Mint-Jelly Wines, Sherries, and/or Meads
- 1 qt loosely packed mint leaves
- 2 lbs finely granulated sugar
- 7-1/4 pts water
- 3 tsp citric acid
- 1 tsp yeast nutrient
- 1/4 tsp tannin
- Champagne wine yeast
Wash mint leaves well and place in small pot with lid. Bring water to a boil and pour 1/4 of it over mint leaves. Bring mint water to a simmer, remove from heat and seep one hour, covered. Stir the sugar in remaining water until thoroughly dissolved and allow to cool. Strain liquid from mint into primary and add then sugar-water, tannin, acid blend, and yeast nutrient. Cover primary and allow to continue cooling until room temperature. Add yeast. Ferment 7 days, rack into secondary, top up and fit airlock. Rack again after 30 days and again 3 months after that. Stabilize, wait 10 days, sweeten to taste, allow to settle overnight, and rack into bottles. This wine MUST age at least a year before drinking, preferably in a dark place. Serve chilled. [Author’s own recipe]
- 3 lbs mint jelly
- 6 pts water
- 12 oz sugar
- 10.5 oz can Welch’s 100% White Grape Juice frozen concentrate
- 2 tsp acid blend
- 2-1/2 tsp pectic enzyme
- 1/8 tsp tannin
- 1 tsp nutrient
- 1 crushed and dissolved Campden tablet
- 1 pkg Montrachet yeast
Dissolve jelly in room temperature water with pectic enzyme and thawed grape concentrate in primary. Cover
and set aside 12 hours. Stir in all remaining ingredients except yeast, recover primary, and set aside another
12 hours. Use hydrometer to ensure specific gravity is at or around 1.090. Add activated yeast starter and
recover primary. When vigorous fermentation subsides, rack to secondary, top up if required, and attach airlock.
Rack again after 6 weeks and again after 4 weeks. This is a dry wine. If you desire it sweet, stabilize at
second racking and sweeten at third racking. Whether sweet or dry, age 8 additional weeks and bottle. [Author’s
own recipe.]