Elderberry Wine — Home Brew Recipe

Style: Elderberry Wine | ABV: ~12-13% | Volume: 4.5 litres (6 bottles) | Difficulty: Beginner

About This Recipe

Elderberries have been foraged and fermented in Britain for generations. Ripening in late August and September, they produce a deep purple-red wine with remarkable depth: rich, full-bodied, with natural tannins that give it structure similar to a full-bodied red grape wine. This is a wine that genuinely improves with age.

Ingredients

• 1–1.4kg fresh or frozen elderberries (or 450g dried elderberries, rehydrated briefly in warm water first)
• 1.2kg winemaking sugar
• 4 litres water
• 1–1.5 tsp citric acid
• 1 tsp pectolase
• 1 tsp yeast nutrient
• 1 sachet red wine yeast, such as Gervin GV8
• 1 Campden tablet (optional, for sterilising the must)

Method

1. Strip the elderberries from their stalks with a fork (green stalks are mildly toxic and can impart bitterness — remove all of them). Wash thoroughly.
2. Crush the berries gently in a sanitised fermentation bucket, with a potato masher or your hands. Boil 1 litre of water and pour it over the crushed berries. Cover and leave to cool to room temperature.
3. Add pectolase once cooled and stir well. If using a Campden tablet, crush and add it now, then cover and leave 24 hours before continuing.
4. Dissolve the sugar in the remaining water and combine with the fruit. Add citric acid and yeast nutrient, stirring until fully dissolved.
5. Take an OG reading with a hydrometer (target 1.085–1.095).
6. Pitch the yeast, cover loosely, and keep somewhere warm (18–22°C). Stir daily for 5–7 days, pushing down the fruit cap that forms.
7. Strain through a muslin bag into a sanitised demijohn once the gravity drops to around 1.020. Squeeze gently to extract the juice, but avoid pressing hard, as this pulls out harsh tannins. Fit an airlock.
8. Ferment somewhere cool and dark for 4–6 weeks, until fermentation stops and the wine begins to clear.
9. Rack off the sediment with a syphon, then rack again after 2–3 months.
10. Bottle once completely clear and stable. Age for a minimum of 6 months — 12 months or more is ideal.

Brewer's Notes

• Always remove all stalks and leaves — only ripe, deep purple-black berries should go in. Avoid any red or green berries.
• Young elderberry wine can taste harsh and tannic. Patience pays: a year's ageing transforms it into something genuinely impressive.
• Adding a small amount of black grape concentrate enhances the body and gives the wine a more vinous quality.
• If the wine is still hazy after a few months, use bentonite or wine finings before bottling.

Serving Suggestions

Serve at cellar temperature (12–14°C) alongside game, roast beef or mature cheeses. Its robust character also makes an excellent mulled wine base in winter.

You'll Also Need

Wine making equipment · Wine yeast · Wine additives (pectolase, yeast nutrient, finings)