Adding raisins

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Wild Duk

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I've started a batch of Vinters Reserve Elderberry. I'm thinking of adding some raisons to it, but not sure how much too add....

Any ideas?
 
I like to add about .5 pound per gallon, if I'm adding it for body. They're a pain to chop, so I end up just adding as many as I feel like chopping, though.
 
Do you think it would help out this wine, the directions call to add grape tannin, so would I leave that out.

Thx

I don't know. I think elderberries already are pretty tannic, but I don't have them around here so that's just a guess.

If you want to leave out the tannin, and use raisins, it might be exactly what I'd do in the same circumstances!
 
I actually edited the post after I looked at the directions and it does not call for tannin.....So you might be right that the berries already contain enough.....

Thanks....

Now, what do you think about oaking while bulk ageing?????

Have you ever done any of these kits, how long do they take to get good....1 year min???
 
I use 4lbs for 3 gallons.

btw... hello all.. new here, been reading for a month now after I started my first attempt at cherry brandy/wine.
 
I like to add about .5 pound per gallon, if I'm adding it for body. They're a pain to chop, so I end up just adding as many as I feel like chopping, though.

I run them through a small food processor after soaking them in some water for a while. Makes things easy enough. I guess a blender would work just the same.
 
Does chopping them up help with the fermenting or does it just give more flavor to the wine?
I am about to start a grape/peach/mead and want to add raisins but now I am thinking that I should chop them? Do you soak them before you chop, or just chop and drop them in ?-- I gotta start a local brew club so that I can question folks in person!! lol:D
 
I ran some raisins through a meat grinder for a peach raisin wine I made....don't do that.:D
 
Chopping raisons is about the biggest PIA I have run across. With every "chop" yopu have to scrape the raison bits off the blade. I am thinking about trying different methods to see if I can come up with a better way of doing it. One thought I want to try is to freeze the raisons and then chop them in a food processor will still hard.
 
Chopping raisons is about the biggest PIA I have run across. With every "chop" yopu have to scrape the raison bits off the blade. I am thinking about trying different methods to see if I can come up with a better way of doing it. One thought I want to try is to freeze the raisons and then chop them in a food processor will still hard.

I'm not a chef or anything but I do cook--alot! and when I chop garlic it sticks to the blade too- but I learned to add any salt that the recipe needs to the garlic when I chop it and it doesn't stick to the blade as much.
So, if you're going to chop sticky raisins, I am thinking that you could sprinkle just some regular cane/beet sugar to the raisins and it should help with the sticking, I'll let ya know if it works as I am going to get my wine going this afternoon!:D
 
I put raisins in the blender with a little water (boiled & cooled) & puree them, I don't think it adds any more to the lees than just chopping them does. It's quick, it's easy & it works. Regards, GF.
 
I am in the process of fining and clarifying a 6 gallon batch of Cabernet Sauvignon to which I added 1 pound of Zante Currants.

Way to early to tell, but it appears to have added some body to the Cab (I've made this kit before and it seemed a little thin).

Problem is, however, there is a white oily, waxy film on top of the bulk-aging wine in the carboy.

Looking online, this apparently is a problem with adding raisins ... don't know if the film is a wax ... or vegetable oil ... or just natural grape seed oil. But I'm convinced the film is the result of adding the raisins.

Don't think it will be a problem ... and should be easily to siphon my way around it (under it) in subsequent rackings.
 
Oh, forgot to add ... like a dummy, I didn't wash, rinse, boil the raisins ... just opened the box and dumped them in.

In hindsight, this was probably the wrong way to add them.

I contacted Sunmaid directly and asked if they put wax or vegetable oil to their Zante Currants during processing and received the predictable "No". However, looking online (again) I find that manufacturers often add wax and/or veggie oil to the raisins to keep them from clumping.

If I add again, I will wash ... and like others, maybe even boil first ... then rinse, then add.

I do think I'll be able to float the oil off the wine ... it's really just a little bit ... but anytime I see something floating on top of my wine, I panic.
 
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