Elderberry Wine - the best and easiest recipe I know. Drinkable by Christmas.

[FunkyBoldRibena]

1 - Pick some very ripe elderberries; you will need a good carrier bag worth [around 5kg once de stemmed].
2 - Destem, wash and put in a jam pan with a litre or two of water
3 - Cook for around 3 hours. Let it cool. The next day...
4 - Strain through a fine sieve/muslin over 5 kg bags of sugar into a 5 gallon demijohn or lidded bucket. [Sterilised of course]. Keep pouring boiling water through until it runs clear [or nearly clear].
5 - Add some raisins to the mix.
6 - Add 5 tsp wine yeast, 5 nutrient tablets, 5 tsp pectolase.
7 - Fill with water to about 4 gallons and let it start fermenting for a week.
8 - Top up to 5 gallons after a week
9 - Leave to ferment. If in a bucket, remember to pop the lid to let the gas out regularly at first then daily/weekly as it slows down.
10 - The wine is ready when there is no sugar left to turn to alcohol; taste it early December and see how it is going. If still sweet, leave it to carry on fermenting. The warmer the place you leave it the quicker it ferments.
11 - Drink sensibly after scooping or straining the raisins out.

[FunkyBoldRibena]

Ok - just me then.

Our 5 gallon bucket is now full of lovely Elderberry wine bubbling away.

[SomeCandyTalking]

Sorry for the dumb questions but is it a sparkling wine and is it sweet?

I had a great time with elderflower wine and cordial so it would be nice to do something with the berries now they are abundant.

[wonkylegs]

Even easier is elderberry gin.
Wash & destem elderberries
Put in pan with a small amount of water & a lot of caster sugar. Lightly heat until the sugar starts to dissolve.
Remove from heat, pour into a sterilised Kilnar jar (1/3 full) then top up the further 2/3rds with cheap gin (I used sainsbury's basics).
Seal jar, then turn jar everyday until sugar has dissolved. Put in dark cupboard until Christmas.
Decant into bottles. Yummy & gorgeous colour.

[TheSteveMilliband]

Can I ask how you identify them? I spent a day trying to find some bushes, thought I had but pulp is greenish and now a bit worried I have wrong ones....and 5kg seems a lot - I think I'd be lucky to have a pound.