Last friday night brought a good friend for a bit of broken heart mending. We had quality time together and I think that lots of talking, warm bubble baths, good music, homemade cherry wine and hearty food including clotted cream scones, helped. Sunday evening Hannah arrived to stay for a bit too. So there was even more of the above. Monday I persuaded my friend to stay another day and help with the blackcurrant wine making, thanks to ten massive boxes of fruit acquired from a local farm for the price of a few bottles of the wine once it's made.
Here's Ahmad's cherry wine recipe that I can highly recommend. The blackcurrant wine is still in the demijohns. I'll share the recipe if that one turns out as good...
Homemade Cherry wine
- For each one gallon of wine that you make you will require two kilograms of fresh cherries. Wash the fruit and remove all the stalks. One demijohn holds one gallon that's four and a half litres of liquid. Put the fruit into a sterile container cover with the appropriate amount of water.
- Add one crushed campden sterilising tablet and the juice of one lemon per gallon of liquid. Cover and leave for five days stirring daily, crushing cherries as you do so.
- After five days add one kilogram of sugar per gallon of wine continuing to stir and crush daily.
- After a further five days add one teaspoonful per gallon of wine yeast. If using regular bread yeast add much less as it's stronger. Again stir and crush. This time drain off the liquid leaving the fruit behind decant into glass demijohns. Close each one with an air lock that you've put a little water into. This is the fun bit when the wine begins to bubble and ferment and play a tune as the sugar turns to alcohol.
- Leave until the fermenting has stopped. The wine needs to clear before drinking. This can take a while but will happen naturally if you just leave the wine. If you are more impatient you can speed up the process by adding clearing agents.
This is a lovely deep red, mellow fruity wine...
butter shortbread biscuits
...I'm having a problem commenting on some peoples blogs at the moment...hopefully things will be sorted soon and I'll catch up with everyone...
Love and hollyhocks...
debx
It's wonderful that your friend has you to help with a broken heart, sounds like you know exactly the right mix of things to make it better.
ReplyDeleteI do wish I had access to a cherry tree so I could try out your recipe. Sadly cherries won't grow in my area.
Have a great week!
She's such a lovely person Tracey she deserves so much.
DeleteIt's a shame about your cherry tree.
Hope yours is awesome too.
debx
how lucky to have you for a friend!!!
ReplyDeleteAh thanks steph. I feel lucky to have her as a friend too. Oh and all my lovely blogger friends.
DeleteHave a lovely week,
debx
Hope that the broken heart has been mended. We're making wine here, too ---- crab apple. We left the black currants on the bushes, having made cassis last fall. (one jug is enough for a lifetime). Hopefully next year, we'll beat the birds to the cherries, so we can try your recipe!
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely week!
Jane
Oh crab apple. We were wondering if we can make apple wine but then Ahmad thought maybe cider as this is the largest cider producing county in the uk. Your cassis sounds amazing...maybe next year we can try that...if it isn't too strong.
DeleteHappy days Jane,
debx
I do hope the broken heart is healing...so glad your friend has someone as caring as you to help mend her wounds. Your tonic for for healing sounds perfect...your home looks so inviting and cozy in the candle light.
ReplyDeleteI would love to make wine someday...Ahmad's recipe seems quite simple. Thank him for sharing it with us.
Thanks Emily I think she's on the mend now. Thanks for the nice comments about the house. I don't think you can beat candlelight for a cosy glow...
DeleteHope you manage to make some next year. I'll pass on your thanks to Ahmad.
Have a lovely week.
debx
you are a good friend to open your heart and home! I know your friend appreciated that, so glad that H was visiting!! When does the wine tasting start ???
ReplyDeleteShe's a lovely friend I was so glad to be able help her a little Karen. Hannah's visit was an amazing surprise. I had an inkling that she might come home soon for a bit between job's/studies but I had no idea it would be so soon. It's lovely to have her back home for a bit.
ReplyDeleteThe second batch of cherry wine started today! I was upstairs painting a wall whilst Ahmad was sorting out the wine. He came up with a glass for me to taste...very, very good. I just hope the black currant will be as good. It's a shame that we can't share a glass...
debx