"snpm" > wrote in message
ps.com...
> Not terribly impressed with last years prickly pear wine, but don't
> understand whats happening.....
>
> it feels "thick" in the mouth, almost like a real heavy mead might.
> Its completely dry, I should add. While it feels thick in the mouth,
> it has no legs in the glass, I should also add. Prickly pear is gooey
> when you make your must ( I make mine from juicer-juiced juice with no
> boiling ) but I have always added extra pectic enzyme in the past and
> not encountered this before.
>
> The wine was produced per jack kellers recipe, except for doubling of
> pectic enzyme.
>
> If anyone has a best guess as to why this feels so thick in the mouth,
> and what chemical or substance might be most likely responsible, I'd
> love to know.
>
> Prickly pear is my local inexhaustible free fruit . I planned to
> double production this year, but I would like to figure this out
> first!!
>
> Thanks in advance
>
> Sean

I have 2 gallons that I bottled and they will be a year old in August. I
will let you know how mine turned out when I taste. I made 1 gallon from
Jack's recipe and 1 gallon from another source. The later recipe went super
dry, had more body it seemed, and included raisins in the recipe. It was
not boiled either, but the first was. I sweetened a little to bring out the
subtle fruitiness of the cactus, and just combined the 2 gallons before
bottling. It's a little early as I waiting for a year at least, but guess
it's as good a reason as any to open one of them.

Quixote