Red currants can be substituted for black currants and vice-versa. Although red currants  produce sweeter wine, wines can be further sweetened to taste by adding ½ tsp at bottling, stabilizer, then ¼ lb dissolved sugar per gallon.

Ingredients:

3 ½ lb Red Currants

7 pts Water

3  lb Sugar

½ tsp Pectic Enzyme

1  tsp Nutrient

1 Campden, crush

1 pkg Sherry or Port Yeast

FYI: All the above ingredients can be purchased in one convenient package at letsmakefoodandwine.com!

Method:

1. Pick fully ripe. No moldy fruit. Wash and drain currants and place fruit in nylon straining bag. Crush, press and strain out juice into primary fermentor. Keeping all pulp in bag, tie top and place in primary.
2. Stir in all other ingredients except yeast. Cover primary.
3. After 24 hrs., add yeast. Cover primary.
4. Stir daily and check Specific Gravity. Press pulp lightly to add in extraction.
5. When ferment reaches S.G. of 1.030 (about 5 days) strain juice from bag. Syphon wine off sediment into glass jug secondary. Attach airlock.
6. When ferment is complete (S.G. has dropped to 1.000—about 3 weeks) syphon off sediment into clean secondary. Reattach lock. Syphon again in 2 months and again if necessary until clear before bottling.

Varieties:

Currants and Goosberries (Ribes L.) are closely related. Normally currants have smooth canes and gooseberries have spiny canes. Many are decorative, 3’-5’  shrubs with attractive foliage. Currants to try: Red Lake, Perfection, Cherry and Fay’s Prolific. Goosberries: Pixwell or Oregon Champion. They do host pine blister rust, so consult nursery.

Tags: red currant wine

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