rnewhouse57

Recipes 

My cherry juice source was nearly wiped out by frost this spring. So no juice from the processors.

Has anyone used tart cherry juice concentrate to make wine? I think it would be OK. right?

It is $20 a quart but it says that 1 oz. of concentrate makes 8 oz. of drinkable juice.

so 1 quart im thinking would be enough for 2 gal. of juice.

Yooper

Recipes 

I did, but I didn't like the results. It tasted like unsweetened cough syrup when it was finished. It has a "fake cherry" flavor even though it was real cherry concentrate.

I'd go low on it, especially at first, and see how it comes out.

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Broken Leg Brewery
Giving beer a leg to stand on since 2006

gratus fermentatio

Recipes 

While I haven't used the concentrate, I have used this juice:
http://www.rwknudsenfamily.com/products/just-juice/organic-just-tart-cherry/
I had great results with it. I used it in an apple/cherry/black currant wine. At 1st I thought I'd screwed things up as the must was soooo tart, but that tartness aged out all on it's own. I'd use it again, it ain't cheap though. Regards, GF.

Jacob_Marley

Recipes 

I've had much better results with sweet cherry juice rather than tart cherry juice. I would not make another straight tart cherry wine from store-bought juice.
If I was going to make a tart cherry batch I'd do it from actual cherries and macerate them really well (with enzymes) to extract as much character from the must as possible.

saramc

Recipes 

I made a Cherry Vanilla Mead, but I don't see any reason as to why you can't make a wine.

Cherry Melomel

PER GALLON recipe
If using fruit, use 5-6#/gallon

16oz FruitFast Montmorency Tart Cherry concentrate
1 Qt RW Knudsens Farm 100% Dark Cherry Juice
honey (my starting SG was 1.092)
¼ tsp tannin
1.5 tsp pectic enzyme
¼ tsp yeast nutrient (at start, day 3, 7, 11)
¼ tsp yeast energizer (day 3, 7, 11)
1 gallon water

Combine everything BUT the yeast and the yeast energizer. Adjust acid if necessary. Allow to rest in primary, no airlock, for 24 hours. Hydrate and pitch yeast (71B-1122). Stir well twice a day MINIMUM.
Add yeast energizer and nutrient on day 3, 7, and 11. Keep in primary lightly covered until SG drops by 2/3, then rack to 2ndary and apply airlock. Follow normal steps for racking, stabilizing, back sweetening.

I added 2 split vanilla beans when I racked around the 90 day mark, the beans were left intact for 30 days. I started this mead on 10/21/11 and I actually bottled it last night!
I also used the Dark Cherry juice for topping this up. Could consider using Welch's shelf stable 100% Concord-Dark Cherry Juice also.

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bk0

Recipes 

I just did a cherry wine with tart cherry juice concentrate (sounds like it may be the same brand you have). I used 1/2 quart for a gallon (see my thread for the full recipe). Too soon to tell what it will taste like but I think 1/2 quart per gallon works well.

The other half quart I used for a cherry beer. It came out pretty good -- a little more tart than I expected but good.

Sammyk

Recipes 

I did a cherry with canned cherries in juice and Smuckers Cherry preserves. Add chocolate and toasted almonds to half the batch. Waiting for vanilla beans to arrive and will add them to the rest of the Cherry. Mine has only been in secondary about 2 weeks.