Wine making takes time, but is not as complicated as people might think. This recipe makes about 24 bottles of tangy rhubarb wine.
Cleanliness is the Key to Making Good Wine
Sterilize everything that will come in contact with the wine. Campden tablets (a sulfur product) are used for this. Crush one campden tablet and add it to a gallon of water. Rinse everything with the campden mix, and then rinse again with clear water.
Equipment
- food grade 5-gallon plastic bucket.
- 5-gallon glass carboy
- rubber stopper for the carboy with a hole for the fermentation trap
- fermentation trap
- cheesecloth to line a sieve or colander
- plastic hose for siphoning (aquarium hose is good.)
- 24 recycled, sterilized 750 ml wine bottles
- purchased corks and some sort of corker.
- specific gravity gauge (optional)
Ingredients
- 20 pounds of rhubarb
- 11 pounds of sugar
- 1 package of wine yeast
- 3 teaspoons of wine nutrient
Prepare the Mash for the Wine
Wash the rhubarb and cut it into quarter-inch slices. A food processor with a slicing blade is perfect for this. Alternate layers of rhubarb and sugar in the bucket, finishing with sugar. Cover the bucket with a clean cloth and set aside for 24 hours while the sugar draws the liquid out.
Start the Fermentation
The next day strain the liquid through a cheesecloth-lined colander, and put the sugary, pink liquid in the carboy. Return the pulp to the bucket, stir a few times, and strain again, extracting more juice. Add the wine yeast and yeast nutrient to the carboy, and enough additional water to bring the liquid up to just below the shoulder of the carboy.
Keep Fruit Flies Out
Fruit flies are drawn to fermenting fruit and must be kept out of the wine because they can introduce vinegar molds that ruin the wine. In the first day or two the juice will be fermenting too ferociously to use a fermentation trap. Instead, use a wad of cotton batting in the neck of the carboy.
Use the Fermentation Trap
After a day or two, the fermentation process will settle down enough to use the fermentation trap. Most fermentation traps use water as a barrier to keep insects from getting in and let the gasses bubble out. Be sure to check the water level in the trap periodically.
Make no Wine before its Time
Turning sugar into alcohol takes time. Set the carboy in a cool, dark place such as the back of a closet, and leave it alone for about 6 weeks. Check once in a while to see if bubbles are still passing through the fermentation trap. When no more gas is being produced, the fermentation is finished. If using s specific gravity gauge, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for checking alcohol content.
Bottle the Wine
If the wine is clear, it is now ready to be bottled, but if the wine is cloudy, let it sit longer so the sediment drops to the bottom. Move the carboy carefully so the lees is not stirred up. This sediment is now about an inch thick on the bottom of the carboy. Use a clear plastic hose to siphon the wine from the carboy into sterilized wine bottles and cork them. Add a label that includes the type of wine, and date it was bottled.
Wait a Little Longer
The wine should sit in the bottles for at least a few weeks. After a month or so, open a bottle for a trial taste. If it is still yeasty and raw tasting, wait a little longer before opening more bottles.
Rhubarb makes a tangy, dry, white wine that is quite pleasing.
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