ray Bradbury, Meet Jack Keller

Ray Bradbury, Meet Jack Keller

I have not read Ray Bradberry’s novel Dandelion wine.  However, if you google Jack Keller you can find his page with a long list of dandelion (and other) wine recipes.  For someone looking to make some wine for fun this long list can seem a little overwhelming.  If thats you, then just pick a recipe and give it a try.  If it doesn’t work out for you there is always next year.  

Thats what I did last year.  This year I decided to upgrade my output to 3 gallons and modify the recipe a little. Of all the recipes Mr Keller listed I don’t recall which one I originally tried.  I did write down the process, though and I’ve made some changes.  Last year’s wine is very sweet, like a desert wine.  I have looked at the three recipes Jack has actually used himself and combined some things I like to come up with a new recipe for this year.  

What you’re reading here is all of the experience I have with wine making.  I normally brew beer, but when the dandelions came up this year I immediately thought of making another dandelion wine.  Unfortunately I don’t have nearly as many dandelions in my yard as I did last year.  I may have picked them all before they went to seed and caused this problem myself.  Instead I scouted a new location where they don’t spray for weeds, got some small buckets and took the kids out to pick dandelions.  I wrote down my adapted recipe, and followed it, sort-of.  here is what actually happened in the kitchen brewery that night:

http://goo.gl/cIY7V

It's now been almost two weeks since fermentation began and it is going along well. Hopefully by next summer It will be ready to drink and I may have even finished Mr. Bradberry's novel.