Rowanberry Wine Making Techniques: 7 Best Recipes with Photos

The benefits and harms of red rowan wine

Rowanberry wine preserves all the vitamins and healing properties of fresh berries. In reasonable quantities, it has a positive effect on health:

• stimulates digestion;
• improves metabolism;
• helps fight depression, apathy, neuroses;
• prevents anemia and vitamin deficiency;
• normalizes blood pressure;
• dilates blood vessels and accelerates blood circulation;
• improves immunity and overall tone;
• prevents the development of inflammatory processes.

It is not recommended for people with chronic gastrointestinal diseases, blood clotting problems, or those who have recently suffered a stroke or heart attack to consume such wines.

Picking and preparing berries

To make wine, rowan berries are harvested with the arrival of the first frosts, when the sugar content of the berries reaches its maximum and the bitter taste becomes less noticeable. The same effect can be achieved artificially by placing the product in the freezer for 3-4 hours.

Another way to remove bitterness from berries is by soaking them in hot water. Soaking is a two-step process. First, the berries are separated from the stems, sorted, and washed. Next, they are poured with hot water (80-90°C) and allowed to cool. Then the process is repeated. When the second portion of water has cooled, the berries are removed and used as directed.

Wines with a more refined and softer flavor are produced from cultivated rowan. There are 14 such varieties, of which the following are considered the best for winemaking: Likerny, Garnetny, Titan, and Burka.

Video: "A Simple Rowanberry Wine Recipe"

This video shows how to make an alcoholic drink from berries at home.

The best rowan wine recipes

Wine can be made using various technologies. Below are the 7 best methods for obtaining the drink:

Classic recipe with red rowan berries

List of ingredients:

• 10 kg of red berries;
• water – 4 l;
• sugar – 3 kg;
• raisins – 150 g.

Preparation:

1. The berries need to be finely chopped, the juice squeezed out, the pulp poured with hot water and left to cool.
2. Add juice, raisins and 1 part sugar to the cooled pulp.
3. Place the container in a dark place for 3 days and stir periodically.
4. When a sour smell appears, strain the wort through cheesecloth, add the remaining sugar, pour into a glass bottle with an airlock, and let it ferment for 4-5 weeks. When the bubbles stop and the drink becomes clearer, strain and strain again. Add more sugar if necessary.

The wine matures for 5-6 months, after which it is filtered and bottled.

Traditional recipe from black rowan

Even in jams, black chokeberries reveal their tart flavor, so making wine is the only way to use them.

Ingredients:

• berries – 5 kg;
• sugar – 2 kg;
• water – 1 l;
• raisins – 50 g.

Cooking technology:

1. Grind the washed rowan berries, adding half the water and sugar.
2. Cover the container and keep it in a warm place for about a week, stirring occasionally.
3. When the mixture has fermented, you need to squeeze out the juice, and add the second part of water and sugar to the remaining pulp.
4. Pour the juice into a container with a water seal.
5. After 5-7 days, squeeze the pulp again and add the resulting juice to the first part.
6. After another week, pour the liquid into a clean container. Repeat this procedure until fermentation stops.
7. Pour into bottles and leave to mature for another couple of months.

With yeast starter

List of ingredients:

• rowan – 2 kg;
• sugar – 0.5 kg;
• vodka – 0.5 l;
• dry yeast – 40-50 g.

Preparation:

1. First you need to make the starter: dissolve the yeast in 0.5 liters of warm water and leave for half an hour.
2. Then cook the syrup: pour sugar into 2 cups of water and boil for 10 minutes.
3. Mash the rowan berries and pour the syrup over them. When the juices release, add the starter and leave to ferment in a warm place.
4. After a week, press out the wort, add vodka to the resulting juice, leave in a glass container for 5-6 months, then strain and bottle.

With apple juice

Apple notes give the drink a softer taste and a beautiful amber hue.

Ingredients:

• 3 kg berries;
• 3 l of freshly squeezed apple juice;
• 5 liters of water;
• 3 kg of sugar;
• raisins – 100 g.

Crush the rowan berries, cover with water heated to 30°C (86°F), add raisins, juice, and some sugar, stir, and leave in a warm place. When foam appears (after 3-4 days), filter, add the remaining sugar, pour into a sealed bottle, and leave to ferment for 1-1.5 months. Then strain again and let it ferment for another couple of months.

With raisins or fresh grapes

This is the simplest option with a minimum number of ingredients:

• 5 kg of berries;
• 2 liters of water;
• 2 kg of sugar;
• 100 g raisins or fresh grapes.

Mash the berries, squeeze out the juice, pour 2 liters of hot water (80°C) over the pulp, and let it steep. Pour the juice into the cooled pulp, add half the sugar, crushed grapes, or raisins. Mix well and store in a dark place. After 3-4 days, strain the must, add the remaining sugar, and let it mature for another 3-4 months. If desired, fortify the drink with alcohol.

There is no need to wash raisins and grapes – the skins contain fungi that participate in fermentation.

With cinnamon

This recipe uses chokeberries, resulting in a vibrant ruby-colored drink with a pleasant spicy note.

Ingredients:

• black rowan – 5 kg;
• sugar – 4 kg;
• cinnamon powder – 5 g;
• vodka – 0.5 l.

Manufacturing process:

1. Mash the berries thoroughly, add sand and cinnamon.
2. Cover the container and leave in a warm place for fermentation.
3. After a week, strain the fermented wort, squeeze out the residue, pour into a glass container and close the lid.
4. When gas formation has stopped, pour into a clean container without disturbing the sediment.
5. Add vodka and pour into hermetically sealed bottles.

After 6 months, the drink will be aromatic and slightly viscous, like a liqueur.

Sparkling wine

This is an ancient but very simple technology, which produces a drink that is light, refreshing and slightly carbonated.

Ingredients:

• 9 liters of water;
• 9 cups of berries;
• raisins – 40-50 pcs.;
• sugar – 0.8-1 kg.

Washed rowan berries, mash them and pour 9 liters of boiling water over them to gently steep them. Pour the mixture into a glass bottle, tie the neck with cheesecloth, and store in a dark place. Once fermentation begins, strain, dissolve the sugar, and bottle. Add 3-4 raisins to each bottle, cork, and store horizontally in the cellar for 1-1.5 months.

Rules for storing homemade rowan wine

Rowan wine has a longer shelf life than other fruit wines due to the antioxidants contained in the raw materials. Light table wines can be stored for about three years, while fortified wines can be stored for up to six years. To preserve its flavor, it is recommended to keep the wine refrigerated, preferably in a cellar where the temperature does not exceed 15°C. Bottles should be stored on their sides and preferably not turned upside down frequently.

As you can see, making rowan wine doesn't require any complicated ingredients. The key is desire and following the right technique, and the end result will be a drink your friends and family will truly appreciate.