BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe

Subject: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Sorcha
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:11 AM

DANDELION WINE (not a song)

4 pints/2.5 liters dandelion flower heads
2 1/4 lbs/1kg White/castor sugar
1 tsp/5g citric acid
1 packet wine yeast
2 oranges
1/2 lb/225g sultanas (white raisins)

Pick over flower heads carefully, discarding all green parts. Green stuff will make the wine bitter, and hinder fermentation. Pour 5 pints/2.5 liters of boiling water over the flower heads/petals, chopped sultanas, and peeled orange segments (do not include peel or pith--take off as much of the white stuff as you can. Leave in an open-top non-metallic container (crock) covered with a cloth to keep out dirt, hair, etc. for 2 days, stirring twice daily.

On the third day, stir the packet of yeast and 1 teaspoon of sugar into 1 pint/.5 liter of warm water. Bring to a boil anotherpint of water and the 2 1/4 lbs of white sugar; cool to room temperature, and mix in the yeast/sugar mix, which should now be bubbling just a little. Pour the syrup into a sterile (rinse with boiling water, and let cool) 1-gallon apple juice jar/demijohn. Strain the solid matter out of the fruit/flower mixture--do not squeeze too much, and add the fruit flower juice to the gallon jar with the syrup in it. Now add the citric acid, dissolved in about 1/4 cup of warm water. Stir/shake well, and top up the gallon jar with cool water, leaving about 2" of headspace. Fix top with rubber bung and airlock, and leave in a warm place, shaking daily until bubbling stops.

Then, siphon the wine into a clean, sterile gallon jar/demijohn and top up with cool water or apple juice. Replace bung and airlock, and leave to mature in a cool place, siphoning at 3-month intervals.

The wine is drinkable at 9 months but is better left 1 year.

Remember that St. George's Day, April 23, is the traditional day to start picking dandelions.

NOTES: There are stores that sell wine-making supplies, or you can order stuff online. Bread yeast will work in a pinch, but it takes longer for the yeasty flavor to work out, get wine yeast if you can. There are rubber bungs with a hole in the middle to insert the air-lock in, not very expensive. Airlocks look sort of like a Tuba--a double loop that is filled with water to let gasses out and keep air/bugs from getting in. A gallon U.S. apple juice jar takes a #8 bung.

About siphoning: Get a length of tubing about 3/8"to 1/2" from your hardware store, and immerse it for 3 minutes in boiling water and let cool. Place the full jug to be siphoned on a countertop, and let sit overnight. Place the clean jug on a chair below the countertop. You should be able to see a definite sediment line in your jug on the counter. Insert the hose into the top jug ABOVE the sediment line, and the other end in your mouth. Be prepared to quickly poke the end that is in your mouth into the clean jug! What you want to do is siphon off as much of the liquid as you can without getting too much sediment. It is unavoidable to get some the first few times, but the wine will continue to settle and clear, which is why you need to siphon more than once. When the wine is absolutely clear, you can stop siphoning, and just keep the airlock/bung in place.

It is wise to set the gallon jar in a plastic dishpan, or something for a while, as it may bubble over and out the airlock and make a mess. Just remove and clean up the airlock, and replace it. I am given to understand that those of you in the UK may need to buy electric jackets made for demijohns to keep your wine warm enough (?) Like any yeast product, too much heat will kill the yeast, and too little will not produce fermentation. If you have any questions, feel free to PM or email me (it's at BBC's email site). I also have other recipes ... lots not quite as tedious as Dandelion.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Gypsy
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:30 AM

Is this what you serve with broiled bodhran tips? and asparagus, of course!

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Sorcha
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:33 AM

LOL, Gypsy!! It's Peter T's fault--he asked for it!! O dear, LOL, ROFLMAO!! (We cut almost a pound of aspargus from the back yard today!!)

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: GMT
Date: 03 May 00 - 05:59 AM

Sorcha
Almost the same recipe I use myself.

The dandelions are out in force at the moment but it's been a bit too wet to pick them, but I intend to asap.

As for heating jackets I have heating pads that I stand my five gallon carbouys on, or for one gallon batches keep the djs in the airing cupboard.

As you've offered Sorcha; do you have a recipe for Watermellon Wine ? I'd like to have a go at that this summer (British optimism re. weather :).

Cheers Gary

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: GUEST,ella
Date: 03 May 00 - 06:03 AM

What about Dandelion and Burdock wine?

Has anyone tried that yet?

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Peter T.
Date: 03 May 00 - 10:45 AM

Sorcha, Many thanks. I am going to try this on some students. (Chop up students.....No, seriously...)

yours, Peter T.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Homeless
Date: 03 May 00 - 10:53 AM

I was just looking at how yellow my mom's 1 acre back yard was thinking I ought to give Dandelion wine a try. Now I have a recipe without even looking for one. I think I know what I'll be doing tonight.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Hollowfox
Date: 03 May 00 - 11:30 AM

Some recipes for dandelion wine tell you to only collect the flower - no green bits of stem, none of the bitter white juice. Makes sense to me, even if it does take more time to collect the flowers. Remember to put sunscreen on the back of your necks when you're out gathering.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: GMT
Date: 03 May 00 - 11:53 AM

Just remember the old name for dandelions and be warned.

It used to be called 'Piss the Bed'

Gary

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Sorcha
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:08 PM

Watermelon Wine

2 qts watermelon juice (see below)
2 qts water
1 1/2 lb white sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons citric acid
1/8 teaspoon tannin--or use 1/4 cup STRONG tea
1 pkg wine yeast
Cut up melon, and remove all rind and seeds. Cube up the meat. Using a straining bag, mash and squeeze out juice into the primary fermentation crock. (I have no idea how much melon it takes to get 2 qts of juice.) Leave the pulp in the strainer bag, tie the top shut, and stir in all other ingredients except yeast. Cover with a cloth, and let stand 24 hrs. After 24 hrs, add yeast: place yeast in a small bottle and add 1/4 cup of warm water. Shake/stir well, and let stand about 15 minutes, then add to the juice. Replace cloth cover. Stir daily, and when the violent bubbling has stopped, gently squeeze juice from the pulp bag and discard it. Let stand over nitght, or until it it "settled out". Siphon off the liquid into an apple juice jar (etc.) Top up with white grape juice, apple juice or water, leaving head space. Attach bung and air lock, and set in warm place for about 3 weeks. Sipohn and clear as needed, usually about every month or so. When wine is absolutely clear and still (no bubbles), bottle.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: MMario
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:23 PM

As usual my mind is flying off on a tangent. Has anyone else besides me had the pleasure of watermelon rind as a veggie? Peel the outer green layer off and steam the rest of the rind as you would summer squash or marrows. A little salt, pepper and butter....mmmmmmmmmmmmm, mmmmmmmmmm.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Llanfair
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:24 PM

It's elderflower wine next....Yum!!! Same sort of process, but use lemons instead of oranges. Hwyl, Bron.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: MMario
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:34 PM

llanfair - do you use just the petals? We have some HUGE elderberry bushes nearby, but those petals are so small....

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Peter T.
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:36 PM

Man, what a great place. Mudcat, forever. yours, Peter T.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Sorcha
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:41 PM

MMario, yes, just the flower heads. But for flower wines, you need to use other stuff too. Elderflower (or Elderblow) wine is GOOD stuff!! Maybe I should just start a wine recipe thread, and post what I have? LOL

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:43 PM

I've just heard on the May 2nd Thought of the Day thread that dandelions in England and America are a completely different plant. If true, this might affect the viability of recipes.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:49 PM

Not sure how you make it MMario but my mum used to make it and I can assure you it is nice. One thing with the Elder is you've got the white elderflower and the red elderberry.

One on my favourites was cowslip wine. I think that in the UK, they are protected but we used to have loads of them - probably getting on for 1/4 acre and they kept coming back abundantly each year.

Another nice one was a plum wine. We had this plum tree that produced fruit that were hard and pretty well inedible but the wine was something else. I'll never forget taking some of this to one of the local festivals. It was a little bit too fresh to drink but my stomach was used to it. The people I gave some of it to enjoyed it but did not have my constitution and were quite sick and I became known as "The Conwy Poisoner" for the rest of the week.

Jon

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: catspaw49
Date: 03 May 00 - 12:50 PM

I'm sorry, but I'd like to politely state that this type of thread is inappropropriate here and is the very thing that's destro.........Ah, fock that...

POUR THE WINE

...may I sniff the threads?

Spaw-(who doesn't own a corkscrew)

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: GUEST,art
Date: 03 May 00 - 05:44 PM

just for information's sake

the white juice of the dandelion stem is used in Ireland as a cure for warts

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: GMT
Date: 04 May 00 - 03:50 AM

Sorcha,

Great, thank you very much.

I will be having a go at this.

Gary

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Homeless
Date: 04 May 00 - 01:45 PM

MMario - I've had pickled watermelon rind.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Homeless
Date: 04 May 00 - 01:54 PM

Sorcha - just re-read this and noticed how you suggested to start the siphon. I'd always been under the impression that you should never put the end of the sterile tube in your mouth - it ruins the sterility.

What I do is pinch the middle of the tube while it is in the hot water so that when I lift it out it doesn't lose any of the water inside. I put one end in the jug of must and the lower end in a jar or glass. Unpinch the tube, wait for the must to reach the jar, then repinch. Move the tube to the new jug, unpinch, & let flow. Easy way to start it and I don't compromise the sterility of the siphon tube.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: GUEST,Lee
Date: 04 May 00 - 02:12 PM

I'm told that's also a great cure for premature ejaculation!!

Lee

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Sorcha
Date: 04 May 00 - 02:47 PM

Hot diggity! I just didn't want to spend the bucks to buy a siphon pump!! Yours is a better idea!!Does anybody want the recipe for Elderflower (or Berry) Wine?

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Barbara Shaw
Date: 04 May 00 - 04:43 PM

We've made dandelion wine a few times with flowers from our ORGANIC lawn. Important point. My recipe, from my mother, from her mother, is simpler and easier I think, but that stir first thing in the morning can knock you out. And the final product is very potent. I don't care for it, but people tell me it's like a good, dry, French wine.
Ingredients:
Dandelion flower heads (3 quarts)
Water (3 gallons)
Sugar (8 lbs)
Lemons (2)
Oranges (2)
Raisins (1 lb)
Bread (1 slice toasted) or yeast cake (1)

Directions:
Rinse flowers well and boil 20 minutes. Strain. Take 1 qt of the liquid and boil 20 minutes more with rind of lemons and oranges. While still warm, add sugar and stir until dissolved. Let cool and put into large crock. Add sliced oranges, lemons, raisins and rest of liquid. Place slice of toasted bread or crumble yeast cake on top of mixture in crock. Cover crock loosely with clean cloth.

Leave 40 days, stirring every morning and every night. Strain or syphon and put into bottles. Let sit until sediment forms. Strain again and return to bottles.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: MMario
Date: 04 May 00 - 04:55 PM

*chortle* I have a recipe for raisen wine someone sent me....if you want it, just take the above recipe and remove the dandelions. Otherwise it is IDENTICAL! Just start after the word strain...

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Homeless
Date: 04 May 00 - 05:04 PM

I'm gonna give the Dandelion wine a try, but I need to know more about these pints/quarts of dandelion flowers. Are the jars/cups supposed to be packed full, like brown sugar; settled in, like white sugar; or loosely dropped in, like flour? It seems like I'd have to pick about 5 times as many flowers for the first method as opposed to the last.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Sorcha
Date: 04 May 00 - 05:18 PM

Iwondered about that, too, and I don't know---I have never tried it. I would guess, tho, that loosely like white sugar, anybody know for sure?

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Barbara Shaw
Date: 04 May 00 - 07:53 PM

The whole thing is pretty loose! Measurements are approximate, depending on how big the oranges and lemons are, how big the dandelion heads, how much you spill, etc. It seems to come out the same, no matter how much you fuss or don't fuss over it.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Barbara Shaw
Date: 04 May 00 - 07:53 PM

The whole thing is pretty loose! Measurements are approximate, depending on how big the oranges and lemons are, how big the dandelion heads, how much you spill, etc. It seems to come out the same, no matter how much you fuss or don't fuss over it.

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: Barbara Shaw
Date: 04 May 00 - 07:54 PM

Woops. Just thinking about it is going to my head. . .

Subject: RE: BS: Dandelion Wine Recipe
From: John in Brisbane
Date: 04 May 00 - 08:10 PM

Back in the days when I used to dabble in wine making the prospect of making dadelion wine always intrigued me. Danelions here are a weed which produces a flower about the size of a small golf ball. The interior of the ball is mostly air with hundreds of eensy fairy dust seeds on the outside - collect a couple of dozen and you might end up with a tea-spoon full of dandelions. Collecting a quart would be a major achievement. Still a mystery to me. Regards, John