Wine Jelly

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JMediger

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Has anyone tried making jelly from wine? I found a recipe for this on Allrecipe that I'm going to try with a cab and a chardonnay. Anyone have any experience - good or bad? Thoughts?
 
You can make jellies out of just about any liquids, even cokes, and there are some good recipes using wines. Just make sure you follow the recipe and the gelling process EXACTLY or you may end up with some good wine syrup.

And make sure the recipe uses a canning process and not just heat and seal. There are lots of old unsafe recipes floating around.
 
You can make jellies out of just about any liquids, even cokes, and there are some good recipes using wines. Just make sure you follow the recipe and the gelling process EXACTLY or you may end up with some good wine syrup.

And make sure the recipe uses a canning process and not just heat and seal. There are lots of old unsafe recipes floating around.

YUMMY, I want some pancakes!!!!:-p
 
... not just heat and seal...

??? Not sure what you mean by "just heat and seal". Do mean using an inversion approach?

The one I found uses a water bath canning process like I use for my jams. I was assuming that there was enough acidity in the wine to process this way. Wrong?

I did read in the comments following the recipe, though, that several people used wine glasses rather than jars and then sealed them with paraffin. They were given as gifts (hopefully with a note saying refrigerate me!). I thought that was a neat idea.
 
Heat and seal, along with the practice of turning jars upside down, and using paraffin wax, are all outdated methods and considered unsafe, even though many still exist on the internet and tend to confuse newbies to canning.

The correct method is of course the Boiling Water Bath Canner. An exception is a no-cook freezer jam for some fruits but it does not gel the normal way.
 
I had time to kill while my strawberry jam was processing so I actually read the Sure-Jel insert and they still list the upside down method as an option along with freezing and water processing. I found that interesting. BTW, what is the actual name for that method?
 
Have you ever tried wine jelly? I tried it recently at a farmer's market. It reminded me of a wine flavored jello. I wasn't convinced that I liked it but a friend of mine thought of all sorts of things he could use it for.
 
No, I haven't tried it but can envision lots of different uses. I really like pepper or mint jelly with crackers and cream cheese. I'm thinking (hoping!) the wine jelly will be similar. What didn't you like about it?
 
I think what I didn't care for was the gelatinous texture. It tasted exactly like wine. I love to drink wine but wasn't sure how I felt about "eating" it. I guess I could only describe my feeling like this. I love bbq sauce but wouldn't want a glass of wine flavored that way. Does that make sense? Anyway as I stated, my friend thought it was great and could be used for many things although I can't remember what he said it would be for. I do love pepper jelly or mint on crackers with cream cheese. Maybe the wine jelly would be better that way then just eating it off a spoon.
 
Sure-Jel insert and they still list the upside down method as an option along with freezing and water processing. I found that interesting. BTW, what is the actual name for that method?
I find that very strange indeed. I guess I'll have to buy another package just to read the insert again.

I don't think there is an actual name. It just refers to the act of "inverting the jars". Here's a reference worth reading:

Science of Cooking: Ask the Inquisitive Cooks!
 
Great article mcnerd! I learned to can from my mom and grandma so I've never read anything on how to can (so reading the Sure-Jell insert was very interesting!). I only do jam and tomatoes, everything else gets frozen. It's interesting to know the science though - thanks for sharing!
 
It would be very advantageous to get the Ball Blue Book of Preserving (less than $10) which is the Bible for food preserving, not just canning. Great for everyone, with instructions and recipes.

Regarding tomatoes, are you aware that modern recipes require the addition of citric acid/lemon juice because many tomato hybrids these years are not as acidic?

Not only has technology and our knowledge of bacteria, molds, etc., changed, but the very foods we preserve have changed. One needs to keep up to date to be safe.
 
...Regarding tomatoes, are you aware that modern recipes require the addition of citric acid/lemon juice because many tomato hybrids these years are not as acidic?...

I think about 3 years ago my mom said to start adding a squirt of lemon juice with the pinch of salt into each jar. Not sure how she found out ... I'm sure she read it somewhere.

I think I saw the Ball canning book somewhere when I was looking for information as to whether or not I needed to skin my tomatoes for canning (or if it was just something I was doing because I had learned it - make sense?). I also posed the question here so never bought the book. Maybe I will ... we are driving west this August so I'm always looking for good reading material.
 
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