break down the cell structure. After that, use it to make a liquid must with water, and possibly some juice concentrate as well. Test SG with hydrometer, test acid level, adjust sugar and possibly acid level. Then inoculate with a good yeast.

 

[steevw]

I think you might be horrified to see the way Greek families make their wine for the year. The 54 litre carboys are washed out in the garden with a hosepipe, the liquid from the press is collected in an old yoghurt tub and strained through a plastic colander to get the wasps out. The gravity is then decided with an egg, and the carboy sealed with anything you can find lying around, like an old orange. Forty days later it syphoned off and then decanted into in recycled water bottles for use at the table. The family where I live make 3 tonnes a year and they do not add yeast. They have done it this way for thousands of years.

It is the myrtle berries that I will be using and, as I said, they are astringent and taste of - well, myrtle! I have an endless supply growing wild on the nearby headland. I cannot buy grape concentrate here. To make liqueur, I burst the berries in a pestle & mortar, and steep in vodka or tsipouro with sugar - for forty days!

 

[LJPelletier]

Can you get your hands on some real wine yeast and a hydrometer? I suppose any yeast would work, but you will need some to make herb wine. Grapes have natural yeast on them, and that is why your neighbors don't really have to add yeast. (Still, I wouldn't ever want to rely on unpredictable natural yeast).

I don't have any experience with the egg thing, so really have no idea what you're talking about, but whatever works I guess. I would also highly recommend trying to buy potassium bisulphite and potassium sorbate for the end of secondary fermentation. If there is any way you can do an acid test, that is also recommended.

I would guess you'll want to pick between 6-8 pounds of berries for each gallon of wine. If you are not using a hydrometer, it would likely be safe to use about 2 pounds of sugar per gallon of wine, then of course some water.

Please let me know how it turns out.

 

[robie]

I think you might be horrified to see the way Greek families make their wine for the year. The 54 litre carboys are washed out in the garden with a hosepipe, the liquid from the press is collected in an old yoghurt tub and strained through a plastic colander to get the wasps out. The gravity is then decided with an egg, and the carboy sealed with anything you can find lying around, like an old orange. Forty days later it syphoned off and then decanted into in recycled water bottles for use at the table. The family where I live make 3 tonnes a year and they do not add yeast. They have done it this way for thousands of years.

It is the myrtle berries that I will be using and, as I said, they are astringent and taste of - well, myrtle! I have an endless supply growing wild on the nearby headland. I cannot buy grape concentrate here. To make liqueur, I burst the berries in a pestle & mortar, and steep in vodka or tsipouro with sugar - for forty days!

I understand exactly what you mean. They have been doing it that way for a long, long time. Their wine will likely turn out fine the vast majority of times.

There are new and better ways to better guaranty a batch of wine will come out. By practicing these better, more sanitary methods, you are less likely to have a batch ruined by bacteria or other things. You can take a chance by doing it the old way or you can have much more confidence in the outcome if you follow a few wine area sanitation practices.

By relying on native yeast, you are allowing the first strong yeast that floats by to do your fermentation for you. Again, that works in many cases, but it can be a hit or miss scenario, especially if in your exact location you have not done it before.

Even large wineries utilize native yeast to ferment; some very good commercial wines are made that way year after year. That's because they have lots of experience and likely at the same location year after year, so they pretty much know what yeast are floating around their area. All you can do is try and you will soon find out what you have in your area. Chances are you will be successful, but you never know.

How do you use an egg to determine specific gravity - do you wait until it floats? Sounds interesting and I never thought about it, but it just might be pretty accurate.

 

[robie]

I thought I read once on Jack Keller's site that Myrtle flowers are toxic; I assume the berries would also be toxic. I don't want to spread false rumors, but you might check his site and confirm I am wrong.

 

[LJPelletier]

I thought I read once on Jack Keller's site that Myrtle flowers are toxic; I assume the berries would also be toxic. I don't want to spread false rumors, but you might check his site and confirm I am wrong.

If you look up Myrtus communis on Wikipedia, it shows it to be safe and even have some medicinal use. It doesn't talk about eating the berries, but I assume they just don't taste good on their own. lol

 

[steevw]

I have made a myrtle liqueur for several years now, but I came here because I would like to make wine from them also. It is an abundant wild fruit here in Corfu. One of the the most common and popular jams in French supermarkets is Myrtilles - it is delicious. The flowers are beautiful, but I have never considered using them. The leaves can be dried and added to casseroles, etc.

I never resolved the issue of the floating egg, but it does stimulate a lot of heated discussion prior to adding sugar. The Greek way with most things is to consume only natural products. The concept of wine-making is similar to that described in Annie Hawes' book - 'Extra Virgin.' Wine made in this traditional way is called 'grape wine' - anything else is a chemical abomination and not to be consumed. As with olive oil, the product is not tampered with in any way as people would rather take their chances with taste, strength, acidity etc.... As someone once said - "taste a wine, taste a summer ..."

 

[LJPelletier]

Well I hope the info helps. Good luck

 

[robie]

Sounds safe to me!
I only mentioned the possibility of toxicity, just as a good citizen.

It is always a good idea, if one doesn't already truly know for sure about a specific wine base fruit, to check it out.

 

[steevw]

Well I hope the info helps. Good luck

Not sure that it does - I still need a tried and tested method.

 

[lloyd]

I do want to thank you for sharing How you make wine. It is a very old art. and a Great one!!

 

[HatemSolieman]

I made Myrtle wine, just squeeze the fruits, add some water and 50 g sugar per liter and some wine and let them to fermentation for one month in anaerobic condition on dark cold place. it is tasty