Fortified wine with herbs. Vermouth - wine from fruits and berries - winemaking - library - family farm

Vermouth Vermouth is a blended, fortified, dessert wine, flavored with a tincture of various herbs with a specific bitter taste of wormwood. To prepare vermouth at home, it is convenient to prepare the wine materials separately and mix them after

Homemade vermouth For half a liter of vodka: a handful of ripe rowan, 1 tsp. dry yarrow and wormwood, a quarter tsp each. cinnamon and cardamom, eighth tsp. grated nutmeg, 4–5 leaves of fresh thyme, 3 threads of saffron. This mixture is added to apple wine from

Ports and vermouth Recipes for making ports include a huge number of ingredients. Among them are not only fruits and berries, which in Russia can be considered exotic, but also many herbs, some of which grow only in the homeland of port wine. That's why

Without exaggeration, spices can be called masters in the kitchen, because they create a unique bouquet of national dishes. Chefs who skillfully use seasonings surprise us with an incredible number of sometimes unexpected flavor variations. For wine lovers, spices can also give new sensations, although not always pleasant ones. Cloves and Chinese peppercorns, for example, have mouth-numbing properties, while Japanese horseradish Wasabi is famous for its ability to destroy any wine. But some spices, such as different types of peppers, can significantly enhance a food and wine pairing, enhancing the overlapping flavors and aromas. Adding star anise or fennel seed to red meat stews makes them great to pair with spicy red wines from varieties such as Syrah, Grenache and Zinfandel. Rub a little warmed nutmeg into the Italian version of béchamel sauce, and rich, thick white Chardonnay wines will pair beautifully with this dish.

Black pepper- king of spices! It was brought to the West from India for 4,000 years. It served as the equivalent of money. Its piquant aroma goes well with tannins in young red wines. Try a medium-rare, peppered steak with a young Bordeaux or a glass of vintage port.

Star anise (star anise) - a subtle and delicate seasoning that enhances the flavor of chicken or game in soup and enlivens the dull taste of stew. To pair with anise, we can recommend Grenache-based wines (Garnacha) from Spain, France or Australia.

Cinnamon adds unique warmth, spicy aroma and delicate piquant flavor to sweet and spicy dishes. It is now difficult to imagine that wars were fought over this aromatic spice, and that the cinnamon trade enriched or ruined countries. The aroma of cinnamon was known in Ancient China and Egypt long before the appearance of the famous pyramids. Cinnamon increases appetite, improves digestion, activates the work of many internal organs, is an excellent antiseptic and remedy for seasickness, destroys the tuberculosis bacillus and is a rare female aphrodisiac. Try cinnamon-infused desserts with medium-sweet Hungarian Tokaj, late-harvest Riesling, or Italian Vin Santo. And mature Chilean Carménère or Australian Shiraz will go well with spicy dishes with cinnamon.

Carnation is an integral part of the Chinese Five Spice mixture. This is one of the oldest spices. Eating cloves as a seasoning for dishes has a beneficial effect on digestion and has an antispasmodic and antiseptic effect. It pairs well with a ripe, berry-flavored Californian Zinfandel or a juicy Argentinean Malbec. Rich red Grenache or red wines from the Douro Valley (Portugal) are also suitable for meat dishes with cloves.

Cardamom- one of the most noble spices in Eastern, Western European and Russian cuisines. The taste of cardamom is slightly pungent, with a hint of lemon. Cardamom goes with literally all dishes. Fresh and dried herbs and plant seeds are used in cooking. The pods are added to some dishes, such as pilaf, for flavor, but not eaten. Less commonly, and mainly for savory dishes, the coarse brown pods are used. It has a specific camphor smell, so it is added whole to sauces and gravies. The camphorous aroma of green cardamom can overpower the wine, so use it in small quantities. Black cardamom adds an attractive smoky aroma and flavor to slow-cooked meat and poultry dishes. Red wines with strong fruity notes are perfect for these dishes.

The famous burning chilli doesn't change the taste of the wine, it just turns off the taste buds. Therefore, it should be paired with a rather expressive young wine, and not a subtle or venerable old one. Chilled young white wines paired with such dishes create a cooling and refreshing sensation in the mouth. A large number of raw garlic in the dish greatly irritates the taste buds. Therefore, dry, spicy-tasting white and rose wines from the Southern Rhone, Provence or Languedoc are best suited to garlic in dishes.

Fragrant herbs enhance the taste of food and highlight the taste of wine. Most herbs pair best with white wines. Only rosemary and thyme are exceptions. And sage should be used in reasonable quantities. Horseradish has a harsh effect on wines and suppresses their fruity aroma and taste. Wines that can hold up are French Condrieu or California Viognier, which do not go well with beef and are too concentrated for smoked fish. If horseradish sauce is required, then you should be generous with cream and stingy with vinegar or lemon. In this case, Dolcetto or Cru Beaujolais or Chablis for smoked trout are suitable for a meat dish. Mint goes well with red Cabernet Sauvignon wines, which have a minty aroma. But mint sauce and mint jelly, which contain sugar and vinegar, have a bad effect on the taste of wines.

Vermouth - fortified wine flavored with a specific bouquet of medicinal herbs. Its name is due to the main component - wormwood (in German: “wermut.”), although the composition of the drink can include shades of more than several dozen different herbs.

The history of the origin of vermouth
The production of flavored wines dates back to ancient times. Back in the 5th century. BC. man learned to secrete essential oils. Their medicinal properties were widely used in the medicine of that time, becoming ingredients in infusions and decoctions. One of the plants that has long been used as a medicinal and hygienic remedy is wormwood.

Since ancient times, Amareno wine (translated as “bitter”) was produced on the island of Sicily, which is believed to have become the basis for the emergence of vermouth. And the invention of wormwood wine itself is attributed to Hippocrates. Allegedly back in the 5th century. BC. he complemented the bouquet of the magnificent Knossos wine with the spicy aroma of medicinal plants.

Over the next centuries, thyme, rosemary, myrtle, etc. were added to wine, along with wormwood. Wines with the addition of spices appeared:
- Klareya - honey and pepper were added to the white cinema.
- Nectar - white wine, honey, ginger.
- Gipokras - honey, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg were added to wine from Bona.

It is believed that the prototype of modern vermouth was “born” in the vicinity of the Italian city of Turin, due to the fact that the basis of this wine is white Muscat, which is distinguished by a particularly refined taste. During the Renaissance, during the period of great geographical discoveries, the “invention” of new winemaking products, using a different set of spices brought by Venetian merchants, became especially popular in Italy. The result of such experiments at the beginning of the 17th century. and vermouth appeared.

Experts in the history of wines suggest that the appearance of such an unusual wine became possible due to crop failures that lasted several years. Winemakers, lacking “fresh” material, tried to process substandard wine that was not suitable for sale. So, the Campari Brothers filtered this raw material many times. But after such distillation, the wine material lost its taste. To compensate for the loss of quality, it was decided to saturate it with various herbal alcohol tinctures. As a result, they compiled a herbal mixture of 16 plants, which is considered classic for the production of vermouth. This was perhaps one of the most successful experiences.

According to another theory, it is believed that this wine easily took root at the court of the Bavarian king thanks to Alessio, a native of Piedmont. “Wermut wein” (wormwood wine) - this is exactly the name given by the Bavarians, later simplifying it to simply “Wermut” - wormwood.

Vermouth received its second “birth” in its homeland - in Italy - at the end of the 17th century, becoming the official aperitif of the royal court of Piedmont. The result of the rapidly growing popularity of wine was the emergence of the first enterprise in Turin, founded by Antonio Carpano in 1786. But they started talking about the industrial scale of production after the opening of the Turin company “Cora Brothers” in 1838. Thanks to constant fidelity to traditions, as well as quality control, the company, founded in 1863, has gained special respect and popularity. A. Martini and L. Rossi.

Industrial production of vermouth
In 80% of cases, wine materials from white or red grapes are used as a basis. Mostly European or hybrid varieties with a neutral aroma and sugar content of 14 - 16% are used.

The main flavoring is alpine wormwood (50%). Next, yarrow - 20%, mint - 11%, cinnamon - 10%, cardamom - 8%, black elderberry - 6%, nutmeg - 5%.

To give a characteristic taste, oakberry, cinchona bark, tansy, horehound, etc. are used. Nutmeg tones are provided by coriander, elderflower, and lemon peel. Resinous shades - due to immortelle, rosemary, juniper water and St. John's wort. In order to soften and refine the taste, add infusions of chamomile, cloves or orris root in small quantities. To secure the resulting bouquet, admixtures of vanilla, cardamom, and calamus are used.

Sugar and alcohol are added to the base. One is introduced in the form of syrup, adding sweetness and softening the taste. The other provides good solubility and preservation.

All plant ingredients are dried, ground, and then infused in a wine-alcohol solution, placed in large rotating drums. According to classical technology, this process lasts about 20 days: essential oils and resins are dissolved, and a unique bouquet unique to this wine is formed.

Upon completion of mixing, the vermouth is cooled, filtered and sent to rest. The period from treatment to spill can range from several months to a year. The wine is then pasteurized. Heat treatment slightly reduces the aroma, but the taste improves.

Homemade vermouth
Vermouth can also be prepared at home. Based on what kind of vermouth you prefer to get - white, red or pink - you should choose a specific wine material. Blended vermouths made from several different wine materials are quite good. For example, to prepare red vermouth, you can use a mixture of rowan and cranberry wine (1:4).

A characteristic feature of the technology for preparing homemade vermouth is the fact that all components are added to fully fermented, filtered wine material. And also that its alcoholization is carried out with an aromatic infusion of herbs prepared in advance.

Wine materials are prepared according to the classical scheme:

Red vermouth
- blueberry wine material - 7l;
- cranberry wine material - 3l;
- honey - 1l;
- vodka infusion of seeds, herbs, flowers - 1 tsp.

White vermouth
- apple wine material - 8l;
- wild rowan wine material - 2l;
- honey - 0.7 l;
- vodka infusion of herbs, seeds, flowers - 1 tsp.

Preparation of herbal infusion
To prepare an aromatic tincture for vermouth, the following ingredients are needed:

1 recipe:
- vodka - 0.25 l;
- yarrow - 4g;
- mint - 3g;
- wormwood - 3g;
- cinnamon - 3g;
- cinchona bark -3g;
- cardamom - 2g;
- tansy - 2g;
- nutmeg - 1g;
- saffron - 1g.

Recipe 2:
- alcohol - 100g or vodka - 250g;
- yarrow - 4g;
- mint - 3g;
- wormwood - 3g;
- cinnamon - 3g;
- cardamom - 2g;
- nutmeg - 1g;
- saffron - 1g.

The main component in both recipes remains wormwood. Therefore, the absence of a complete set of components will not significantly affect the taste of vermouth. You can buy all this at any store, and herbs at the pharmacy.

Please note that the amount of wormwood may vary slightly depending on the degree of dryness and storage conditions. In order not to spoil the taste of the final product with excessive bitterness, it is recommended to first dilute a test portion in a small amount. If necessary, you will need to add more alcohol (vodka) to the infusion, so that you ultimately achieve the presence of a subtle note of bitterness.
All components are crushed and poured into a container with vodka (alcohol), sealed tightly and left for a week in a dark place, shaking several times daily.

Alcoholization of vermouth
At this stage, it is necessary to combine the wine preparation with a mature aromatic additive. The components are taken in the following quantities:
- vermouth - 1l;
- tincture - 50g (with alcohol) or 120g (with vodka);
- sugar - 100g.

Mix all ingredients, pour into bottles up to the middle of the bottle (glass is better, plastic can spoil the aroma). Leave for 2 weeks in a cool place.

How to drink vermouth?
Vermouth is classified as an “all day drink”. It is drunk neat, in addition to a few drops of orange or lemon, diluted with water (ice) or as a component of cocktails. Drink it with pleasure, in small sips, as an aperitif or after a meal.

Dry vermouths are consumed chilled and undiluted. They are usually poured into whiskey glasses. Salted almonds, fried nuts, and fruits are considered suitable snacks.

Useful properties of vermouth
Used in folk medicine. For example, when you have a cold, it is recommended to use vermouth with honey (2 tbsp per 100 ml). Vermouth must be heated to 80°, and then slowly pour in honey. Use the tincture chilled, 2 tbsp. three times a day after meals.

Vermouth also helps treat sore throat. In this case, an infusion of fragrant violet based on it (1g/10ml) helps. Dried violet flowers are poured with vermouth and left for several weeks in a cool, dark place. Next, the infusion is used to gargle, diluting 1 tbsp. in 0.5 liters of water.

By-effect
- promotes the accumulation of many natural components, which can cause an allergy attack;
- Excessive consumption has a powerful impact on the liver.

Wines are produced by fermenting the juices (pulp) of fruits and berries. To produce homemade yeast, you need pure (wine) or wild yeast and sugar, which as a result of fermentation is converted into wine alcohol (ethanol C2H5OH). Using the traditional method, you can get a light wine with an alcohol content of less than 14%.

Fortified wines

Sweet (dessert) wine products contain free (unfermented) sugar and therefore sweet drinks with a low alcohol content are not stable enough and can deteriorate during storage.

Sweet wines are strengthened by adding food alcohol or high-quality vodka. Such wines are called fortified.

The addition of alcohol eliminates the fermentation process, preserving the required amount of free sugar in the drink. To obtain some types of sweet dessert drinks (tokaj, sherry, muscat, vermouth, port), not only alcohol is added to the wine, but also sugar, various alcohol tinctures (for example, on grape skins of muscat grape varieties), aromatic components that are obtained from medicinal plants and plants with a pleasant smell.

Wines containing from 14 to 20 percent alcohol are considered fortified. Such wines can contain sugar from 5 to 16%; the acidity of such drinks is low: in the range of 0.6 - 0.8%.

Wine alcoholization methods

The technologies for preparing fortified drinks are quite simple, so you can fortify wine at home. Almost every home winemaking recipe suggests the possibility of making fortified wine based on young wine. You can choose a recipe for quick wines that are prepared with the addition of vodka or cognac, but they should not be confused with grape infusions with vodka.

Alcohol:

• juices (pulp);
• wort (before the start of fermentation or during active fermentation);
• finished products.

For alcoholizing wine, good vodka or pure alcohol is suitable (grape alcohol is an excellent choice). They are added in the required proportion.

Alcoholization of juice (pulp) and fermenting wort can create certain difficulties, so at home they often fortify ready-made young wine. This method is used to produce, for example, aromatic vermouths with medicinal herbs.

When alcoholizing juice or an incompletely fermented wine stock, the amount of alcohol for fixing is greater than when fixing finished wine, but there is a saving in sugar. This method is used to obtain port wine.

Portion calculation

When fixing wine material, it is important to correctly calculate how much alcohol or vodka should be added to obtain a drink of the required strength.

To calculate an additional portion of alcohol, the following data is used: if you add 2% vodka or 1% alcohol to wine, the strength of which is 10 degrees, the strength of the drink will increase by 1 degree.

Let's assume that there are 15 liters of sweet strawberry wine with a strength of 10 degrees (determined by a special device - an alcohol meter). The task is to increase the strength of the drink to 14° (add 4 degrees). Vodka is used to fix it. Therefore: (15 x 2 x 4)/100= 120 /100 = 1.2 l.

Let’s say we increase the strength of the same wine by 6 degrees. We calculate:
(15 x 2 x 6)/100= 180/100 = 1.8 liters of vodka.
Using a similar formula, calculate how much alcohol is needed to fix the wine.

The calculated portion of alcohol is added to the wine and mixed well. For vodka/alcohol to completely combine with the wine liquid (assimilation process), at least five days must pass.

After adding vodka, the wine liquid, as a rule, becomes cloudy, and sediment falls to the bottom of the container. Fortified wine is kept in a tightly closed marinade for 15 to 20 days. After aging, it is necessary to carefully remove the liquid from the sediment. Filter, bottle, seal tightly.

There is no need to pasteurize fortified wines to increase shelf life. They are perfectly preserved for many years under any storage conditions. Alcohol prevents the development of microorganisms (yeast). Long-term storage is guaranteed for drinks with an alcohol content of more than 17 percent.

Fortified cherry wine

The cherry wine recipe is very popular among amateur winemakers. Wine, liqueurs, and liqueurs are made from cherries. Homemade cherry wine is a beautiful, tasty, aromatic drink. To store it for a long time, alcoholization of the wine product is used.

To get something sweet. Cherry juice (wine preparation) is obtained from juicy ripe fruits.

Cherry pits contain a lot of tannins, so to make wine at home, only the pulp of the fruit or freshly squeezed juice is used. Fans of the tart taste and slight smell of cherry pits can crush 10–15 pits and add them at the alcoholization stage.

Making wine requires a special approach to water. It is better to give preference to spring or bottled. Wine yeast does not ferment well in tap water with a high content of chlorine and all kinds of salts, as well as in boiled water. Distilled water is not suitable for wine production.

This recipe is for 10 liters of cherry must. To prepare a homemade fortified drink you will need:

• cherry juice - 7 l;
• water - 1.6 l;
• raisins - 70 g (or wine starter);
• sugar - 2.4 kg;
• vodka - 1 l.

1. Juice, water, some 1.6 kg of sugar, and unwashed raisins (or starter) are poured into the fermentation container. If the raisins are of high quality, then after three to four days the mixture should ferment.
2. Fermentation will last from 10 to 12 days.
3. At this stage, alcoholization is carried out: vodka is added to the wort (and cherry pits, if desired).
4. Soak the wine preparation for 5 days. Filter, add the remaining sugar (0.8 kg). Stir. Pour fortified wine into bottles and seal tightly.

The recipe for cooking is similar, there is a slight difference in the amount of water and juice. For 10 liters of wort you will need 6 liters of raspberry juice, 2.6 liters of high-quality water.

The result is a fortified wine of a beautiful raspberry color, with a pleasant aroma of fresh berries.

Fortified grape wine with herbs (vermouth).

Vermouths are fortified drinks with the tart aroma of herbs and the bitter taste of wormwood. These wines are served as an aperitif to stimulate the appetite, they are used to prepare alcoholic cocktails, and added to teas and coffee.

To make vermouth of a suitable color, choose the appropriate wine (red, rose, white). Excellent vermouths are made from grape wine.

Blended vermouths are also popular. For example, one part to four parts produces a beautiful red vermouth of very high quality.
An aromatic herbal tincture is an essential component of vermouth. It is prepared about a week before the wine is alcoholized. You need to choose a recipe for the tincture, because... there are many options here.
Let's use a collection that is traditional:

• vodka - 250 ml (alcohol - 100 ml);
• wormwood - 3 g;
• yarrow officinalis - 4 g;
• cinnamon (sticks, bark) - 3 g;
• mint - 3 g;
• cardamom (boxes) - 2 g;
• saffron - 1 g;
• nutmeg - 2 g.

If you don’t like any component, you can discard it or choose a different tincture recipe for such wine.

1. Pour all plant components into a container and fill them with vodka or alcohol. Shake the mixture daily.
2. Before adding the tincture to the container with the finished wine, taste it for bitterness so that the vermouth is not overly bitter. This is important because The bitterness of wormwood depends on many factors (its variety, storage, and even the conditions in which it grew). Instead of wormwood, you can use tarragon (in the same amount).
3. For a liter of grape preparation you will need 50 ml of alcohol tincture or 120 ml of vodka. You also need to add sugar (100 g, the amount of sugar can be varied depending on the taste of the product). Stir well.
4. Now you can pour the vermouth into a clean container. Pour liquid to the middle of the neck. For the drink to infuse and acquire its special taste and smell, you will have to wait three weeks. Properly prepared vermouth can be stored for a very long time.

You can change the recipe by choosing your own herbal composition (important: wormwood or tarragon must be included in the recipe!) and make your own signature vermouth.