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Kalina is an amazing berry that only gets tastier after frost. Bright brushes adorn the bushes in winter, unless, of course, they are eaten by birds. And they are big hunters. And for good reason: this berry is a real storehouse of vitamins and minerals, it has healing properties. You can save all this by preparing various preparations from it, for example, homemade viburnum wine. Its unusual, slightly tart taste, pronounced aroma, rich dark color will not leave indifferent even true connoisseurs of alcoholic beverages.
There are many ways to make homemade viburnum wine. Everyone can choose the recipe that suits him best.
Berry preparation
Berries are best harvested when they are already frost-bitten. Excessive astringency, which is inherent in viburnum, will go away, and the sweetness necessary for fermentation will increase. The berries will become softer and give better healing juice. We use them on the day of collection, freeing them from twigs and removing all spoiled and damaged ones. To make wine from viburnum at home, you do not need to wash them, otherwise the wild yeast that is present on the surface will be washed off.
Dry viburnum wine
To enhance fermentation, add raisins to the berry raw materials.
We will need:
- viburnum berries – 2 kg;
- sugar – 600 g;
- raisins – 2 handfuls;
- boiled water – 3,4 liters.
We prepare the berries, grind them with a blender or a meat grinder, put them in a capacious bottle with a wide neck, add 0,2 kg of sugar, all the raisins and 30 ml of water.
They form a characteristic bluish coating on dried grapes. Only such raisins are suitable for wine.
We cover the throat of the bottle with gauze and leave it in a warm, dark place for fermentation.
Do not close the bottle hermetically, oxygen is needed for fermentation.
The appearance of foam, which happens after about three days, is a signal of the beginning of fermentation. Strain the infusion into another bowl.
Add the remaining water and 0,2 kg of sugar. The mixed wort is left to ferment under a hydraulic seal. If not, a rubber glove with two holes pierced with a needle will do. After 3 days, you need to pour a couple of glasses of wort into another bowl, dissolve the remaining sugar in it, pour the solution into the total mass.
The wine will need about 30 days to ferment. It should pass without access to light and in warmth. Gas formation by this time should almost end. Carefully pour the wine into clean glass bottles using a straw.
Viburnum wine ripens within a month. The room must be cool.
Dessert viburnum wine
It is richer and contains more sugar.
You will need:
- viburnum berries – 2 kg;
- water – 3/4 l;
- sugar – about 400 g.
We grind the prepared berries, add 0,1 kg of sugar, cover the jar with gauze and leave it warm until it starts to ferment. After three days, squeeze the berries well and dilute the resulting juice with water. We add 0,1 kg of sugar to the wine must for each liter of it. We close the dishes with a water seal.
After the end of fermentation, add sugar in the same proportion: 0,1 kg per liter. If it has not ended, we carry out the addition again in a few days. To add sugar, you need to pour a little wine must into a clean separate bowl, mix until dissolved and pour back.
We keep the wine in a vessel under a water seal for another two weeks after the end of fermentation. Pour into bottles without disturbing the sediment. If this happens, let the wine stand and drain again. Store in a cool place.
viburnum liqueur
This viscous sweet wine is especially liked by women. Due to the addition of alcohol, the drink is quite strong.
To prepare it you will need:
- berries – 2 kg;
- sugar – 1,5 kg;
- alcohol or vodka – 1l;
- water – 0,5 liters.
Prepared berries pour boiling water for 30 minutes. Drain the water, and pour the berries into a jar, add a third of the norm of sugar, mix, cover the jar with a lid so that it sits tightly. Keep warm for three days. We add vodka or alcohol, close it again and put it on a sunny windowsill.
We prepare sugar syrup from water according to the norm and the rest of the sugar. It must be dissolved, and the resulting syrup boiled. Turn off after 5 min. Be sure to remove the foam. Add the cooled syrup to the tincture, mix well. We keep another month in a dark and warm place.
We pour the prepared strained liquor into beautiful bottles. You can store it up to 3 years.
Viburnum liqueur with lemon juice
Viburnum liqueur with lemon juice has not only a refreshing taste, but also pronounced citrus notes. It is easy to prepare such viburnum wine at home, as the recipe is quite simple.
It will require:
- viburnum berries – 700 g;
- vodka – 1 l;
- sugar syrup from 150 g of sugar and a glass of water;
- 2-3 lemons.
Prepared berries are washed, crushed and infused for a week in a dark, cool place, filled with vodka. Strain through a fine sieve. We make syrup from water and sugar. After preparing the syrup, let it cool and mix with the juice squeezed from the lemon.
Let’s continue for a couple more weeks. Then we finally filter the liquor through a cotton-gauze filter. We store bottled liquor in the cellar.
Conclusion
Making homemade wine is a way to get drinks that just can’t be bought in the store. In terms of their taste qualities, they often surpass them, and in terms of the variety of ingredients and the use of non-traditional berries and fruits, they are far ahead.
