Cherry wine

Cherry wines are usually best made from sour cherries since sweet ones contain too little acid. As with grape wines the best cherry wines are made from top quality fruit, ideally a bit overripened to maximize color and sugar. Brown rot, a common problem in overripened cherries will ruin cherry wine and must be avoided. Late-picked Montmorency cherries that are immediately crushed give a good wine.

Up to 10% of the pits may be broken to enhance flavor. The must should be treated with SO2, inoculated with wine yeast and fermented like red grape wine.

Pressing is done after 2 or 3 days of skin contact, sugar is added and the wine fermented dry. The skin color is readily extracted during fermentation. Pressing as soon as possible will help to reduce the bitter herbaceous skin character and almond flavor from the pits.

A good cherry wine is smooth and medium sweet, light but with full cherry flavors. The color depends of the types of cherries used.

Cherry wine does not age well. Hence, it should be made, processed, bottled and sold well within a 1-year production-marketing cycle.
Cherry wine