Making Wine From Flowers

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Page 1 ... To make alcohol (28 oz. sugar = 20 Brix. = 1.081 SG = 12% ABV). ○ For taste: a little sweetness brings ...
Making Wine From Edible Flowers By Jill Misterka ̶ HWC Seminar 2011

Making Wine From FlowersOverview  What flowers to use

 Other ingredients needed  Steps to making flower wine  Tasting

 What flowers to use 1) Safety first! ● Blossoms must be nontoxic – research! – Recipes available for: chamomile, cornflower, cowslip, daisy, dandelion, daylily, elder flower, honeysuckle, lavender, lilac, marigolds, orange blossom, primrose, red clover, red hibiscus, rose petal, sunflower, tulip, violet and others

– Also edible: nasturtiums, pansies and others

● Know how to identify flowers correctly

● No pesticides, herbicides or fungicides ● Get permission to pick

What flowers to use (cont’d) 2) Choosing one that tastes good ● Look for strong, pleasant fragrance

● Eat a blossom, should taste OK ● Learn how to identify dandelions and train your pickers – want one blossom per stem; serrated, non-fuzzy leaves

What flowers to use (cont’d) 3) Consider how labor intensive ● Smaller petals = more work ● Start small, 1-2 gallons of wine

● Can freeze petals until enough collected

4) Pick flowers while fresh ● Dandelions – when open ● Other flowers - when blossoms are open and at their most fragrant

 Other ingredients needed 1) Water, boiling

2) Sugar, at least 28 oz. sugar/gallon ● To make alcohol (28 oz. sugar = 20 Brix = 1.081 SG = 12% ABV) ● For taste: a little sweetness brings out floral notes

● Can make dry, semi-sweet or dessert wine

3) Acid, usually citric or blend

 Other ingredients needed (cont’d) 4) Maybe tannin 5) Maybe other for body: golden raisins, white grape juice concentrate, orange rind or juice, banana slices 6) Yeast, per recipe (Montrachet, Champagne) 7) Misc.: yeast nutrient, sulfite, sorbate

Steps for making flower wine 1) Process the petals: remove all green

● 1½ quarts rose petals = 10 minutes ●

3½ quarts lilac petals = 1 hour



2 quarts dandelion petals = 1-2 hours

2) Rinse larger petals 3) Make the “tea”, steep it, strain ● Macerate petals average two days ● Use kitchen strainer or put in nylon bag

4) Add other ingredients, then yeast

Steps for making flower wine (cont’d) 5) Fermentation in primary container 6) Fermentation in secondary under airlock 7) Rack per recipe until no more lees 8) Blend? 9) Stabilize and bottle

Fermentation in primary – dandelion (left) and lilac (right)

 Tasting 1) Small bottles maximize no. of tastings 2) Age 3 months to one year 3) Good chilled

4) Food pairing – serve alone or with lighter foods (salad, pasta, fish, poultry)

For recipes: ● winemaking.jackkeller.net/flowers.asp ● First Steps in Winemaking by C.J.J. Berry

Other Resources: • • • • •

www.wineworldfdw.com www.associatedcontent.com www.chelseagreen.com oldfashionedliving.com/poisonflowers.html homecooking.about.com/library/weekly/ blflowersnot.htm • Democrat and Chronicle 6/14/08, p. 1C and 8/8/09, p.1C • Dave Speir, Northeast Naturalist • wildflowers.jdcc.edu/Cat's%20Ears.html

Contact me: [email protected]