DeniseHogemann
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Would like to make a saskatoon berry wine. Any suggests or recipes would be appreciated.
Saskatoon berry wine
- Thread starter DeniseHogemann
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LJPelletier
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How many pounds of the saskatoon berry do you have?
I would think you'd want about 4-5 lbs per gallon...
If I had 4-5 lbs of them, I think I'd get one of the nylon straining bags from my local brew supplier...
I'd press the juice into the primary bucket, and leave the straining bag in it.
Next, I'd take some sugar... probably 2 lbs to start. I'd dissolve the sugar in some boiling water, and add it to the primary bucket. Add more water, about a gallon in total. Check SG with hydrometer. I would add more sugar to get it up to about 1.095 ish. Add pectic enzyme, and potassium bisulphite. Allow must to sit overnight.
Pitch yeast. Depending on taste after primary is complete, I might add grape tannin, acid, or sweetener with the sorbate.
I would think you'd want about 4-5 lbs per gallon...
If I had 4-5 lbs of them, I think I'd get one of the nylon straining bags from my local brew supplier...
I'd press the juice into the primary bucket, and leave the straining bag in it.
Next, I'd take some sugar... probably 2 lbs to start. I'd dissolve the sugar in some boiling water, and add it to the primary bucket. Add more water, about a gallon in total. Check SG with hydrometer. I would add more sugar to get it up to about 1.095 ish. Add pectic enzyme, and potassium bisulphite. Allow must to sit overnight.
Pitch yeast. Depending on taste after primary is complete, I might add grape tannin, acid, or sweetener with the sorbate.
Arne
Senior Member
I have never seen a Saskatoon berry but if I was to try a batch of wine with them I would start out with 4 to8 lbs of berries per gal. If the flavor is very strong I would go with less berries, if weak go with more of them. I would put them in some kind of strainer bag and into the primary they go. If doing 5 gal. might have to use 2 primaries as the berries will take up a lot of room and when fermenting the wine tends to grow some, as in all over your floor.
Add some water, do not add your full amount as you will get some more when you add sugar. Add campden tabs. one per gal. Let sit for 24 hrs or so, add pectic enzime. Let it sit for another 12 hrs or so. Check your specific gravity. Bring it up to 1.085 or so with simple sugar. 1 cup water to 2 cups sugar, heated on stove without boiling. Add some yeast nutrient, maybe some yeast energizer, check the acid and adjust if necessary, add some tannin, and acid blend if necessary. Pitch your yeast, I would use cote de blanc, either by sprinkling on top of the must or make a starter and pour it in. Get your must up to around 75 degrees, and put a lid on the bucket. I put a tea towel on the bucket, then set the lid on, not snapped down. I would stir it a couple times a day to keep oxygen in the must. Ferment down to 1.010 or so and rack to primary. Let it ferment to dry, less than 0.999, s.g. staying the same for 3 or more days in a row. When dry, rack, sorbate, sulfite and degass. Let sit for a few days and make sure it doesn't start a refirment. Backsweeten to taste and let it bulk age for a while. Make sure to taste along the way. Mine sit in bulk anywhere from three or four months to a year or longer, then bottle. I probably forgot somethng, but somebody else will chime in and correct me. Arne.
Add some water, do not add your full amount as you will get some more when you add sugar. Add campden tabs. one per gal. Let sit for 24 hrs or so, add pectic enzime. Let it sit for another 12 hrs or so. Check your specific gravity. Bring it up to 1.085 or so with simple sugar. 1 cup water to 2 cups sugar, heated on stove without boiling. Add some yeast nutrient, maybe some yeast energizer, check the acid and adjust if necessary, add some tannin, and acid blend if necessary. Pitch your yeast, I would use cote de blanc, either by sprinkling on top of the must or make a starter and pour it in. Get your must up to around 75 degrees, and put a lid on the bucket. I put a tea towel on the bucket, then set the lid on, not snapped down. I would stir it a couple times a day to keep oxygen in the must. Ferment down to 1.010 or so and rack to primary. Let it ferment to dry, less than 0.999, s.g. staying the same for 3 or more days in a row. When dry, rack, sorbate, sulfite and degass. Let sit for a few days and make sure it doesn't start a refirment. Backsweeten to taste and let it bulk age for a while. Make sure to taste along the way. Mine sit in bulk anywhere from three or four months to a year or longer, then bottle. I probably forgot somethng, but somebody else will chime in and correct me. Arne.
They are also called Serviceberry. I'd start with no less then 6 lbs per gallon, Plus you will want extra for a F pack
Jack Keller has a recipe on his site, Look for ALLEGHENY SHADBUSH WINE, But you will want to increase his lbs of fruit.
Here's the link http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/request158.asp
Jack Keller has a recipe on his site, Look for ALLEGHENY SHADBUSH WINE, But you will want to increase his lbs of fruit.
Here's the link http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/request158.asp
It's not a strong flavor... so I would go with 6-8# per gallon. I think, remembering the taste, it's low on acid. You can adjust that at bottling. To start, maybe some white grape juice to bring up the body.
I prefer fruit wines to start around SG 1.085 so the alcohol doesn't overpower the fruit flavor.
This wine has been done over on winepress.us... there is probably a recipe over there... or just do a google search.
Other names are june berry, service berry... so check those too. We called them June berries when I was a kid. Picked them by the bucket full! It was on a 20-25ft tree. The type I have sourced for my yard is more of a bush. Next summer I should have enough to make muffins out of! They make good pie too!
Debbie
I prefer fruit wines to start around SG 1.085 so the alcohol doesn't overpower the fruit flavor.
This wine has been done over on winepress.us... there is probably a recipe over there... or just do a google search.
Other names are june berry, service berry... so check those too. We called them June berries when I was a kid. Picked them by the bucket full! It was on a 20-25ft tree. The type I have sourced for my yard is more of a bush. Next summer I should have enough to make muffins out of! They make good pie too!
Debbie
DeniseHogemann
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Thanks for all your advice. And yes,docanddeb,the saskatoon berry is known by all of those name. For us around here it is just called the saskatoon berry. It is a native bush and tends to grow wild in Saskatchewan. There are tame varieties as well. I have 4 bushes. They are wonderful for pies and jams. Last year I made Saskatoon vodka, a wonderful sipping drink! Gonna try a batch of wine soon. Will keep you posted
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brian1947
I have been making wild saskatoon berry wine and mead for 12 years. I use 3 lbs per gallon of water, 3 tbs of acid blend, 1/2 tbs of tannin, 1/2 tbs of pectic enzyme and a campden tabblet per gallon. It makes a very nice dry red wine in the style of a Merlot.
I have had one bottle that reached 2 years old and it was better than any Merlot I have had. I am trying to get more bottles to 2 y/o. At 6 months to a year it is really nice. I put 2 cases of saskattoon berry mead in the cellar so I won't drink any before a year. So hopefully I will have some 2 year old bottles next summer.
I have been making wild saskatoon berry wine and mead for 12 years. I use 3 lbs per gallon of water, 3 tbs of acid blend, 1/2 tbs of tannin, 1/2 tbs of pectic enzyme and a campden tabblet per gallon. It makes a very nice dry red wine in the style of a Merlot.
I have had one bottle that reached 2 years old and it was better than any Merlot I have had. I am trying to get more bottles to 2 y/o. At 6 months to a year it is really nice. I put 2 cases of saskattoon berry mead in the cellar so I won't drink any before a year. So hopefully I will have some 2 year old bottles next summer.
Freeze the fruit first. Bag it because it has small seeds. Add only enough water to get some fluid going. Get the pectic enzyme in there to break the fruit down. We take a PH reading before starting the ferment and set it at about 3.3 to 3.4 Serviceberry is a fabulous wine if you are careful not to dilute it too much. It is reminiscent of sour cherry wine. We found it needs to age in the secondary for close to a year so the flavor firms up. We use Montrachet culture.
Applewineguy
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Sorry to resurrect this but do you have the actual recipe you'd be willing to share?
Not much. Similar to blueberries with double the vitamin C. Considered planting them last year but decided to go with haskaps and currants. Tried to source dried berries with no luck, I wonder why. Still on my list and I may reconsider planting this year.
In that case, I'd use a recipe for blueberry.
* June berries are low acid with a pH as 4 or 4.25, adding acid is important.
* My impression is the flavor of juneberry is thin, it balances better with added neutral juices like lemon (5%) or currant or rhubarb or gooseberry,,, basically look for high acid with fruity notes.
* The juneberry I grow is fairly dry/ seedy, my juice yield is low. I try over 5 pounds per gallon.
* There is no tannin, it tastes better/ longer flavor notes with an astringent (smooth flavor) tannin.
Blueberry is significantly higher total acidity , a blueberry recipe probably will not pull the pH down to 3.2 to 3.5. Do you have a pH meter? or pH paper?
@BigDaveK if you really want to try them I could drop an ice cream pail off on the next trip to the DC grandkids. There are lots of varieties. Look for a fruit one not a flowering type to feed the birds.
* My impression is the flavor of juneberry is thin, it balances better with added neutral juices like lemon (5%) or currant or rhubarb or gooseberry,,, basically look for high acid with fruity notes.
* The juneberry I grow is fairly dry/ seedy, my juice yield is low. I try over 5 pounds per gallon.
* There is no tannin, it tastes better/ longer flavor notes with an astringent (smooth flavor) tannin.
Blueberry is significantly higher total acidity , a blueberry recipe probably will not pull the pH down to 3.2 to 3.5. Do you have a pH meter? or pH paper?
@BigDaveK if you really want to try them I could drop an ice cream pail off on the next trip to the DC grandkids. There are lots of varieties. Look for a fruit one not a flowering type to feed the birds.
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Interesting!
Did some searching and found about 17 serviceberry varieties for sale and the descriptors were all over the place - sweet, sweet-tart, tart. Still thinking about it. My main goal this year is to propagate black raspberries and I hope to start 40-50 from cuttings. I fell in love with black raspberries last year.
And thank you for the generous offer. I don't get many visitors since I require everyone to leave with at least 3 cats/kittens.
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