Corn-Free,
Dairy-free,
Fermentation,
foraging,
from scratch,
Rose water,
slow food,
Summer,
traditional fermentation,
Vegan,
wild roses,
wine
Turning (Rose) Water into Wine
11:50 AM
A few weeks back our wild rose bushes were in full bloom. There were enough flowers to fill many, many quart containers and the smell was divine. I stopped picking after about 2 quarts of petals had been harvested (my eldest daughter was done getting pricked by the thorns at that point) and brought them inside to make rosewater.
I had it in my head that I'd be using the 2 quarts of rosewater that I ended up making in tons of different recipes, but then my fascination with strawberries took over and I lost track of time. A few weeks later, my rosewater was still sitting in the refridgerator, looking forlorn... and I decided to use the whole container in one go!
The result was an amazing smelling sweet rose petal wine!
I had it in my head that I'd be using the 2 quarts of rosewater that I ended up making in tons of different recipes, but then my fascination with strawberries took over and I lost track of time. A few weeks later, my rosewater was still sitting in the refridgerator, looking forlorn... and I decided to use the whole container in one go!
The result was an amazing smelling sweet rose petal wine!
Rambling Rose Water Wine
2 quarts prepared rose water
2 quarts water
2 lbs white sugar
1 cup white grape juice
1 package wine yeast
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1 1/2 cups orange juice (or 1 1/4 cup white grape juice with a splash of lemon juice in it) at room temperature
1 tsp acid blend
Bring rose water and regular water to a boil in a large pot. Add the sugar and grape juice concentrate. Remove from heat and let cool. Let sit, well covered for 24 hours.
In a jar make a yeast starter culture by combining the wine yeast, pectic enzyme, yeast nutrient, and juice of choice. Cover and shake vigorously. Let stand 1 to 3 hours, until bubbly. Then add to the must.
Add the acid blend and pour the mixture into a food-grade plastic bucket. Cover loosely and allow to sit for 1 week. Rack the liquid into a 1 gallon airlocked fermentation vessel. When fermentation has stopped, rack the wine into bottles.
Wait at least 6 months before sampling.
