Although the wine can be consumed at 6 months, the flavor mellows with age and becomes much less foxy and harsh. That should be fine. lol – 4 acres could be a lot of dandelions. How exciting! Country wines made with mixed blossoms will have unique flavors, but as long as there are no bitter flowers, it should be fine. ★☆ Making homemade dandelion wine is a longstanding family tradition. I will add a note to the post. Six months was the time recommended by the recipe. According to the woman who made this wine, she categorizes it as a dessert wine verses a table wine. Thanks, Todd. Allow to cool to room temperature. When the dandelion plants are growing in the spring, but before they set buds, cover them with upended nursery container pots (with holes). We don't make it every year, but I do like to keep a few bottles on hand for company. I decided to come and ask you how it is supposed to smell after the 3 days of steeping. but this trick seems to make the leaves less bitter when used in salads or cooking like spinach…. Picked dandelions and picked off the yellow flower stems to have 3 quarts Everyone that got it for Christmas wants it again. During fermentation in a large crock covered with a towel, my liquid reduced to about half (I live in a dry climate) – I’m wondering if I can add water or something? Doubling the recipe shouldn’t be a problem, other than taking more time to pick and pluck the flowers. Thank you for the great article and all the comments. Cork and let it age and it will mellow out over time. Sorry, one more question! How many bottles does your batch make? I feel really stupid for this mistake =(. Let stand until blossoms rise (which will take 24-48 hours). Make sense? Dandelion wine is a centuries-old drink that began as the poor man’s wine in Europe. Marilyn, I accidentally used 4 pounds of sugar instead of 3! I used a whole pack but maybe the water was a little too hot? You can find recipes for dandelion wine that contain a wide variety of ingredients from other flowers, fruits and even herbs and spices. It is now September 1st and the balloons are STILL inflated. Now that I have them steeping I came back and read through the comments. being added in to the recipe, don't be. I just go to a bar down the street and ask if I can have their empty wine bottles. I don’t use sulfites or yeast nutrient with this one, just the recipe as stated. Dogs aren’t cooperating! http://pixiespocket.com/2011/05/recipe-box-dandelion-fritters.html. Working on making this right now. Seems like a lot of work, but you could leave the container open for the final ferment instead of bottling or using an airlock, and it would eventually turn to vinegar. If you’re full to brim before yeast is added, yes, a larger container would be a very good idea. Everyone has different ideas, sometimes confusing. If you know of a similar recipe please let us know! Good luck with your wine! Donyou recommend opening it up every day and stirring until it’s done? Thank you in advance. 2) Bring the water to a boil and pour it over the flowers in a large pot or crock. Repeat three times. Today, 5/20, the product is very sour. I hope this answers your questions! I say “mistake” though it was purposeful because we live in town and I don’t trust the blooms not to have been contaminated. Part 1 (Greens), Dandelions: Friend or Foe? The petals do get sterilized by the boiling water poured over them, so if you’re comfortable with “close enough”…. I hope you will find it worthwhile. I’m going to be hard pressed to find enough flowers but determined to make! I decided to roughly meet half way and go with two quart jars of packaged petals! It was potent and very delicious. Otherwise, you'll end up with exploding bottles, like my sister, Mary, when she stashed them in a closet. All your fermentation vessels should be glass, ceramic, stainless steel or food grade plastic. I ask because I got some decorative glass “rocks” to put in a bird bath, and they were specifically labeled that they should not be in contact with food. The flowers are traditionally picked at midday when making dandelion wine, when they are in full bloom. We loved it but could never find it sold anywhere else. Also, in the instructions, you say add the peels, boil, and strain out the solids, but then in the pic, it looks like the peels are in the crockpot. My thinking is they are all edible, so I should be able to combine them right? I use any wine yeast that’s available, as I’m not concerned about replicating an exact flavor. Between the alcohol content and the lack of sugars as the brew ages, the yeast does die off over time. I suspect there may still be some 30 year old wine in her basement. lol. Here's what it says: "Pour 1 gallon of boiling water over 1 gallon of dandelion flowers. News Continue Reading. They add body. Shop unique Dandelion face masks designed and sold by independent artists. . Either will work. Also for the final stage we used half gallon carboys, we have some sediment on the bottom, will this affect the flavor of the wine? Washing them makes them close up IMMEDIATELY, which makes processing them much more difficult. Also, you should really be using an airtight carboy with a one-way valve for fermenting. Adapted from Dandelion Medicine, in combination with my mother's recipe. Yes, a funnel does make filling bottles easier, if you go straight to bottles from the crock like I did in the post. As for yeast, a good quality champagne yeast will work well. What did I do wrong? If you don’t have an airlock, you could put a large balloon over the top of carboy/gallon jug. Things were skipped in the recipes because it was assumed that everyone making it knew the other parts. I normally use about 3 quarts of the cleaned petals because I like more dandelion in my dandelion wine and we have so many, but as you mentioned, there’s a wide variation in recipes, so precise amounts are not critical. Get up to 20% off. I have not made dandelion mead, but I see no problem with doing so. An airlock uses water to block and trap gasses. ie. Or do without? I wouldn’t recommend vinegar for sterilization, as that might lead to introducing vinegar producing bacteria into your wine – so you’d end up with vinegar instead of wine. the stares I get are funny. Stir daily with a wooden spoon or non-reactive stir stick. This wine should be served chilled, and although it won't spoil, if it is aged too long, it might not taste quite as good. Thanks for the advice. What does it smell like? I wonder if those would work. I also plan to do some part of my wine using spring birch juice instead of water to bring additional forest note. I don’t like to waste. You just read the answer. Great work Laurie. Thanks to all for bearing with me. Maybe Wellness Mama’s Naturally Fermented Ginger Ale? Just keep it covered to keep the critters and dust out. All measurements are in U.S. measurements, given that I’m from the U.S. I’m a little tight for time this morning, but but there are these awesome unit conversion tools available online – completely free! I suspect that the wine yeast will be the most expensive part of the setup. I don’t know what you mean by smaller dandelions? It’s bubbly and slightly sweet and “citrusy”… FABULOUS! We always have a ton of them. In fact, is it possible to not strain anything till later, (post initial fermenting)? Cover with a towel so it breaths but keeps bugs out, not plastic wrap covered. We generally have plenty of fruit jellies available so I don’t do many flower jellies, but dandelion petals do make a lovely golden jelly. Our ducks free range in the yard, but their droppings tend to be quite obvious, so we visually avoid the poop and call it close enough. If you would like a clearer wine, rack the wine into a gallon carboy with airlock before the final bottling. I highly recommend bribing someone to help you if possible. You only need one pack per batch, so it’s 63 cents worth of yeast. A quart is a a unit of capacity equal to a quarter of a gallon or two pints, equivalent in the US to approximately 0.94 liter and in Britain to approximately 1.13 liters. Our dandelion wine had a kick! if you want a realllly strong wine,after it stops working add more sugar and vitamin c.this will keep the yeast from dieing,too much alcohol kills the yeast. But I also have strings/cloudiness. $35.72. If you use commercial yeast it tends to outgrow the wild yeast. Water (4-5 times the volume of dandelion petals) 4 oranges, sliced; 1 lemon, sliced; 32 cups sugar (sugar is essential in creating alcohol … Maybe they need to be introduced to dandelion wine? This is stirred briskly to dissolve the sugar. It was fun and delicious though! Anyways, here are the links in case you’re interested I’m sure it will be fine. The commercial yeasts are bred to hold their own and crowd out the competition. This was my first time making dandelion wine on my own. If it has a mild alcoholic smell/flavor, you’re on the right track. Also works well if you add strawberry's in to the wine. The petals, being petals, don’t tend to pack quite like either brown sugar or chocolate chips. You could strain before you leave and shift it in there to bubble. Love this recipe! I love the cookie idea, will definitely try it! Without the open crock ferment, no wild yeasts. Too many different things in the pot, and your flavors get “muddy”. If you're feeling adventurous, you may be able to nurture wild yeast from the raisins into fermenting. 1) Can I reduce the sugar, as I like dry to semi dry wine? Should I remove the balloons, strain the wines and re bottle with another balloon? In fact, one might be surprised at how light dandelion wine really is. I’ve removed the stems and leaves. Could you provide more information? If you were closer, I’d share my flowers. Indeed, there’s not that much info on this topic around. The vintage year displayed on the product image may differ from the stock available in stores and online. Can you used dried dandelion flowers instead of fresh? Thank you. Another question. I do normally buy organic raisins to reduce the contaminant level. Part 1 (Greens) . Which if I figure correctly is about 12 cups of blossoms. Pot lid? We the method used in this recipe (with the petals being covered in boiling water to steep), the yeasts are cooked, but I’m sure people do it. Laurie, this is incredible. making this now am confused about the yeast. Kinda like using sap for maple beer. And should it be cool to the touch, not warm at all, before adding the remaining ingredients? It’ll give more consistent results. It’s all good. What are the Most Common Dandelion Benefits. That said, folks have brewed all manner of ferments for millennia without the benefit of modern tools and sanitizers. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, it was not proper for ladies to drink alcohol. Hello! I also notified that many other recipes online say to use golden raisins. I have a question about fermentation vessels, crocks or pots. Hi Laurie, For a 1 gallon batch, that will give you roughly a 11%-14%abv wine. Yes. What I would love to do is to give out small bottles of dandelion wine as favors for guests at my wedding this coming fall. Soon! Since you mentioned explosions. Looks loke my Kombucha. ★☆ So about 2 months since starting. I know if conditions are dry, it really brings out the bitterness in wild greens. If I can’t, I don’t worry about it. If vinegar fermentation is an issue, I like one good way to avoid it – fill a fermenter almost up to the top and put a water seal or some kind of bubbler on top of it (to avoid air intake), then place the fermenter into the cold cellar. I’m going to try strawberry- rhubarb next, and then maybe lemon balm. It sounds like your yeast is still quite active, so burp the balloons as needed. I’ve never heard of anyone selling it. I used just standard red raisins, is that going to cause a big difference? I harvested my dandelions. Now it doesn’t seem to be bubbling (I think I killed the yeast). Demijohn’s, I believe they are called…Dijon is a delicious French mustard LOL! Despite that I’m not from Crimea, I believe Amazon charges some fairly good additional fee per shipment to Russia, so it’s much less expensive and much faster to me to buy from our local supplier. Adding a little citrus to the concoction doesn't add just a whole lot to that light flavor. And wouldn’t I also need a funnel to get the wine in the bottles? If you don't have enough dandelion petals from one picking, go ahead and freeze the petals until you have enough. Allow to cool to room temperature. 5) Add the yeast, orange and lemon slices, and raisins to the liquid. It should be fine. The longer the wine is left, the better it is, and many recipes recommend waiting a year before drinking dandelion wine for a superior taste. I think I will bottle & use the balloon trick. Conventional wisdom says that 1.25 pounds of honey can be substituted for 1 pound of sugar in any wine recipe to produce an equivalent amount of alcohol; substitute honey for all of the sugar and you make some form of honey wine, or mead. There aren’t that many suppliers here in Russia, and it easily might be unavailable. I just found this online. 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