Raspberry Wine

The Christmas season got in the way of my wine making, or I should say my wine bottling, so for the first time it stayed in the carboys for 3 whole months. This time I tried something different. Just before bottling I added some wine conditioner (sweetener). It just gave the wine a wee touch of sweetness, and the conditioner will not re-start the fermentation process.

 

Making 2 carboys of wine at a time is a lot of heavy work. Without my husband's help I could not lift the racked wine from the floor to the counter for siphoning - but thankfully I do have his help. Like the Honeyberry (Haskap) wine I made earlier, this batch of raspberry wine made 55 bottles. Seems like a lot doesn't it? But 100 bottles of wine in a year is really not that outrageous, especially when several bottles disappear when friends are over.

I do have to admit that I'm a bit proud of myself for completing this project, but people who suggest that I should start up a micro-winery for a little side business will be disappointed. Just not enough energy to do this, especially on the berry picking side (it takes 15 pounds of berries per carboy). We have, however, decided to raise a hive of bees (even though I'm allergic - this will be my husband's domaine), and have purchased one of those HoneyFlow hives from Australia. My husband is deep in study and research mode. Will let you know how all this turns out, and then, with luck, Honey-Honeyberry and Honey-Raspberry wines and juices will become the specialty of our house.