Ripe apricots - lemon yellow, deep orange, large and small - a symbol of warm summer. Many desserts, stewed fruit are prepared from them, jam and jam are made, squeezed juice.
But few people know that homemade alcohol is also made from these wonderful fruits. And if anyone knows, not everyone will dare to try, because, unlike traditional wine crops, apricot is very moody. It requires a special approach. Apricot wine does not tolerate neglect, and to cook it, you have to tinker. But what a result! This wine has an amazing color, as if filled with the sun, like old amber, and in taste and aroma it can not be compared with any other alcoholic drink.
Features
Apricot wine has a very specific taste. With a low sugar content, it almost does not retain its fruity aroma. Sometimes this wine gets an unpleasant smell of rancid almonds. This happens if apricot kernels containing hydrocyanic acid get into the pulp. By the way, hydrocyanic acid not only spoils the smell and taste of the drink, but also is a strong poison. For this reason, apricot wine is made only from seedless fruits.
Training
For the preparation of wine using both wild apricots and cultivated garden varieties. The former will give a rich aromatic, but not too sweet drink, the latter guarantee an expressive taste of alcohol, but a moderate smell.
It is worth mentioning that before making apricot wine, the fruits do not need to be washed. Wipe with a dry cloth will be enough. Otherwise, all the microflora necessary for the natural fermentation process will be washed off.
Bones from the fruit must be removed. Given this, preference should be given to those varieties in which the pulp is easily separated.
Recipe Selection
There are many recipes for homemade alcohol with apricots. Sometimes other fruits and berries are used with them: peaches, grapes, cherries. This allows you to get fruit wine with a much richer bouquet. Sometimes brightly colored fruits are added in order to get an expressive color, because it is almost impossible to get a beautiful bright drink from apricots alone. Remember at least a compote - it is almost colorless, well, perhaps a little yellowish.
At home, you can cook apricot wine with different strengths. How many degrees there will be in the product obtained depends on the formulation. In order to increase the strength, yeast, raisins, and other strong alcoholic drinks are used.
Apricot House Wine
Ingredients:
- apricots - 4 kg;
- sugar - 4 kg;
- water - 16 l.
Cooking
We clear the prepared fruits from seeds, fill them with warm water. The mixture should roam for 4-5 days. After this period, knead the pulp of apricots in the pulp, add sugar. The next stage of fermentation will last another week. At this time, you need to mix the wort daily with a wooden spatula or spoon several times a day.
The process will be accompanied by a violent reaction with the release of gas. After gas formation is over, future wine needs to be filtered and bottled in clean bottles. It remains to cork and leave in a cool place for at least 2 months until fully ripened.
Grape Wine Recipe
Excellent fruit wine is obtained by adding spices to the classic recipe. Nutmeg plays a special role here - it makes the taste and aroma rich and expressive. In addition to these ingredients, you can add anise, star anise, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, thyme. Some people like vanilla experiments. A pinch of saffron will not only emphasize the taste, but also significantly improve the shade.
Ingredients:
- apricots - 5 kg;
- granulated sugar - 3 kg;
- grape wine (table) - 1 l;
- nutmeg - 1 tbsp. l .;
- boiled water - 5 l.
Cooking
Such apricot wine (homemade) is made from sweet varieties. Ripe fruits are cleaned with a napkin of dust, we get the seeds. Grind the pulp in any way, add a little warm water and wine.
From the rest of the water and sugar, prepare the syrup. Pour them an apricot mixture. In this case, sugar plays the role of a nutrient medium for the development of microorganisms responsible for fermentation. Add spices. We leave our future apricot wine in a warm place for about a week. From time to time, mix the mixture with a wooden spatula. When the process is complete, filter the wine and bottle it. The ripening of such a drink will last three months. After this period, you can serve a wonderful aromatic drink to the table.
Yeast Recipe
The strength of such a drink will be slightly higher than yeast-free. In addition, yeast fermentation provides a richer flavor in the finished product.
Ingredients:
- apricots - 6 kg;
- sugar - 2.5 kg;
- water - 10 l;
- dry yeast - 2 tbsp. l .;
- juice of four lemons.
Cooking
From prepared apricots, first remove the seeds. We chop the pulp in any convenient way, and then we press. Pour the resulting pulp with boiling water, leave for 3-4 days. After this time, filter the pulp, add sugar, yeast, lemon juice to the sourdough. We put the mixture in a dark warm place for fermentation. The completion of the gasification process will indicate readiness. As soon as this happens, mix the wort and leave to rest for another 3 days.
It remains to strain the mixture and pour into a container, and then leave alone for 6 months. A wooden barrel is ideal for these purposes. After six months, the finished wine needs to be bottled in which it will ripen. Serving such a drink to the table is possible only after another 3 months.
Apricotovka - strong house wine
Those who prefer stronger alcohol will certainly appreciate this recipe. This apricot wine has a sufficiently large strength, expressive aroma and rich color. And it will be completely ready in only a month.
Ingredients:
- apricot juice (freshly squeezed) - 1 l;
- vodka - 3 bottles of 0.5 l.
Cooking
The recipe is extremely simple: fresh homemade apricot juice must be mixed with vodka, and then leave the drink in a cool, dark place for 1 month. During this time, apricot infusion. After infusion, the drink must be filtered and bottled in which it will be stored. This homemade apricot wine can be served with dessert.