Post Archives tagged ‘brewing’



Apple Wine

Posted on: July 6th, 2013 by
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Crab Apple Wine

A gallon of apple wine, the first full bottle, and bottles ready to be filled.

One of the oldest trees at Cae Non is a rather gnarly, nobbley Crab Apple tree. Originally we thought that it wouldn’t be of much use as a fruiting tree as crab apples are notoriously bitter. Anyway, I had the idea to harvest a bucket of the apples last year (2011 – when we first got Cae Non) and work out a use for them later.

I originally thought along the lines of something like crab apple brandy – something similar to Sloe Gin, but I don’t tend to like those liqueurs anyway. So, I just made a wine with them, like any other wines we make. Boiled fruit in the water, add sugar and yeast when cool and forget about it…

…and forget I did. Until this evening when I found it in my dispensary cupboard. We plan to Wassail the trees (especially the apple trees) on the 26th of January (Want to come along?) and I thought that I might as well see what the old apple’s produce tastes like. Let me tell you: It’s lovely. It isn’t bitter/sour like crab apples, and it isn’t even that dry… it’s a fruity, apply tasting wine that is rather sweet. It is clear and light brown and is rather easy on the lips. According to my calculations, it’s somewhere between 10 and 18% alcohol. A few sips and you do indeed feel its effects. I imagine it would make a lovely after dinner wine rather than a table wine – a bit like a liqueur or spirits. Perhaps it is an ideal drink to have in the evening after a long day of tree planting and herb garden digging!

More Crab Apple Wine!

It might look like pee, but it actually looks like brandy and tastes divine!

Needless to say, this coming autumn, I’ll probably make 5 or 10 gallons… This taste is growing on me!