The turn is the wild ancestor of the plum. However, if Hungarian and greengage are large and sweet fruits, which are welcomed on the table as a dessert, then small berries, plucked from thorny bushes, are almost inedible. They have too many astringents and tannins, so the only way to use them on the farm is to make blackthorn liquor or homemade wine. Unlike cultivated plums that do not have aroma, the “wild” has a charming and rich bouquet. Therefore, wine from the turn at home comes out no worse than a grape alcoholic drink.
When dealing with wild plum, we encounter two problems:
- where to get the wine fermentation bacteria;
- how to get enough juice.
The turn is a fleshy berry, and no matter how we crush it, thick mashed potatoes will come out. Grapes of technical varieties produce abundant juice, in addition, fermentation bacteria are already in abundance in this wort. Therefore, thorn wine at home needs to be prepared using a different technology than the traditional alcoholic drink from the vine.
Wild plum berries must be picked very ripe, soft, but not from the ground. Because you don’t need to wash them - you eliminate those few bacteria that settled on the skin. After harvesting, the berries are allowed to cure for 2-3 days, so that the fungus multiplies under optimal conditions for it. Some inexperienced people recommend adding bread yeast to thorn wine at home. This, of course, will increase fermentation. However, this reception will affect the smell of the drink - it will be the most depressing way to give a chat.
Grind the berries of the turn until smooth and add water in a proportion of one to one. After that, we close the container with diluted puree with gauze to avoid wasps and flies and leave it in a warm place until the first signs of fermentation. When the “cap” and bubbles appear on the surface, filter the mashed potatoes through a thick grid. Throw the pulp (or fertilize the garden with it), and pour the wort into a bottle. Add sugar. If you want to get dry wine from thorns at home, 200 g of refined sugar will be needed per liter of liquid. For semisweet and dessert, respectively, 300 and 350 grams of sugar. Carefully stir the crystals in the juice.
We fill the bottle three quarters of the volume, because during the fermentation there will be a plentiful foam. We put homemade wine from thorns under a water shutter for a month or a half at room temperature. When gas bubbles cease to be released, remove the must from the sediment, that is, carefully filter and pour into sealed vessels. Do not be discouraged if the liquid still remains cloudy, as if with a haze. This is a common property of plum and thorny wines.
The drink self-lightens extremely slowly and reluctantly. Even with a three-year exposure, he gives a thin coating on the decanter. The wine also matures slowly. Only a few months later a spicy and tart aroma appears in the drink. The taste becomes full-bodied in six months. Store the bottles in a cool place (basement) horizontally until winter. However, a true pleasure will give you a drink after a year of aging. Now you know how to make wine from thorns. Try blending it with cherries or viburnum berries, grapes.