Easy Strawberry Wine Recipe - Perfect for Beginners (2024)

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This is our first year making strawberry wine, so I'm not sure exactly what our final product will be like, but the initial stages of the ferment smell wonderful and are packing quite a kick. Due to reader requests, I'm sharing the easy strawberry wine recipe we used.

Easy Strawberry Wine Recipe - Perfect for Beginners (1)

It doesn't get much more straightforward than this unless yougo wild – berries, sugar, yeast, acid, nutrient and water.

Make sure you use good quality berries. There are no tricks or other flavors to cover bad fruit here. Previously frozen berries should work as well as fresh, as long as they are nice and ripe. (Use them as soon as possible after thawing for best color.)

Easy Strawberry Wine Recipe

Adapted from Jack Keller's Winemaking page. Jack says about this wine, “The first is the simplest strawberry wine recipe I know of. Use only the sweetest, freshest berries and you'll be rewarded with an exquisite, delicate wine.”

Ingredients

Directions

For a single batch, place strawberries, sugar and citric acid in a 2 gallon crock. (The berry mix will bubble in the early stages of fermentation and may rise out of a one gallon crock.)

Crush fruit with a potato masher or pastry blender.Cover berry/sugar mix with 5 pints boiling water.

Easy Strawberry Wine Recipe - Perfect for Beginners (2)

Stir wine mustwith wooden spoonto dissolve sugar and simultaneously mash the strawberries.

When cooled to 85°F (29°C), add yeast and yeast nutrient. Cover and stir daily for seven days.

One the 7th day, strain through cheesecloth or a flour sack towel. Transfer to secondary fermentation vessel with airlock. (I used one gallon glass jugs. A carboy would also work.)

Add sterilized water to top up to one gallon of liquid and seal with a fermentation cap. (A fermentation cap is an airlock that allows carbon dioxide to escape but keeps oxygen out.)

Store out of direct sunlight for 30 days. Rack into a clean fermentation vessel. Store for 30 days more, rack again. Allow to settle 3-5 days and bottle when clear.

Age for at least 6 months. Flavor improves up to a year. From Jack's description, this looks like a wine that will not improve with much longer storage, so it's okay to enjoy it young.

Ingredients and Equipment List

To recap, you will need:

A Note on Finding the Best Strawberries

The 2016 strawberry season was a bountiful one at our favorite local u-pick farm, Red Grouse Farm. Becky and her family spend long hours out in the berry patch, tending everything by hand so I don't have to. 😉

They don't use any herbicides or pesticides, and use holistic farming practices that build the soil instead of mining it like conventional farming.

Becky (the owner) and I had a great conversation about some of our favorite soil and permaculture gurus as she helped us fill our strawberry baskets for this wine.

I've had a number of readers ask why we don't grow our own strawberries. We have land, but strawberries are labor intensive, and since I have a source I trust close by, I support their efforts.

Meanwhile, we're focusing on crops I can't find elsewhere, and/or those that are more expensive, like blueberries, raspberries, gooseberries, aronia berries, bush cherries, seaberries, hardy kiwis and others.

Watch out for “Dirty” Berries

If at all possible, get your berries from someone you trust, and ask them what, if anything, they spray.

Conventional strawberries are on the Dirty Dozen list. The Environmental Working Group found 17 different pesticides on a single strawberry sample. There's no way I want to turn that into wine.

Organic strawberries may not be much better.

Recently, a neighbor of mine shared her own concerns about organic strawberries.

She used to buy a large carton of organic strawberries for her family at a local bulk foods club. One of the kids would clean and slice them when they were brought home, and they'd get eaten in a day or two.

This batch was different. No one in the family liked the taste, and eventually they were tossed to the chickens. The chickens refused to eat the organic strawberries.

It's no lab test, but it did me wonder what the heck was on those berries.

What's your favorite way to enjoy strawberries?

My youngest is a huge strawberry fan, so while they're in season we keep a big bowl in the fridge for fresh eating.

To enjoy them year round, I use the recipe in the post12 Ways to Preserve Strawberries – Plus Tips to Keep Berries Fresh Longer.

We also enjoy:

  • Fresh Strawberry Pie
  • Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble
  • Strawberry Shortcake with Strawberry Whipped Cream

What's your favorite way to enjoy strawberries? Leave me a comment and let me know!

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Easy Strawberry Wine

Easy Strawberry Wine Recipe - Perfect for Beginners (4)

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5 from 3 reviews

Add a little kick to your strawberry season! This homemade strawberry wine recipe comes together in minutes and is ready to enjoy in just a few months.

Ingredients

UnitsScale

  • 3 pounds fresh strawberries
  • 2 pounds granulated cane sugar
  • 2 teaspoons citric acid or wine acid blend
  • 5 pints clean water (non-chlorinated)
  • 1 teaspoon yeast nutrient
  • 1 package of wine yeast

Instructions

  1. For a single batch, place strawberries, sugar and citric acid in a 2 gallon crock. (The berry mix will bubble in the early stages of fermentation and may rise out of a one gallon crock.)
  2. Crush fruit with a potato masher or pastry blender. Cover berry/sugar mix with 5 pints boiling water.
  3. Stir wine must with wooden spoon to dissolve sugar and simultaneously mash the strawberries.
  4. When cooled to 85°F (29°C), add yeast and yeast nutrient. Cover and stir daily for seven days.
  5. One the 7th day, strain through cheesecloth or a flour sack towel. Transfer to secondary fermentation vessel with airlock.
  6. Add sterilized water to top up to one gallon of liquid and seal with a fermentation cap. (A fermentation cap is an airlock that allows carbon dioxide to escape but keeps oxygen out.)
  7. Store out of direct sunlight for 30 days. Rack into a clean fermentation vessel. Store for 30 days more, rack again. Allow to settle 3-5 days and bottle when clear.
  8. Age for at least 6 months. Flavor improves up to a year.

Notes

The option to double or triple the recipe will automatically double or triple the amount of yeast. This in not required. One package of yeast is enough to make up to five gallons of wine.

Easy Strawberry Wine Recipe - Perfect for Beginners (5)
Easy Strawberry Wine Recipe - Perfect for Beginners (2024)

FAQs

How many strawberries do I need for 5 gallons of wine? ›

For each gallon of wine, you'll need between 2.5 and 5 lbs. (1.13 and 2.27 kg) of strawberries. Most recipes call for 3 or 4 lbs. (1.36 or 1.81 kg), but it's your choice.

What is the easiest fruit wine to make? ›

Wine can be made from more than just grapes. In many ways, grapes are the easiest fruit from which to make wine, but we also have a lot of expectations for wine made from grapes, a lot of ideas of how it should taste.

What is the best yeast for strawberry wine? ›

I like to use Champagne yeast because it is a more neutral flavor, versus using a beer or wine yeast. Fermentation will now take place over the next 2-3 weeks. I always like to give my wine this amount of time just to make sure the fermentation process is complete.

How long should strawberry wine age? ›

The most general guidelines the Wine Wiz can give you for aging wines from fruits, vegetables and herbs are these: Always cellar any wine at least six months before opening the first bottle and try to consume within three or four years.

How long does it take strawberries to ferment? ›

If you ferment berries, will you get alcohol, If so, how long do you need to wait? Berries fermentation usually takes up to 5–6 days for fermentation slightly above the room temperature to produce the alcohol. At room temperature, it may take an additional day to complete the process.

What is the simplest way to make wine? ›

Buy a 64 oz bottle jug of grape juice or white grape juice, open the jug and remove 16 oz., leaving 48 oz. Pour 1 1/2 cups of sugar in the jug and 1/2 teaspoon of yeast. Tighten the cap and shake well for 2–3 minutes. Loosten the cap so air can circulate and store in a warm dark place for 3 weeks.

Does homemade wine have more alcohol? ›

Alcohol is made by converting sugar into alcohol. Some people who make wine from their own fruit or berries may add too much sugar and produce a wine that is very high in alcohol. This may be how the myth originated. However the fact remains that fermentation on it's own can only produce up to 20 percent alcohol.

How long does homemade wine last? ›

In general, properly stored homemade wine can last for several years, but it is best consumed within 1-2 years for optimal quality and flavor. To store homemade wine properly, it is important to follow these steps: Store the wine in a cool, dark place: Ideal temperatures for wine storage are between 45-65°F (7-18°C).

What is the cheapest fruit to make wine with? ›

Known for their distinct sweetness and tropical notes, bananas can be used to make an entire batch of wine or can simply be added to another batch. Costing approximately $1.00 per pound, you'll need 3 lbs of bananas for one batch of wine. Banana wine is one of the cheaper options when it comes to homemade wine.

Can you make wine from strawberries? ›

Tremendous wines can be made from domestic strawberries as well, and most are. If you're a winemaker of the green-thumb variety, you can certainly grow your own strawberries.

What fruit combination is best for wine? ›

Fruit and Wine Pairings
  1. Pineapple and Riesling. Pineapple's tropical sweetness pairs well with the floral and fruity notes of a slightly sweet Riesling. ...
  2. Apples and Chardonnay. ...
  3. Cherries and Rosato. ...
  4. Raspberries and Chardonnay. ...
  5. Peaches and Chenin Blanc. ...
  6. Watermelon and Rosé ...
  7. Melon and Verminto. ...
  8. Strawberries and Champagne.
Aug 16, 2023

Is Fleischmann's active dry yeast good for making wine? ›

I've been experimenting with this combination for a while and it works like a charm. Fleischmann will ferment up to 12% abv, which is awesome and minimizes the change of your brew turning into vinegar.

What temperature do you add yeast to fruit wine? ›

So in the fall and winter you need to verify that your wine is at a temperature of 65˚ to 80˚ during fermentation. Temperatures of over 85˚ can actually kill the yeast pretty quickly as the heat can spike due to the fact that the yeast creates heat during fermentation and continue to rise until it kills off the yeast.

How much yeast do you put in fruit wine? ›

Typical usage rate for yeast is 1 gm / gallon of juice, but being a little short or a little long is not a problem, as yeast reproduces to reach a number at which fermentation takes place. Being slightly long on usage amount simply gets the fermentation count up that much faster.

How much fruit do I need for 5 gallons of wine? ›

Any other added ingredients can inhibit fermentation. There is no exact amount for how many pounds of fruit is needed to make 5 gallons of fruit wine (5 gallons is the common yield from most home winemaking recipes). The general guide is a range of 10-25 pounds of fruit per 5 gallons of wine.

How many strawberries does it take to make a gallon of wine? ›

wine dabbler

5 lbs of strawberries per US gallon is a minimum -- if you have the fruit, double it to 10 lbs/gallon. You'll get better strawberry flavor. 2 lbs of sugar per gallon is probably fine. If you're being cautious, add 1-3/4 lb sugar per gallon and check the SG.

How much fruit do I need for 1 gallon of wine? ›

Most fruit wines should contain anywhere from 3 to 6 pounds of fruit per gallon of wine. A smaller amount of fruit will produce a lighter, more delicate wine, while a larger amount will make a heavier, more intense wine. It's nice to have both types of wine in your cellar.

How much fruit do I need for 5 gallons of mead? ›

There really isn't a rule of thumb saying, “Add 3 lbs of every type of fruit to get a light flavor and 6 lbs of any fruit to get heavier flavor”. Different fruit gives different amounts of flavor. That is why this is so helpful. All of these additions would take place in Secondary and all are for 5 gallons of mead.

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