Pomegranate Wine Recipe (3 gallon)

I really got the urge to brew a wine (my first, except for a mead), and strangely enough I was determined to do a pomegranate wine. Unfortunately there aren't many recipes out there (online), so I compiled what I could and that's what we've got here!

(-1. Make yeast starter from H2O, POM juice, and sugar)
(0. Sanitize everything)
1. Bring 1 gallon of water with 1 lb flaked barley to a boil, and boil for 5 minutes.
2. Strain the hot liquid from the barley into 3 gallon carboy.
3. Added 6 quarts 100% pomegranate juice (thanks costco!)
4. Added pectic enzyme, wine tannin, acid blend
5. Added more water to make just under 3 gallons
6. Added sugar (table sugar) to OG 1.098 and MIX WELL (also aerates the must) -- about 4.5 pounds of sugar.
7. Pitched a proven mix of White Labs Cabernet liquid yeast, and also a packet of Lalvin RC 212 (see below)
8. Added yeast nutrient
9. Install blowoff tube, away we go.

NOTES: I'm not sure why, but the recipe I did find online called for doing the barley boil. I figured it would add some body and nice undertones to what will likely end up being a pretty tangy wine. Not too sure at this point if I want to make it a sweeter wine, or keep it more dry. We will have to see in a few months.

The White Labs yeast was well past expiration, and would not get started after 24 hours. So, I just pitched the packet of RC 212 into the same starter, and it was off and running after 30 minutes! I just pitched both yeasts into the wort, and it was fermenting vigorously within 12 hours! This might be a good strain to keep going for the next batch.

I appreciate comments or criticisms, especially on the pitching of 2 yeast stains?

I've had a commercial 100% pomegranate wine, and it's amazingly like a grape wine.

I really have no idea what benefit the flaked barley is supposed to provide. Boiling is not the same as mashing, and flaked barley doesn't have enzymes to convert the starch to sugar in the first place. I'd say it's most likely to add starches (which malefic bacteria will love to chow down on and spoil your wine.)

As for the yeast, she'll be right. It might make exact replication of the batch slightly harder, but it shouldn't cause any problems.

Hmmm, the malefic bacteria don't sound very fun. I'm not sure what the barley is intended to do either. Hopefully there aren't any off flavors or clearing issues because of it!

The recipe I was somewhat following was from Jack Keller's website:

winemaking: requested recipes (pomegranate wine)

And here's another calling for a quick barley boil:

Pomegranate Wine Recipe

Any thoughts would be welcome, and I'll make sure to post a review and FG.

I would like to know how this turns out. I would like to make some of it

We made pomegranate wine a few years ago, maybe 4 or 5. Walmart had a special at $.25 each so I purchased nearly $40 worth to make a batch. The skins must be removed and same with all of the membranes. We use a hand crank juice extractor that separates the juice from the seeds and skins. This cuts down the tannin levels and astringency. I followed the general fruit wine recipe in the back of my winemakers kit instruction manual.

Generally, we add a little more sugar that required to make a stouter, sweeter wine and 25-50% more fruit than what is called for to make the flavor come alive. What we ended up with, after about 3 or 4 rackings and over 4 years of patient waiting, was my best wine ever. It is smooth as silk, has a full pomegranate flavor and will sneak up and kick your @ss before you know what happened. The fruit flavor is so strong and the wine is so smooth you don't taste the alcohol until you try to stand up.

If pomegranates and their juice were not so expensive, this would be my favored wine to make. Right now, it is our treasured reserve for only very special occations.

Another good pomegranate drink:
50% POM brand pomegranate juice + 50% freezer chilled Absolute vodka + juice of 1/2 fresh lime

Hmmm, i've got some leftover juice so I will have to try that!

The POM juice wasn't really that expensive. I believe it was ~ $6 per 2 quarts, so $18 for the whole 3 gallon batch. Cheers for Costco!

Just an update, the primary is slowing way down. Bubbles are at a few per minute now, so almost time to do a rack I think.

Well I bottled this yesterday. A little more than a month from start to bottle. Not bad! I stabilized and backsweetened to 1.004 or so. It's quite good already, but needs to mellow out some. The tartness of the pomegranates really comes through well. It cleared quite a bit, and is almost a dull brownish red. I would DEFINITELY recommend this recipe, and plan to start another batch really soon. This one won't last long.

50% POM brand pomegranate juice + 50% freezer chilled Absolute vodka + juice of 1/2 fresh lime

Click to expand...

By the way I DID try this with my leftover juice. Whoooooweeeee that's a drink!

Hey
I'm planning to pitch yeast tonight on 15 gallons of pomegranate must. Can you tell me what measurements of tannin you recommend? Did you add acid blend? I thought it was pretty acidic already.

I made a great pom wine 6 years ago that we just drank we have a red and white tree in the back yard here is what we did

4 cups of water to 1 gal Pomegranate juice
I mix 1/2 and 1/2 red and white seeds
1/2 cup honey to gal of juice [before water]
Red wine yeast
1/2 cup lemon juice to 1 gal juice [before water]
2 tsp yeast nutrient
1 campden tablet

I am a mead maker so I used honey insted of sugar also I have made this with raisins and sugar but it was not as sweet
This is from a book [country living ] from the 1940's

8 pomegranates
1 lb / raisins or 3 cups grape juice
2 lbs / granulated sugar
Wine yeast
1 teaspoon yeast nutrient / energiser
1 campden tablet
1 gallon water

Wow this is very helpful. I am planning to go back to SC middle of March and hope to start my first batch before April. I have to gather up my supplies and am already gathering wine bottles and made labels to print out when I get home. Thanks for the helpful tips.