Roselle Wine

• 1 lb roselle blossoms and bracts
• 2 lbs sugar
• 1/2 lb golden raisins or sultanas, chopped or minced
• 7 pts water
• 1-1/2 tsp acid blend
• 1 tsp yeast nutrient
• 1 pkg Côte des Blancs wine yeast

Pick flowers and bracts mid-morning after dew has burned off. Combine water and sugar and put on to boil, stirring occasionally until sugar is dissolved. Tie flowers, bracts and chopped or minced raisins/sultanas in nylon straining bag and put in primary. Pour boiling sugar-water over flowers/raisins and stir in all ingredients except yeast. Cover primary until water cools to room temperature. Add activated yeast, recover primary, and squeeze bag daily until active fermentation dies down (7-8 days). Squeeze flowers/raisins to extract maximum flavor and then discard. Allow liquid to settle overnight and rack to secondary, top up and fit airlock. Ferment 30 days then rack into clean secondary. Refit airlock and rack again every 30 days until wine clears. Wait a final 2 months, rack again and stabilze wine. Wait 10-14 days and bottle. May drink immediately, but improves in six months. [Author’s own recipe]