15 simple step-by-step recipes on how to make gooseberry wine at home

Fragrant, bright, exquisite wine can be obtained at home from ordinary gooseberries. Excess berries are processed, surprising guests and delighting themselves with a delicious drink. The fruits of the thorny bush are traditionally taken to make jam, but it is not at all difficult to diversify the use and make wine from gooseberries.

Subtleties of making gooseberry wine

Experienced winemakers appreciate gooseberry wine and believe that it tastes like grape wine. However, the characteristics of the berries are vaguely similar to currants, and therefore you can safely use recipes developed for currant wines. The drink begins to be prepared as quickly as possible after harvesting, so that the fruits do not have time to lose their aroma. There is no need to wash the berries, just sort them well.

Rules for choosing ingredients

The most important stage for obtaining unsurpassed taste is the selection of raw materials. For the drink, it is best to use varieties with juicy large fruits of a red or yellow hue. Only ripe berries are used - this will make the product truly aromatic. In order for the wine to have a pleasant taste and be stored for a long time, the following fruits are discarded as part of preparation:

• unripe;
• overripe;
• rotten;
• moldy;
• spoiled.

How to make gooseberry wine at home

According to the preparation technology, the recipe is similar to other fruit and berry tinctures. For the drink, you can take only gooseberries or diversify it by adding additional ingredients. There are a lot of options, everyone can choose the one that suits them best.

Gooseberries have a natural sourness, so sugar must be added to the drink.

Simple recipe

You can get a light dry wine if you take:

• gooseberries - 1 kg;
• sugar - 1 glass;
• water - 1 l.

The fruits are kneaded and poured with cooled, pre-prepared syrup from sweetened water. The mass is left to ferment without adding yeast. After 4 days, the liquid is decanted, the remaining cake is filled with water, which, after squeezing, is added to the main drink.

The mixture is filled into a bottle, which with a glove on the neck is sent for further fermentation in a warm place.

A month later, the semi-finished product is carefully poured so as not to stir up the sediment, and placed in a cool place for 3 months until ripening.

Option with red currants

The drink with red currants has a coral color and slight sourness. Grocery list:

• gooseberries - 3 kg;
• sugar - 2 kg;
• currants - 1 kg;
• water.

The raw materials are crushed, for which it is convenient to use a meat grinder, and combined with pre-cooked cooled syrup. The mixture is kept warm for a week, stirring daily. Then the semi-finished product is transferred to a sterilized container, closed with a water seal and waited another week. Then the liquid is sent into bottles and served 2 months later.

With black currant

Added blackcurrant will give a wonderful taste. From the products they take:

• gooseberries - 1 kg;
• black currant - 1 kg;
• sugar - 1 kg;
• water - 3 l.

The mashed fruits are poured with cooled syrup prepared in advance. The container is covered with gauze and left for primary fermentation for up to 10 days, then the liquid is filtered and transferred to a bottle. The semi-finished product is covered with a water seal and waited for 3 weeks. After this, the drink is filtered again, distributed into containers and left cool until the end of fermentation.

With raspberries

An interesting option is obtained by mixing gooseberries with raspberries. For this wine you will need:

• gooseberries - 1.5 kg;
• raspberries - 1.5 kg;
• sugar - 2 kg;
• water - 3 l.

First of all, they make the wort: crushed berries are poured with pre-cooked and cooled syrup. The mixture is left to ferment for a week, remembering to stir periodically.After this, the wort is filtered, and the composition is kept in a container with a water seal for another 2 months. Then the mixture is carefully distributed into bottles, trying not to disturb the sediment, and placed in a cool place for up to 3 months, after which the product is ready for use.

With lemon

Lemon will add a citrus note to the drink. For wine you need:

• gooseberries - 1.5 kg;
• sugar - 5 glasses;
• lemon - 1 pc.;
• water - 2.5 l.

Step-by-step cooking recipe:

• Mash the berries with 2 cups of sugar, add water.
• Leave to ferment in a warm place for 10 days in a container covered with a water seal or glove.
• Cut the lemon into slices and mix thoroughly with the remaining sugar.
• Pour the citrus mixture into the gooseberry mixture.
• Leave until fermentation is complete.
• Strain the wine through cheesecloth, distribute into containers, and place in a cool place for 2 days.
• Strain again.
• After a month, the product is ready for use.

From green gooseberries

To prepare an alcoholic drink from emerald-colored fruits, you need to take the following products:

• green gooseberries - 1 kg;
• water - 1 l;
• sugar - 700 g.

First, a syrup is made from sweetened water, which, after cooling, is added to the mashed berries. The composition is left for 3 days, remembering to stir daily. Afterwards, the mixture is filtered and placed in a warm place for fermentation for 1.5 months in a container with a water seal. Then the liquid is poured into bottles, leaving the sediment in the container, and they wait for ripening for up to six months.

From red gooseberries

The red berries produce a wine of a beautiful ruby ​​hue, which is recommended to be stored in dark glass. Required Products:

• red gooseberries - 2 kg;
• water - 2 l;
• sugar - 1.5 kg.

A cool syrup made from sugar and water is poured over chopped gooseberries. The composition is kept warm for 4 days and stirred daily. At the end of the period, the mass is filtered, the bottle is closed with a water seal or a glove with a pierced finger is put on and left to ferment for 1.5 months. Then the liquid is drained, being careful not to disturb the sediment, and placed in a cool place for 4 months. At the end of ripening, the drink is distributed into bottles.

From yellow berries

The fundamental difference between wine made from golden berries is the color; it will turn out to be a light shade. Products you will need:

• gooseberries - 1.5 kg;
• water - 1.5 l;
• sugar - 1 kg.

The berries are thoroughly mashed and poured with non-hot syrup, left for a week, stirring every day. Then the mixture must be filtered and placed in a container with a water seal for 2 months. After this, the wine is drained from the sediment and distributed into portioned bottles, where it must stand for another 3 months before consumption.

From unripe gooseberries

It is recommended to make wine from unripe gooseberries with the addition of wine yeast. To prepare you need to take:

• gooseberries - 5 kg;
• water - 10 l;
• sugar - 4 kg;
• wine yeast.

A kilogram of sugar is poured into the crushed fruits, yeast is added and water is poured. After 10 days of keeping at room temperature, add the remaining sugar, close the container with a water seal and leave until the end of fermentation. Then the drink must be filtered, placed in a cool place for 3 days, then strained and bottled for storage.

With honey

An amazing honey drink is obtained by completely replacing sugar with a beekeeping product.

For this wine you will need:

• gooseberries - 1 kg;
• honey - 100 ml;
• bread - 100 g;
• water.

The berries are kneaded in any way and poured with cool water, after which bread pieces spread with honey are added. The container is closed with a water seal and left in a dark room for fermentation for up to 4 months. After this, the drink is filtered, poured into glass bottles and served a month later.

With bananas and raisins

For an exotic drink you will need:

• gooseberries - 1.5 kg;
• bananas - 200 g;
• raisins - 200 g;
• sugar - 1 kg;
• water - 3.5 l;
• citric acid - 1 teaspoon;
• pectin enzyme - 1 teaspoon;
• wine yeast.

Boil syrup from crushed bananas, water and sugar for 20 minutes. The fruit pulp is discarded, and the sweet liquid is filtered and combined with crushed gooseberries and raisins. The mixture is simmered for half an hour, yeast feed and citric acid are added, and then left for 12 hours.

Wine yeast is diluted in a small amount of warm water and added to the preparation, after which it is left to ferment for 3 days. Then filter and keep in a bottle with a water seal until the liquid clears and bubbles stop forming. Then the wine is removed from the sediment and poured into portioned containers, where it matures for another 12 months until the bouquet is formed.

A sparkling wine

The drink can be stored in the refrigerator for about a month. To prepare you will need:

• gooseberries - 3 kg;
• sugar - 2 kg;
• water - 5 l.

Whole berries are covered with sugar and poured with warm water. The neck of the bottle is closed with a pierced rubber glove, and the container is placed in a warm place for a month and a half. The liquid is poured into a container without disturbing the sediment, after which the drink is ready for use.

Gooseberry jam wine

Sugared or soured jam can be given a second life by processing it into wine.To do this you will need:

• gooseberry jam - 1 l;
• water - 1 l;
• raisins - 120 g.

The ingredients are combined, covered with gauze and left in a warm place to ferment for 10 days, stirring daily. After this, the liquid is filtered and poured into a glass container with a water seal. The wine will ferment in a warm place until it is ready, then it is filtered and placed in a cool place to mature for a couple of months.

Old world gooseberry wine

To prepare old world wine from gooseberries you need to take:

• double gooseberries;
• vodka;
• Rye bread;
• honey.

The fruits are placed in a ten-liter container so that about 15 cm remains to the top, and vodka is poured to the same level. After 10 days, dried slices of bread spread with honey are added to the mixture and left for the same period. Afterwards the wine is distributed into bottles and sealed.

With cherry

It will work great if you mix gooseberries with cherries. For this type of wine they take:

• gooseberries - 5 glasses;
• cherry - 4 cups;
• sugar - 1 kg;
• water - 4 l.

Crushed gooseberries are combined with washed cherries, covered with sugar and filled with water. The container with the mixture is covered with a water seal and placed in a warm place for a month. After fermentation is complete, the drink is fortified with alcohol or pasteurized. Then you need to leave for another two weeks, remove the sediment and distribute into portioned bottles.

Further storage of the finished product

The finished wine is stored in a cool, dark room, such as a pantry or cellar. The ideal dishes are glass bottles; for a red drink, dishes with dark walls are better suited. The wine can be stored for several years, but after a year the taste begins to gradually deteriorate, so further aging is not advisable.

Gooseberry wine will help to rationally use the entire harvest and at the same time will undoubtedly decorate any table. It’s not difficult to prepare a delicious aromatic drink, and guests and relatives will not be able to contain their delight after tasting wine made from thorny bush berries.