Bottling the Plum Wine, Round One

The first batch of plum wine that I started this summer had finally reached the stage where it was ready for bottling.  This wine was made with a red fleshed plum that I got a good deal on back in August.  Forty pounds of plums for $40 and a couple of jars of my homemade pickles.  All I had to add was a few pounds of sugar, some yeast and a few months of waiting to reach my finished product.

This lovely glass carboy holds approximately six gallons of wine when full.  To transfer this sweet treat into bottles I first had to prepare the bottles and corks.  One by one I washed and sterilized each bottle with boiling water and set them out to dry.

I was expecting about five bottles per gallon of wine, so I set out approximately thirty bottles (or equivalent) when I started transferring the wine.  I was pleasantly surprised when I needed to add a few more quart jars to the mix to catch the extra wine that I didn't have bottles for.  I ended up with about thirty five bottles worth of plum wine from this round of bottling.  The jars promptly went into the fridge for more immediate use since they were not sterile.

I did have a taste during the bottling process and was very pleased with the results.  The wine is sweet, but not overpowering and has very little dryness.  It taste like more of a dessert wine and seems to have an alcohol content to match.  It is very strong and very tasty which makes it go down easy. I will be sure to partake of this delicious treat in moderation now that I know of it's physical effects.  I'm sure it will bring plenty of holiday cheer to any party that I bring it to this winter season.