It’s not for sale anywhere, but in vain: I tell you how I make pear wine at a cost of 100 rubles per liter

Last summer, I decided to make a homemade dessert wine that I could surprise guests with. Cherries, blackberries, plums seemed too commonplace ingredients, so the cooking process was constantly delayed.

So it was until my friend complained that a lot of pears had been disfigured in his dacha and the fruits were simply rotting on the ground.

I immediately offered him to become a material “sponsor” of my experiment in exchange for a tasting. Now I’m telling you how it was and what happened in the end.

The story was sent by blog subscriber Vladimir B.

What you need for cooking

To make wine from pears, you will need pears, water and sugar in a ratio of 2:2:1. I made mash from 10 kg of fruit.

I note that any pears will do. In my case, overripe and in some places spoiled fruits, rejected in appearance, went into action.

I prepared the dishes and distillation tools in advance:

• a 20 liter glass bottle, like mine, or a wooden barrel;
• rubber glove or water seal.

The cooking process

Pears are most often not very sweet and juicy, even if ripe. So first I boiled the sugar syrup:

1. Pour 1 liter of water into the pot.
2. I poured 5 kg of sugar into a container.
3. Then boiled over low heat until the sugar was completely dissolved and the liquid thickened.

While the syrup was cooling down, I turned to the pears.

1. I washed the fruits under running water.
2. I cut them into small pieces, removing the spoiled part.
3. I crushed the fruit in a blender or meat grinder to a puree state, after which I squeezed this gruel well through cheesecloth.
4. I poured the juice into a jar and filled it with syrup.
5. Filled the container with the remaining water (9 l).
6. Stirred with a wooden spoon.
7. I put on a rubber glove, making a small puncture with a needle, but if you have a water seal on the neck, it is better to use it.
8. I put the container in a warm place for fermentation for about 1 month.

Advice! The readiness of a young wine is determined by the dropped glove.

Pear wine prepared according to this recipe can be drunk in a month. However, I wanted to get a richer taste, so I strained the drink, poured it into a smaller container and set it to ripen for another 4 months.

Several bottles stood for six months, and one – one and a half. The quality of the wine has only improved with age!

What should be the result

Young pear wine has a sour taste with a subtle sweetness. A slight bitterness may be present. Of course, it all depends on the type of pear and the quality of the sugar. A small amount of sediment is allowed at the bottom.

Aged for 4-6 months, pear wine is more saturated, tart and pleasant in taste, since by this time the fermentation process has completely ended in it. Depending on the amount of sediment, the color may be clear or cloudy.

I heard that some sweeten the finished drink. I prefer a more natural taste and recommend it to everyone. This is how you feel the same pear shade in taste and aroma, which is not found in any other wine.

How to serve and with what to use

Aged pear wine is recommended to be served chilled: temperature from +14 to +20 degrees. If the drink is young and sour, then it is ideal to present it at a temperature of +12 to +17 degrees, like dry wine.

In winter, pear wine can be used to make excellent grogs and mulled wines, without limiting the choice of spices. The rest of the time it is suitable for making low-alcohol lemonade. It is enough to mix 50/50 with sparkling water.

As an independent drink, pear wine is combined with fruits, desserts, blue cheeses, roasted nuts, plain pastries or snacks based on bread, chips.

What can be changed in the recipe and the cost of the drink

The recipe I suggested is easily transformed. First of all, you can change the cooking format. Instead of pear puree, use chopped or grated fruit.

Also, a pear can be combined with any other sweet and sour fruit. For example, apples, plums or grapes. The main thing is to keep the same volumes of fruit mass.

For flavor, you can add vanilla, and replace part of the sugar with honey or fructose. Some also add dry enzymes or acids for better fermentation.

In my case, pear wine turned out to be partly free, as a friend supplied the pears. However, if you buy all the ingredients yourself, then preparing a 20-liter bottle of pear wine will cost 1-800 rubles.

By simple calculations, we get that the preparation of 1 liter of homemade pear wine costs about 90-100 rubles. It is much cheaper than buying fruit wine in the store.

If you have any questions, write them in the comments. Also share your recipes for making pear wine. I will definitely try the most interesting ones if my friend has a fruitful year again!