Peach And Raisin Wine

• 3 lbs ripe peaches
• 1/2 cup chopped raisins
• 1-3/4 lbs granulated sugar
• 1 large lemon
• 1/2 tsp pectic enzyme
• 1 qt boiling water
• 1 crushed Campden tablet
• 1 tsp yeast nutrient
• Sauterne wine yeast

Wash peaches in cool water. Do not peel. Slice thinly into primary, discarding stones. Mash the peaches and add chopped raisins and half the sugar. Pour in the boiling water and stir to dissolve sugar. Cover primary with sterile cloth and set aside until reaching room temperature, then add cool water to equal one gallon. Add juice of large lemon and crushed Campden tablet. Recover and set aside 12 hours. Add pectic enzyme and set aside another 12 hours. Stir in yeast nutrient and sprinkle yeast on top of must. Allow to ferment 5 days, stirring twice daily. Strain through nylon straining bag, squeezing firmly to extract juice. Add remainder of sugar, stir well to dissolve, then pour into secondary without topping up and fit airlock. Top up when fermentation dies down. Rack every three weeks until wine clears and fermented to bone dryness. Allow another two weeks, rack final time and bottle. Can right away, but will mellow considerably in six months. [Adapted from Dorothy Alatorre’s Home Wines of North America ]