I just bought a bunch of cranberries.
What's the best way to use them:

mince them up and then ferment?
or boil them a bit with some sugar, as if you're going to make whole
cranberry sauce, then ferment?

thanks
Rick

Rick,
I froze mine for a couple of months. Then I thawed them, put them in a
nylon bag, and poured hot sugar water over them, and when it cooled down -
fermented them in a fermentation bucket. There's a lot of cranberry gunk, so
you need to add a bit more water. My cranberry wine came out very good;
everyone was very pleased with it.
Darlene
Wisconsin

"Rick Vanderwal" > wrote in message
...
>I just bought a bunch of cranberries.
> What's the best way to use them:
>
> mince them up and then ferment?
> or boil them a bit with some sugar, as if you're going to make whole
> cranberry sauce, then ferment?
>
> thanks
> Rick
>

Rick,
I froze mine for a couple of months. Then I thawed them, put them in a
nylon bag, and poured hot sugar water over them, and when it cooled down -
fermented them in a fermentation bucket. There's a lot of cranberry gunk, so
you need to add a bit more water. My cranberry wine came out very good;
everyone was very pleased with it.
Darlene
Wisconsin

"Rick Vanderwal" > wrote in message
...
>I just bought a bunch of cranberries.
> What's the best way to use them:
>
> mince them up and then ferment?
> or boil them a bit with some sugar, as if you're going to make whole
> cranberry sauce, then ferment?
>
> thanks
> Rick
>

Rick - Here's some info. on my 2003 cranberry wine. It won 2nd place in
it's category in the KC Cellarmasters Wine Classic this year. It tastes a
lot like cranberries.

12 lbs cranberries, chopped in a food processer
3 gallons tap water (needed that volume to cover the berries in the
fermenter)
-pH3.22, TA 1.00%, Brix 2.2
Add sugar to 18 Brix
Add K Bicarbonate to lower TA to 0.7%
Ferment with Fermiblanc yeast at about 65F.

The wine fermented dry with a beautiful red color and tart flavor.
-pH 3.12, TA 0.91%...it was too tart to enjoy

Add sugar to taste...about 4 to 5% total
Blend 13000ml cranberry wine with 1500ml Sauvignon Blanc dry white wine.
Add K sorbate 211ppm
Filter thru. 1.0 and 0.2 micron cartridge filters
Bottle ~ a nice novelty wine which I gave to lots of people for
Thanksgiving. It was well received.

Bill Frazier
Olathe, Kansas USA

----- Original Message -----
From: "Rick Vanderwal" >
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.winemaking
Sent: Monday, January 03, 2005 2:35 PM
Subject: cranberry wine method


>I just bought a bunch of cranberries.
> What's the best way to use them:
>
> mince them up and then ferment?
> or boil them a bit with some sugar, as if you're going to make whole
> cranberry sauce, then ferment?
>
> thanks
> Rick
>

Rick:

The first ever 5 gallon carboy of wine we made (last year) was
cranberry. Used 10lbs cranberries, 5lb raisins, S.G. to 1.115., TA
..7%.

This year's carboy will be 15lbs cranberry, 5lbs raisins and SG to
1.090 to 1.095., hopefully the TA will still be around .7%.

The first batch, rocket fuel, had to much alcohol, not enough
cranberry. Acid tartness was fine. Used it with sierra-mist this
last summer while painting the house. ;-)

Steve - Noobie
Oregon


>"Rick Vanderwal" > wrote:

>I just bought a bunch of cranberries.
>What's the best way to use them:
>
>mince them up and then ferment?
>or boil them a bit with some sugar, as if you're going to make whole
>cranberry sauce, then ferment?
>
>thanks
>Rick
>

Rick:

The first ever 5 gallon carboy of wine we made (last year) was
cranberry. Used 10lbs cranberries, 5lb raisins, S.G. to 1.115., TA
..7%.

This year's carboy will be 15lbs cranberry, 5lbs raisins and SG to
1.090 to 1.095., hopefully the TA will still be around .7%.

The first batch, rocket fuel, had to much alcohol, not enough
cranberry. Acid tartness was fine. Used it with sierra-mist this
last summer while painting the house. ;-)

Steve - Noobie
Oregon


>"Rick Vanderwal" > wrote:

>I just bought a bunch of cranberries.
>What's the best way to use them:
>
>mince them up and then ferment?
>or boil them a bit with some sugar, as if you're going to make whole
>cranberry sauce, then ferment?
>
>thanks
>Rick
>

"Rick Vanderwal" > wrote in message
...
>I just bought a bunch of cranberries.
> What's the best way to use them:
>
> mince them up and then ferment?
> or boil them a bit with some sugar, as if you're going to make whole
> cranberry sauce, then ferment?
>
> thanks
> Rick
>
>
Do visit Jack Keller's site. He has a real good cranberry recipe and lots
of good suggestions. I have made it and people who like cranberries really
like it.

Ray