Banana Wine

[Rowdy]

i just racked this after a week in primary, i forgot to add the raisins.
should i re-rack and add them now or can i wait till the first 30 day racking?

*edit*
just re-read the instructions, looks like i am doing it right. lol

 

[Jbt]

Mine looked just like that for the first couple of weeks. Went in the primary on 1/31 at 1.095. Then racked to secondary and air locked on 2/6 in was down to 1.020. And now it looks like THIS!:rockin:

 

[Rowdy]

that looks awesome

 

[BraveSirRobin]

This looks really interesting. What does the end result taste like? How Strong is the banana flavor?

 

[Yooper]

This looks really interesting. What does the end result taste like? How Strong is the banana flavor?

Not too strong, but it has a definite fruity nose. I'm not sure that it screams "bananas", though.

 

[BraveSirRobin]

Not too strong, but it has a definite fruity nose. I'm not sure that it screams "bananas", though.

I think I might have to make a small batch of it. I've never made wine before, but this summer I was planning on dabbling in some fruit wine making. Dandelion wine is another that I plan on trying as well.

 

[yogensha]

I was just too intrigued so I started a gallon of this back in November. I had forgotten about it and discovered it in the cupboard behind a porter that I was kegging. It's cleared incredibly! I took another peek at this thread and realized I added 2 lbs of raisins instead of 1, and I have a feeling it's going to finish too sweet, but I'm still looking forward to it. The only taste I got was a few drops from the eyedropper that I use for samples and the alcohol was overwhelming. I racked it off the raisins and had to top off with about a quart, so hopefully it will mellow.

Cool recipe.

 

[emissary]

Are any steps necessary (or recommended) to sanitize the raisins? Do they present any significant risk of infection?

 

[Yooper]

Are any steps necessary (or recommended) to sanitize the raisins? Do they present any significant risk of infection?

No. Just use a fresh, unopened box and you'll be fine. Use golden raisins, not the regular ones. The regular ones are very dark and will make the wine brown-ish.

 

[marcelo]

I have frozen a few black bananas and now i whant to try this, its like 2 pounds but, the only yeast i do have is nottingham, can i try? or is a waste of time?

 

[robtotten]

I don't know, man. I think if you're going to put two years into something that it's worth the extra few bucks for champagne yeast

 

[DavidSteel]

I don't know, man. I think if you're going to put two years into something that it's worth the extra few bucks for champagne yeast

I made all my wine with glorious Fleischmanns baking yeast and they all turned out awesome. Fleischmanns gives it an extra sweet/fruity/tang flavor which is great in Blueberry Wine particularly. But the extra flavor is not so prevalent in lighter wines (besides it being a bit more sweet). And no, the sweetness is not from unfermented sugars (that had the capabilities to be fermented). I can get my wines up to 16% with Fleischmanns.

But I only make wine because I can do it for free. If there is some leftover, old, or unwanted fruit, I just take it and make wine with it. I don't really care for wine, so I don't worry about how long it takes. It's a bit of work racking it and keeping an eye on it, but nothing worth complaining over.

I have about 14 gallons of wine (14 1-gallon batches) that have been sitting for about 1-2 years that I still haven't bottled. Too cheap/lazy to buy a corker and some corks. Yeahhhhh

 

[marcelo]

The wine or champagne yeast is hard to find here in brazil, thats wy i dont have it, im thinking to order some in my next on line shop. btw, those things i order fror USA its a lot more cheap tham by from local HBS.
and tks for the help, i will try with some bread yeast, my uncle have a banana farm and i what to try before tell him its possible to do.

 

[arrowgin]

So im almost a year down in the bottle... one more year to go

 

[oldmate]

I just read through this whole thread, definitely will have to get started on this ASAP!

 

[redskin]

We made one gallon of this wine at first it looked like something moped up from the floor.now its this clear golden color.its going to sit in the jug for months.thanks.

 

[floyd336]

I started my banana wine about a year ago, and it now ready to be bottled. Should I bulk age it for a while longer or bottle it now? I always seem to get a bit of sediment in every wine I make. I don't usually use sparkaloid, because I always wonder if it takes away the flavor.

 

[Yooper]

I started my banana wine about a year ago, and it now ready to be bottled. Should I bulk age it for a while longer or bottle it now? I always seem to get a bit of sediment in every wine I make. I don't usually use sparkaloid, because I always wonder if it takes away the flavor.

If it's still throwing lees, I'd wait. But it you don't have lees after 3-6 months, it's ok to bottle it. My dandelion wine throws lees forever, but the banana wine seems to stop and the wine stays clear without sediment in the bottle.

 

[brewingkitty]

does it need to be in a dark place??

 

[cinderbike]

Wow. I absolutely need to try making a batch of this. Off to get some bananas! I'll see if I can try it with some Ice Cream bananas. They're delicious. When they turn black they have really do taste a bit like vanilla ice cream.

 

[marcelo]

My banana wine is fermenting at 3 months, but I used beer yeast, and it still is very sweet, recently I received wine and champagne yeast, should I put one in my wine? or is it too late?

 

[Yooper]

does it need to be in a dark place??

Yes, or at least covered by a towel around the carboy. All beers, wines, ciders, etc should be kept in a dark place.

 

[Yooper]

My banana wine is fermenting at 3 months, but I used beer yeast, and it still is very sweet, recently I received wine and champagne yeast, should I put one in my wine? or is it too late?

Have you taken any Sg readings?

 

[weeple2000]

Hi guys, I'm new to this community. Like most on the internet, I imagine, I've been lurking for a bit over a year. I've finally decided to give back to the community and improve my wines/beers by contributing. Here's what I have in my log for this wine:


a. Made wine on 3-6-10/3-7-10/ S.G. 1.095. Let cool overnight before adding yeast. Pitched Lalvin yeast the next morning - Sun 3-7-10.
b. Stirred daily for a week+ Checked S.G. on 3-13-10 1.022
C. stirred on 3-14-10. S.G. 1.016. Racked into the secondary.
D. 5-16-10. Racked. S.G. under .990. May be affected by particles in suspension. Tasted with Matt T and Allison. Strong alcohol taste. Thick, a little harsh. The banana flavor came through, but not the sweetness. Added 5 lbs of chopped raisins.
E. 9-17-10. Racked off raisins. Noticed we used normal raisins instead of golden ones. Wine must appear darker. Not sure of taste implications. Wine is very sweet, S.G. 1.038. Topped off with 1/2 gallon of water to leave head space for renewed fermentation. S.G. 1.010 after dilution.

We left the raisins in for 4 months, and it seems as though that has significantly boosted our gravity. We topped it off with a half gallon of water and left some space in case fermentation started (we've had problems with carboys boiling over). We had anticipated to ferment out the extra sugar from the raisins. Did you guys ferment that out, or leave it in to have a sweet wine? I don't think the fermentation started, so I am thinking we will have to pitch some champagne yeast into a cup or so of must and build it up to a gallon to get fermentation to start again. Its a 5 gallon batch.

 

[Yooper]

For me, adding raisins restarted fermentation and it finished dry. BUT, did you check the raisins package? If they were "regular" raisins, they may have been sulfited heavily, and/or have preservatives added.

 

[weeple2000]

Yooper,

Thanks for the quick reply. My buddy and I have been making wine and his place, and beer at mine. I called him and asked him about the raisins, and it sounds like they do not contain preservatives. I googled and came upon this link:

http://www.sunmaid.com/en/healthyliving/frequently_asked_questions.html

which makes it sound as though the golden raisins have preservatives but the regular ones do not. I am wondering if the sugar content just got the alcohol high enough to kill off the yeast. I usually prefer my wines to be on the dryer side, so I am thinking I will probably attempt to restart the fermentation unless someone else chimes in otherwise.

I've never had a stuck fermentation, so if nothing else, this will be an interesting new experience.

 

[marcelo]

Yooper,

The Og was 1,098 and now it stop in 1,022.

 

[Yooper]

Yooper,

The Og was 1,098 and now it stop in 1,022.

I just don't know. You could definitely try some fresh yeast. I've never had that problem, so I'm sorry I can't be of more help.

 

[weeple2000]

Looks like you start out 1 cup of must with 1 cup warm water, pitch yeast, and increase the amount of must and pitch that. Not sure how to tell what the acid is. Yeast nutrient/energizer may help as well.

from: http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/problems.asp


Stuck Fermentation: A stuck fermentation is one that has started and then stopped prematurely. This is usually caused by a lack of nutrients or acid, but not sugar, or a change in temperature disagreeable to the yeast.

When a fermentation sticks, you need to begin taking measurements of the must to determine what the problem is. Often these will reveal an obvious problem--very low acid, for example--but on rare occasions there may be several things wrong and none of them obvious. Always correct an acid deficient must with acid blend as opposed to citric or tartaric acid alone. It doesn't hurt to add yeast nutrient (1/2 teaspoon per gallon of must) and yeast energizer, too (1/4 teaspoon per gallon of must is sufficient).

After correcting perceived deficiencies and bringing the must to 70° F., wait three days for the fermentation to restart. If it does not, set aside 1/2 cup of must and add to it a cup of warm (100¦ F.) water. Over this sprinkle a good yeast known to do well at restarting stuck fermentations, such as Red Star Premier Curvee (also known as Prise de Mousse) or Lalvin K1-V1116 (also known as Montpellier). Cover the sample and allow up to two days to begin fermenting (it will probably start fermenting within hours, but give it time if it doesn't). When the fermentation is vigorous in the sample, add 1/2 teaspoon of yeast nutrient and another 1/2 cup of must from the bulk batch. Stir the sample to dissolve the nutrient, recover, and set aside about 6 hours. If fermentation is still vigorous, add another 1/2 cup of must, recover, and wait 6 hours. If fermentation is still vigorous, gently add half the starter to the bulk must so the starter sort of lays on top of the must. Do not stir. Wait 24 hours and stir shallowly. Wait another 24 hours and stir deeply. If must does not ferment with starter added, add another 1/2 cup to the remaining starter and recover. After 6 hours, add another 1/2 cup of must. Wait 6 hours and follow directions for adding to bulk must.

 

[cheesecake]

Bananas are on sale for 38 cents a pound so im picking up some bananas to make some banana wine...wooohoooo