Banana Wine

[Leadgolem]

I just went through the whole thread and want to try this recipe. Maybe I missed it but I don't remember seeing anything mentioned about Campden tablets or metabisulphites added. Did I just miss it?

I wouldn't think they would be really necessary. You are going to be fermenting until dry, and the bananas are going to cook before you use them. So, you shouldn't have any wild bugs to start with.

 

[Yooper]

I just went through the whole thread and want to try this recipe. Maybe I missed it but I don't remember seeing anything mentioned about Campden tablets or metabisulphites added. Did I just miss it?

I use sulfites at every other racking and at bottling, to guestimate the sulfite level at +/- 50 ppm. It keeps oxidation at bay, and keeps the wine better. Without sulfites, the wine can darken a bit due to oxidation and the wine is susceptible to infection. Since I age this wine for it to be really good it's important to take care of it.

 

[lillypad297]

Thanks for the response. I start sulfites when fermentation is complete and at every other racking as well. Will be starting my first batch of banana wine soon. Will post updates during my process.

 

[LabRatBrewer]

I use sulfites at every other racking and at bottling, to guestimate the sulfite level at +/- 50 ppm. It keeps oxidation at bay, and keeps the wine better. Without sulfites, the wine can darken a bit due to oxidation and the wine is susceptible to infection. Since I age this wine for it to be really good it's important to take care of it.

Is that fairly common for other types of wine as well. I have a carrot wine that I am about to rack was a going to add a campden tablet.

 

[Yooper]

Is that fairly common for other types of wine as well. I have a carrot wine that I am about to rack was a going to add a campden tablet.

yes, that's a pretty standard winemaking technique. One campden tablet per gallon, or 1/4 teaspoon of powered k-meta per 5 gallons, is a good guestimate on keeping the wine at 50 ppm if you don't have a sulfite meter.

 

[dale1038]

I bottled 3 gallons of this today after 6 months of bulk aging. It was very good already. Probably my favorite wine so far. I was worried because I didn't have any signs of fermentation when I added the raisins. Gravity was down to 1.014 though. This had a lot more body than most of my other wines. Should be tasty next summer!

 

[embreedow]

Ok, I read through the whole thread and decided that I needed to write down some questions to ask since it takes two years
Do the raisins go in secondary or primary?
Should I sanitize the raisins in some way to make sure there aren’t any pestecides and stuff?
I read somewhere to let it sit in primary for 2 months? I thought it was one week

I found the answer for time question. Still don't know about the other two though

 

[Yooper]

Ok, I read through the whole thread and decided that I needed to write down some questions to ask since it takes two years
Do the raisins go in secondary or primary?
Should I sanitize the raisins in some way to make sure there aren’t any pestecides and stuff?
I read somewhere to let it sit in primary for 2 months? I thought it was one week

I found the answer for time question. Still don't know about the other two though

Just follow the recipe/instructions in the original recipe. That should answer all of your questions, and give you great results.

 

[embreedow]

Ok I whipped up 3 gallons in primary. Some of the boiled bananas fell in the primary and after about a week is now just mush
Is that ok?

 

[Rivenin]

trying this tomorrow! don't steer me wrong! bananas were on sale for 19c each,

 

[Rivenin]

Here it is this morning after some stirring.

Looks god awful, but smells awesome!

 

[wefdog]

Here it is this morning after some stirring.

Looks god awful, but smells awesome!

Did you ever see the bizarre foods episode where they made banana beer in Africa. Looks the same as yours.
Here is the back stage commentary.

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/andrew-brews-beer-in-tanzania-11870

 

[emjay]

Weird, I wouldn't call it beer if it was made with bananas. Plantains MAYBE.

Dammit... now I'm going to have to brew a plantain beer.

 

[buzzerj]

Here is my finished product, bottled on Sunday 4/22/12.

This one had about 1lb of golden raisins and 3lbs of dried apricot.

How did your banana wine turn out with the apricot addition? Do you detect the apricots? How does it mix with the banana flavor?

 

[LabRatBrewer]

How did your banana wine turn out with the apricot addition? Do you detect the apricots? How does it mix with the banana flavor?

+1 Would love to know how the apricots came out.

 

[timcadieux]

BANANA WINE (2) [Heavy Bodied]

3-1/2 lb. bananas
1 lb. chopped golden raisins
2 lb. granulated sugar
1-1/4 tsp. acid blend
1 tsp. pectic enzyme
1/4 tsp. grape tannin
1 gallon water
wine yeast and nutrient
Slice bananas into thin discs, leaving skins on fruit. Put into grain-bag, tie top, and place in 6 pints water. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove grain-bag to bowl to catch drippings while pouring liquor over sugar in primary fermentation vessel and stirring well to dissolve sugar. Add acid blend, pectic enzyme and tannin, stirring again. When grain-bag cools, squeeze to extract as much liquid as possible and add liquid and drippings to liquor, discarding pulp. When liquor cools to 70 degrees fahrenheit, add yeast and nutrient. Cover and set in warm place for seven days, stirring daily. Pour into secondary fermentation vessel, fit airlock, and move to cooler place, leaving undisturbed for two months. Siphon off sediment, add chopped raisins, and add water to bring to one gallon. Ferment another four months. Rack and allow to clear. Rack again and bottle. May taste after six months, but matures at two years. [Adapted from passed-on recipe, source unknown, taken from Jack Keller's site]

I was going to.make this but in my preparations I've noticed that the recipe is for only 1gallon? Any particular reason? I find 1-2 years a hell of a long time to wait for what, 2-4 wine bottles worth?

 

[Yooper]

I was going to.make this but in my preparations I've noticed that the recipe is for only 1gallon? Any particular reason? I find 1-2 years a hell of a long time to wait for what, 2-4 wine bottles worth?

You can multiply by 2, 5, 10, whatever, to make the size batch you'd like.

1 gallon makes approximately 5 bottles of wine.

 

[Leadgolem]

You can multiply by 2, 5, 10, whatever, to make the size batch you'd like.

1 gallon makes approximately 5 bottles of wine.

You must have an extremely efficient harvesting method, or be a little over the 1 gallon mark. 1 gallon = 3785ml or 5.04 750ml bottles. If you can manage to keep your transfer/trub loss to 35ml per batch I would be very interested to know what your methodology is?

 

[Yooper]

You must have an extremely efficient harvesting method, or be a little over the 1 gallon mark. 1 gallon = 3785ml or 5.04 750ml bottles. If you can manage to keep your transfer/trub loss to 35ml per batch I would be very interested to know what your methodology is?

You top up at every racking, so there is no volume loss.

Carlo Rossi jugs (my preferred 1 gallon fermenters) are 4L.

 

[timcadieux]

You top up at every racking, so there is no volume loss.

Carlo Rossi jugs (my preferred 1 gallon fermenters) are 4L.

You say in one of your earlier posts not to top up with water becuase the taste was never quite right?

 

[johnnync]

I was going to.make this but in my preparations I've noticed that the recipe is for only 1gallon? Any particular reason? I find 1-2 years a hell of a long time to wait for what, 2-4 wine bottles worth?

225 post

You must have an extremely efficient harvesting method, or be a little over the 1 gallon mark. 1 gallon = 3785ml or 5.04 750ml bottles. If you can manage to keep your transfer/trub loss to 35ml per batch I would be very interested to know what your methodology is?

2700 post, getting better.

You top up at every racking, so there is no volume loss.

Carlo Rossi jugs (my preferred 1 gallon fermenters) are 4L.

54,000 post, think I will stick with what yooper says

 

[Yooper]

You say in one of your earlier posts not to top up with water becuase the taste was never quite right?

I said to never top up with water? That doesn't seem right. I must have been drinking.

 

[cardtarget]

I just bottled my 3 gallon batch on Saturday (tasted awesome BTW). Two years in bottles is going to be a long time to wait.

I got 12 good bottles and the 13th was about 2/3rds full when I started getting too much junk. The raisins just take up so much space in the carboy. Plan on 4 bottles per gallon.

 

[timcadieux]

I said to never top up with water? That doesn't seem right. I must have been drinking.

Yup, right here (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f79/banana-wine-33636/index5.html#post1815872)


So, just to be clear, it *IS* ok top top off to the full volume after each racking?

 

[Yooper]

Yup, right here (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f79/banana-wine-33636/index5.html#post1815872)


So, just to be clear, it *IS* ok top top off to the full volume after each racking?

Um, that wasn't me that said that. That was someone else, giving their opinion.

You certainly don't want to add a half gallon of water to a one gallon batch- but for topping up an appropriate amount, water is fine.

Make sure you match your fermenter size to your batch size, so that if you have a three gallon batch you have a 3 gallon carboy.

For larger amounts that need topping up, use a similar wine. Since there are few similar commercial wines, a sauvignon blanc or other dry white wine would be fine.

 

[timcadieux]

Um, that wasn't me that said that. That was someone else, giving their opinion.

You certainly don't want to add a half gallon of water to a one gallon batch- but for topping up an appropriate amount, water is fine.

Make sure you match your fermenter size to your batch size, so that if you have a three gallon batch you have a 3 gallon carboy.

For larger amounts that need topping up, use a similar wine. Since there are few similar commercial wines, a sauvignon blanc or other dry white wine would be fine.

Doh, sorry, you're right, that's what i get for using my phone to visit this site.

 

[dannyhawkins]

I've got the stuff for a 2 gallon batch. Just waiting for the bananas to get nice and dark. This stuff just sounds so good. See you guys in a few years.

 

[TheManchesterMorgue]

Um, that wasn't me that said that. That was someone else, giving their opinion.

You certainly don't want to add a half gallon of water to a one gallon batch- but for topping up an appropriate amount, water is fine.

Make sure you match your fermenter size to your batch size, so that if you have a three gallon batch you have a 3 gallon carboy.

For larger amounts that need topping up, use a similar wine. Since there are few similar commercial wines, a sauvignon blanc or other dry white wine would be fine.

Sorry if this is a dumb question but I started two 1 gallon batches of this last night. Just wondering if the raisins take up a lot of space how this balances out with not losing a significant portion of the gallon when using a matched fermenter size?

 

[timcadieux]

Really overripe- on sale for $.19/pound. Then I froze them for a while, until I could deal with them. They were black!

Do the bananas have to be overripe or can ripe bananas be used?

 

[Leadgolem]

Do the bananas have to be overripe or can ripe bananas be used?

As bananas ripen more of the starch in them is converted to sugar.