This fruitcake wine is a fortified wine, meaning that it has a strong spirit added to it. Fortification was done in ye olden days to stabilize wine for travel over long distances, and it also serves to cease fermentation. This wine is best served as an after-dinner tipple over the holidays. It pairs well with the scent of turkey and pecan pie, the noise of children having too much fun and the sound of the family arguing over politics.
FOR THE WINE
½ cup (85 g) dried apricots, chopped
1.5 oz (40 g) dried cherries, chopped
½ cup (80 g) raisins, chopped
½ lemon, chopped
1 gal (3.8 L) water, divided
1 stick cinnamon
1 cup (240 ml) strongly brewed black tea
1½ lb (680 g) sugar
½ packet (2.5 g) Lalvin K1-V116 yeast
FOR RACKING
1 vanilla bean, sliced lengthwise
FOR BOTTLING
1 cup (240 ml) brandy
1. Gather your ingredients and sanitize your supplies. You’ll need a straining bag, a 2-gallon (7.5-L) brew bucket, a 1- or 2-gallon (3.8- or 7.5-L) stockpot, a long spoon, a funnel, a strainer, a gallon (3.8-L) carboy, a racking cane and a bung and airlock.
2. For the wine, put the apricots, cherries, raisins and lemon in the straining bag and set it in the brew bucket.
3. Heat ⅔ gallon (2.5 L) of the water in the stockpot with the cinnamon stick and let it boil for about 5 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat, add the tea and stir in the sugar. Cover the pot with a lid and let the mixture steep for about 10 minutes. Let the must cool until you can safely pour it.
4. Use the funnel and strainer to pour the warm must into the bucket. Add the remaining ⅓ gallon (1.3 L) of water and stir the must. Seal the bucket with the lid and airlock.
5. When the brew bucket is cool enough to handle, pitch the yeast. First, sprinkle the yeast into the brew bucket and stir it in to add oxygen and mix in the yeast. Put the lid onto the bucket, making sure it is sealed, and then put the airlock in place. Label the bucket with the name of the brew and the date and set it aside somewhere out of direct sunlight for 3 to 4 days. Pick up the bucket and give it a gentle swish every day to help keep it mixed and to inhibit mold growth on the surface of the wine.
6. For racking, put the vanilla bean in the carboy. Rack your wine from the bucket into the carboy. Seal it with the bung and airlock and let it work until you no longer see bubbles.
7. For bottling, pour the brandy into a 2-gallon (7.5-L) brew bucket. Taste your wine, and if you want to adjust the sweetness with a syrup (here, here or here), add that to the brew bucket as well. Rack the wine over to the bucket, give it a few gentle stirs to ensure that the brandy is evenly mixed in and proceed to bottle your fruitcake wine.
RECIPE NOTE: This wine might not be completely clear due to pectin in the dried fruits. Consider it part of the charm!