Ginger wine

This one is super easy to make and great on a cold winter evening by the fire.

Ingredients:

  • 50g root ginger

  • 1.5kg granulated sugar

  • 100g raisins

  • 2 tsp of citric acid (or the juice and rind of 2 lemons)

  • 4.5l water (boiled)

  • 1 tsp of wine yeast

  • 1 campden tablet (optional)

  • 1 teaspoon fermentation stopper (optional)

  • 1 teaspoon Bentonite (optional)

  • Rum

Method:

Grate the ginger into a bucket, add the sugar, raisins, citric acid, and 2.5l boiled water and stir well.

Mix in 2 litres of cold water and finally add your yeast. Take a reading using a hydrometer. This is known as the Original gravity or OG.

Cover loosely for 1 week before straining into a demijohn with an airlock.

When fermentation ends (bubbles passing through the airlock at less than one a minute) take another hydrometer reading. This is known as the Final gravity or FG. Using a simple formula, (OG - FG) x 0.13 = %, you can then figure out the alcohol content of your finished brew

Finally, add a few capfuls of rum to your bottles, syphon the wine in and cork. Age for a minimum of 3 months before drinking.