Sunflower Wines, Sherries, and/or Meads
- 2 qts sunflower petals
- 1 11-oz can Welch’s 100% White Grape Juice frozen concentrate
- 1 lb 10 ozs granulated sugar
- 2 lemons (juice and zest)
- 3 oranges (juice and zest)
- 1 tsp yeast nutrient
- 1/2 tsp pectic enzyme
- 1/4 tsp tannin
- 61/4 pts water
- Côtes-du-Rhône or Hock wine yeast
Pick sunlower petals and wash. Put water on to boil. Meanwhile, prepare zest from citrus and set aside. Combine flower petals and zest in nylon straining bag and tie closed. Put bag in primary and pour boiling water over it. Cover primary and squeeze bag several times a day for 3 days. Drain and squeeze bag to extract all liquid. Pour liquid into primary and stir in sugar until completely dissolved. Stir in remaining ingredients except yeast, cover and set aside 10-12 hours. Add activated yeast and cover. Stir twice daily for 5 days. Transfer to secondary and fit airlock. Rack after wine falls clear, add crushed Campden tablet, top up, and reattach airlock. Rack again every 2 months for 6 months, adding another crushed Campden tablet during middle racking and stabilizing at last racking. Wait another month and rack into bottles. Cellar 12 months and enjoy. [Author’s own recipe]
- 2 qts sunflower petals
- 1 11-oz can Welch’s 100% White Grape Juice frozen concentrate
- 1 lb 10 ozs granulated sugar
- 2 lemons (juice only)
- 3 oranges (juice only)
- 1 tsp yeast nutrient
- 1/2 tsp pectic enzyme
- 1/4 tsp tannin
- 61/4 pts water
- White Burgundy wine yeast
In primary, combine all ingredients except sunflower petals and yeast. Stir well to completey dissolve sugar. Cover primary and set aside 10-12 hours. Add activated yeast and recover primary. Stir twice daily until violent fermentation subsides. Pick flower petals and wash them. Put petals in nylon straining bag with 1 dozen sterilized glass marbles for weight. Tie bag and submerge in liquid in primary. Gently squeeze and dunk bag several times a day for 5 days. Drain bag, squeezing to extract flavor and transfer liquid to secondary. Fit airlock and rack after 2 weeks, topping up and refitting airlock afterward. After wine falls clear, wait 2 weeks and rack after adding 1 crushed Campden tablet to clean secondary. Thereafter, rack every 2 months for 6 months, adding another crushed Campden tablet every other racking and stabilizing at last racking. Wait another month and rack into bottles. Age for 6-12 months. [Author’s own recipe]