Raisin Wine

12 lbs chopped raisins
8lbs sugar
16 tsp acid blend
6 quarts HOT water
9 quarts COLD water
2 tsp yeast nutrient
4 tsps liquid tannin
2 tsp pectic enzyme
8 campden tablets
1 packet wine yeast (high alcohol tolerance)

Add the chopped raisins in with sugar, acid blend and HOT water. Mix
till all dissolved. Add next 5 ingredients & mix well. Add the yeast.
Stir the fermenting liquid daily to keep the floating fruit moist.

When racking to secondary, (sg 1.020) scoop the raisins into a straining
bag and squeeze it as dry as possible; discard the pulp. Top up the
carboy. Rack to a clean carboy at 1.000; rack to clean carboy at 0.990
to 0.995. When finished, rack to a carboy; add finings, let rest for 10
days, then filter. Add 0.25 tsp sulphite & sorbate.

Bulk age 3 months; add 8 oz wine conditioner; bottle & age for 3 months.

From: Joel Stave <xstave@jlc.net>
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.winemaking
Subject: Re: Raisin wine
Date: Thu, 01 Jan 1998 22:04:43 -0500

Here's the recipe and notes from my last batch. The result is a strong
(about 17%!) somewhat sweet wine. Actually, I was trying for something
a little sweeter and a little less strong, but the yeast outdid itself.

Note that "gallon" means U.S. gallon.

Raisin Wine (2 gallon batch) Started: 4/10/96 Bottled: 5/11/97

7.5 lbs raisins
2 lbs sugar
2 gallon water
2 campden tablets
15 drops liquid pectinase
yeast (Premier Curvee)
sugar for final sweetening

Chopped the raisins in a food processor. Added the water, pectinase and
campden tablets. Waited 24 hours, then added 1 lb sugar and pitched
yeast. Strained and pressed after 10 days in primary. Added another lb
of sugar at that time.

SG 1.104 before sugar, 1.12+ after 1 lb sugar. Acidity 0.45%

(The 1.104 was after waiting a day (but before pitching) to let the
sugar from the raisins dissolve.

4/10/96
Chopped the raisins, added the water, pectinase and campden tablets.

4/11/96
Pitched yeast. SG 1.104 -- added 1 lb of sugar to make SG 1.12.

4/20/96
Strained and pressed. Racked into 2 4-liter jugs and a 48oz jar, but
first added another lb sugar. SG 1.000 before sugar 1.020 after.

5/11/96
Racked. 2 4-liter jugs and 1 quart bottle. Pretty harsh taste, but a
definite raisin flavor! SG 0.995

10/26/96
Racked. 1 4-liter jug, 1 1-gallon jug, 1 1-quart bottle. Not harsh
anymore. Nice and clear. Sweetened the cloudy leftovers to 1.010 and
put it aside to see if fermentation restarts. put the rest in the
basement. SG 0.995

5/11/97
Ferment didn't restart. Stuff in the basement had tartrate crystals in
the bottom -- which was why I left it in the basement over the winter
(it gets down to 40F). Sweetened to 1.006 and bottled. 12 750ml
bottles.