Rhubarb Wine Recipe
Follow our recipe on how to make Rhubarb Wine to create a fantastic, delicate, refreshing wine, that is almost clear, with a beautiful pink hue. Serve chilled, it's great on its own or with a zesty salad, cajun chicken or something spicy.
It's easy to make and gets rid off all that rhubarb.
You will Need
1.4kg (3lb) Rhubarb Stalks
700g Supermarket (granulated) Sugar
700g Brewing Sugar
8 Pints Boiling Water
Campden Tablets
Pectolase
White Wine Yeast
Yeast Nutrient
Fermentation Stopper
Finings
Equipment: (We have a fruit wine starter kit if needed for £25)
Brewing Bucket
Demi-John with Air-Lock
Siphon
Muslin or Straining Bag
Steriliser
Hydrometer
Thermometer
Bottles & Corks & Corker
Method
WARNING - DO NOT USE THE LEAVES - THEY ARE POISONOUS!
Remember to sterilise all equipment before use.
1 - Chop the stalks into 1 inch sticks and with a rolling pin, hit them to break them up a little.
2 - Place the bruised rhubarb in the bucket.
3 - Cover the rhubarb with the 3lb of sugar.
4 - Put the lid on the bucket and put somewhere warm (approx 20°C) for 24 hours. This will allow the sugar to draw out the juices from the rhubarb.
5 - After 24 hours pour on the 8 pints of boiling water and stir until any remaining sugar is dissolved.
6 - Cover and leave to cool to 20°C.
7 - Once cool, take a hydrometer reading and save this for later.
8 - Stir in the pectolase, yeast and yeast nutrient.
9 - Put the lid on loosely and transfer to somewhere warm (approx 20°C) for 7 days, stirring daily.
10 - After 7 days, strain into another bucket through the muslin bag, to remove most of the rhubarb.
11 - Transfer the liquid into a demi-john to the top of the shoulder. Fit a bung and airlock (half filled with steriliser water) and put back into your warm place (18-22°C) to allow for the the fermentation to complete. This can take up to 4 weeks.
12 - Once the fermentation has completed take another hydrometer reading. This should be below 1.000 (ideally around 0.996), rack the wine off the sediment into a clean, sterilised demi-john, being careful not to disturb the sediment a the bottom. If it not quite at the required SG, then put the airlock back in and leave for another week or two.
13 - Add the fermentation stopper (as per the instructions on the packet) and 1 crushed campden tablet to the wine, then replace the airlock.
14 - Swirl the wine around in the demi-john.
15 - You will notice lots of bubbles and gas being released. This is trapped CO2. This needs to be removed to aid the clearing process.
16 - Swirl the wine around in the demi-john 3 more times, swirling for 30 seconds and then leaving to settle for 5 minutes.
17 - Put the demi-john somewhere cool and where it won’t be disturbed for 2 days (preferably below 18°C) to allow the Fermentation Stopper to kill any remaining yeast.
18 - After 2 days, add the Finings (as per the instructions on the packet), then put the demi-john somewhere cool and where it won’t be disturbed for 2 weeks (preferably below 18°C) to allow the wine to clear.
19 - Bottle and cork.
20 - Ideally leave for 6 months for its full flavour potential to be reached, but this wine is good to drink after just a month in the bottle.