Sauternes Style – Sweet White Wine

NB: If you are new to winemaking, it is worth checking out our guide to success.

Ingredients

• 1 Litre Apple Juice
• 450g Sultanas or Raisins
• 100g Dried Apricots
• 825g Canned Peaches
• 250g Rhubarb
• 150g Strawberries
• 100g Honey
• 225g Granulated Sugar
• 450g Sugar for Sweetening
• 1-2g Oak Granuals
• Sufficient Pectolytic Enzyme
• Gervin No. 6 Yeast
• 1g / ¼ Teaspoon Yeast Nutrient
• Water to 4.5 Litres

Method

This is a lovely blockbuster of a sweet wine, with around 14% of alcohol and an acid level near to 8g per litre.  Again, I suggest adding the faintest touch of oak, if you have any granules available.

This recipe contains strawberries.  Although this inclusion does seem off for a white wine recipe, the colour is not a problem since the red colour fades to light amber, which is appropriate for these styles of wine.  In addition, the strawberries contain some of the esters found in Sauternes wines.

Like all full-bodied wines with lots of flavour, this wine will get steadily better over a period of time, up to 5 years.