Tea wine was my reward for a nerve-wracking evening. Leeds, along with most of the rest of England, had had its first snow of the season. This coincided with Music Club where I was both playing in the orchestra and performing a Beethoven trio. Ordinarily, when there is even a suggestion of snow, Music Club is cancelled. This time, whilst the snow was falling at its heaviest, I found myself driving slowly and precariously (with the occasional wobble) to Lawnswood. There, the attendance was low but we played and it was mostly alright. However, I got lost in the trio's third movement and had to wait impotently until we reached a bit I recognised. All very frustrating.
Half a bottle of wine once I had battled my way home was welcome. And the wine is Not Bad - certainly better than my last attempt at this flavour. It is on the foothills of Good.
Did you make wine from tea?? Can't imagine it. Am "newby" winemaker looking for novel recipes to explore. Wine from tea?? Really? Only a Brit would think of this! Send me the recipe and I can recreate it for a "tea party" here in the colonies!!
ReplyDeleteYour US fan
Hello US Vigneronne. Yes, wine from Tea is possible (as is wine from coffee apparently, though I have not made it). Lovely to hear from you, and do let me know if you have any other questions about the whole process. And I am only half a Brit - my mother is a farm girl from Nebraska.
ReplyDeleteTea wine is made like this: (and I am using English measurements - so pounds and ounces rather than kilos and grams. Also English pints have 20 fluid ounces of liquid. I use that measurement. American pints are smaller).
Put 2 ounces of leaf tea in a bucket.
Pour over 2.5 pints of boiling water.
Weigh 2 pounds of sultanas and mince these in a food processor. Put these in the bucket.
Add 2 pounds and four ounces of ordinary white sugar.
Add another 5.5 pints of boiling water.
Stir everything up.
Squeeze the juice from four oranges and put this in.
Cover the bucket with a lid if you have one, or cling film if you don't
Leave for 24 hours (or until the liquid has cooled to room temperature).
Add a sachet (or one teaspoon) or wine maker's yeast
Add one teaspoon each of yeast nutrient and pectolase - if you can get it.
Stir twice a day for 5 days.
Then use a sieve and funnel to put the liquid into a demijohn/carboy and throw away the tea.
Stop up the demijohn with a rubber cork and an air trap, and leave for two- three months. (It will start off very cloudy and gradually clear)
After 2-3 months siphon the liquid from its sediment into a new demijohn, and top up the space with cold water and sugar. Probably you will need a pint of water and six ounces of sugar dissolved in it.
After another 3 months bottle your wine.
This sounds like a very long process (it is!) and, personally, I am not a huge fan of tea wine. It is a little bit bitter. But it is certainly unusual.
Best of luck and let me know how you get on. And thank you for getting in touch.
Ben