Prison Wine

   The other night I was doing a little review on the method I used to make my "Get Jacked" wine.  It just wasn't wanting to start its fermentation process.  So, I went back to the video I had watched and used to make this wine.  No real cues, but through some other readings, realized the temperature of the room I use may have been a little cool and therefore stumped the working of the yeast a bit.  As of this blogging, "Get Jacked" is bubbling nicely with a strong fermentation process.

"Prison Wine"

   On the side of the page where the video was, there was a video for making blackberry wine in a mason jar.  Well, this looked pretty easy to me...and it was...very easy.  So, I got out a couple of my large, 2 quart mason jars and placed some Gala apples in them.  Then I took some blueberries I had and did a quart size with them.  We had some frozen mixed berries that were about to expire, so I used them in another.
   As you can see, the berries seemed to give off their colors and juices a bit more freely than the apples.  I have, since this photo was taken, added two more jars of the frozen mixed fruit.  In four to five months we will see if we got anything worth keeping.
   This type of wine is called prison wine because it can readily be made with very few items.  All you need is the jar with ring and lid, some fruit, and sugar water.  The hardest part would be finding somewhere to keep it where the guards wouldn't find it.

Time to "Get Jacked"!

   About this time last year I ventured into the world of wine making.  I watched a You Tube video of a guy making a rhubarb wine and I though to myself, "I can do that".  I was talking to a friend about it at work and he told me he had some equipment his father had used, before he died, and was willing to let me have it.  I took him up on the offer and with some added gear and some help from a friend, I made my first batch of wine.  It was a delicious rhubarb/raspberry wine.

First glass of "Get Jacked"

   This is a photo of a glass from bottling night.  I must say that it turned out a bit nicer than I had expected for my first go.  We had to decide what to name it.  We decided to call our little wine endeavor "Northern Lights Wine", but we needed a name for the individual wine.  My wife, Selena, has become the one to go to for most of our names.  This one we called "Get Jacked", in honor of my alma mater, South Dakota State University.  That is one of their sayings during sporting events.
   Here is the label I ended up creating.  The batch produced 23 bottles plus a little to enjoy after bottling.  We have shared it recently and it has gotten even better as it has aged.  This was bottled in December of 2016.
   When my friend gave me the equipment, I promised him I would go to the State Cemetery where his father is buried, and have a glass of wine with his father.  It was far too cold this past winter, so on Memorial Day, after the ceremony had ended, I took a bottle from the first batch of wine I made and had a glass with Mr. Peter Herda.  His glass is in my left hand and I stuck it into the grass in front of his marker.  His son, my friend, showed up as I was finishing and my friends daughter was an onlooker.  It was cool to be able to share a glass with a fellow service member.

A promise kept

   I have now begun the 2017 wine making season and just started this year's batch of "Get Jacked".  I hope this one turns out as good as last year's.

Secondary Can Be a Good Thing

Rhubarb pulp after squeezing

My rhubarb wine that had started out a bit of a challenge due to my primary bucket being a tad on the small side, has now moved into its secondary stage and is looking very yummy already. It is hard to believe that such a delicious looking wine can come from a substance that looks as unappetizing as what you see in the bowl.

Rhubarb wine in secondary

After transferring all the lovely pink rhubarb juice into one of my Big Mouth Bubblers, I think I should have a pretty good batch of wine.  Unlike my "Get Jacked" rhubarb wine, this one is straight rhubarb, no raspberries or blackberries.  That wine will be getting started once I get home from vacation.

I was thinking of a good name for this one and decided on one that speaks to the method I used to get the rhubarb.  On my way to work I drive along the backyards of some very nice homes over  by Bismarck State University.  Last year I noticed this very healthy, large rhubarb patch, so this year, I determined I would stop and ask for some to use for wine making.  One day as I was leaving work, the lady of the house was in her garden by the rhubarb patch, so I stopped and asked her.  She say I could have as much as I wanted but please let her know when I stopped.  Just knock on her door.

The first time I stopped with Anna and we picked 19 pounds of rhubarb.  I wanted to start anoterh batch, so Anna and I picked 15 more pounds.  I need 18 for a batch.  For this batch I wanted to use the rhubarb from one single patch.

Get Jacked uses wines from about 4 other souces, but it is exclusive.  It too is ready to go after getting the last two pounds I needed.

The Best Orange Dreamsicle EVER!

About three weeks ago Selena sent me a recipe for another adult beverage.  I swear she must think I am a lush!  The recipe was for Orange Dreamsicle Moonshine.  The first thing that went through my mind was the failed attempt at Apple Pie Moonshine or my batch of Lemoncello.  Neither of those was especially tasty.

This wasn't the cheapest beverage to make and the recipe was a bit labor intensive, but the result was awfully darn good.  No, it doesn't taste too much like a Dreamsicle, but it sure isn't too hard to drink.

We got five quarts out of the batch with the first one disappearing quickly once I opened it.  The directions tell you to wait two weeks before drinking, which I reluctantly did.  We definitely plan to make more of this fruity drink once this batch is gone.

This Year's Winemaking Woes

This year's winemaking started with a batch of straight rhubarb.  I found a beautiful rhubarb patch near my work and stopped and asked if I could raid it.  The lady was more than happy to let me thin her plants out.  By the time my daughter, Anna, and I finished, we had 19 pounds of rhubarb (I needed 18 for the batch of wine).  For my "Get Jacked" rhubarb wine, I use rhubarb from three different patches.   For this one, I wanted to use rhubarb from one patch to see how it tasted.


I started the batch and quickly realized my 6.5 gallon primary bucket was not going to be big enough

to hold 18lbs of rhubarb, 10lbs of sugar, and the water necessary to make a 5 gallon batch.  But, I drove on with the process with only about an inch and a half of space left on top after snapping the lid on top.


The following day I added the yeast and after 24 hours, nothing had happened.  Not being the first time this happened, I added another package of yeast and waited.  By the next morning I had juice all over the lid and on the floor!!! After adding yeast, the must needs room to bubble and allow the yeast to do its thing.

I am anxiously waiting for the specific gravity to get to the point where I can transfer into a bubbler to finish fermenting. I think this will be a very interesting wine.  It is 100% rhubarb with no other fruits to add color or body.  I am going to take Anna to pick more to start another batch at a later date.  This time, I will have a 7.9 gallon bucket I plan to purchase.


Wish me luck!  I am hoping it goes well over the next few days.