It's strawberry season, which means it is the perfect time to stock up on all the fresh berries you can get your hands on. While you can jam and can them, one of the best ways to preserve strawberries is by turning it into fruit wine. Get inspired by Country Music singer Deana Carter's song, "Strawberry Wine," and make up a batch to enjoy while listening to the whole Did I Shave My Legs for This? album. While the process takes a bit of time, you'll get your first taste of love (oh bittersweet) when making your own homemade strawberry wine.
How to Make Strawberry Wine
This video by gregpryorhomestead shows how easy it is to make fruit wine and call yourself a winemaker. Starting with 6 pounds of fresh strawberries, the narrator uses a food processor to process the berries. He adds the strawberry pulp to a large bucket and tops the mash with water, sugar, and wine yeast (which can be purchased online or at brewing shops. He adds an airlock on the container and sticks the wine in a dark place where it will ferment for about a year.
Want to make a smaller batch? Ashley from Practical Self Reliance makes her strawberry wine in mason jars. Simply put the chopped strawberries, sugar, water, and wine yeast in mason jars and top with fermentation lids. Let the wine ferment for 2 weeks and rack the wine into another fermentation vessel, filtering the sediment through a fine-mesh strainer. Cap the vessel with an airlock and let the wine ferment for about 6 weeks.
Put the wine in wine bottles and let age for at least a month (preferably 6 months) before enjoying it. Fermenting takes a while, (and can cause a restless summer) but it'll all be worth it when you taste the sweet sweet strawberry wine.
