All the other wines I have working are in the ‘hurry up and wait’ mode as well, so yesterday was the perfect day to start the batches of wine jelly I had planned. It’s important that you choose a quality wine that tastes excellent, because even though the alcohol content gets boiled away in the process, the taste does not. Choose wisely.
I decided to start with making a Shiraz Wine Jelly – it’s one of the favorites that goes very quickly. Shiraz and Syrah are both names for the same red wine grape. Not to be confused with the Petit Sirah, a different red wine grape grown mostly in California.
Shiraz is known for its spicy blackberry, plum, and peppery flavors. Often there are additional notes of licorice, bitter chocolate and mocha. So turning Syrah or Shiraz wine into jelly? A no-brainer, really. It’s excellent with various types of meats and cheeses, crackers or toast. You can also use it to glaze different types of meats for extra flavor – anything from marinated steaks to lamb.
The process is fairly simple – this is the recipe I generally use, though I’ll switch it up on occasion depending on the type of wine I’ll use to make the jelly:
Ingredients:
| 4 cups | wine |
| 6 cups | granulated sugar |
| 2 packets | liquid pectin (6 oz. total) |
Boil hard for one minute. Remove from heat and add the liquid pectin all at once, stirring thoroughly for another minute. Transfer to hot, sterilized jelly jars. If you want to try the ‘non-bath’ method, make sure the lids are in hot water to sterilize them and make the rubber seal soft. You don’t want to have them in boiling water, just simmering because too hot will compromise the seal:
Yes, I’m using fancy jars which need the fancy lids. When you transfer the hot jelly to the jars, make sure you use a clean, damp cloth to wipe the rim of the jars and the threads clean – any dripped jelly will compromise the seal. Fish the caps out of the hot water with tongs (trust me, grabbing them absentmindedly with your bare fingers hurts…) put the caps on the jars and turn them upside down:
Leave them undisturbed for half hour to an hour before flipping them upright:
You’ll hear the sound of ‘popping’ as the lids finish sealing. If any of the lids do not seal, transfer those jars to the fridge and enjoy immediately. If the jars are still hot and you don’t think they’ve sealed properly, or you don’t want to try this method, stick with the tried-and-true method of doing a hot water bath on the jars for 10 minutes.
Now all that’s left for this batch of wine jelly is to wipe down the jars to make sure they’re nice and clean on the outside, add the shrink bands around the lids (I told you these were ‘fancy’ jars!) and add the label that I’ve designed for it.
Today I’ll be making a batch or two of Blackberry Merlot Wine Jelly and Concord Grape Wine Jelly. Hopefully tomorrow I’ll get the labels that I ended up having to special order through Staples – that little fiasco will either be it’s own post, or jammed into my Random Tuesday Thoughts post tomorrow.
You know what the best part of this wine jelly is? You get to enjoy the full flavor of wine without the alcohol content. There’s also a recipe/method to make it mostly sugar free – I haven’t tried it yet, though at some point I will just to see how it is, or by special request.
If you have a dishwasher, wash the jars in the dishwasher to sterilize them – start the batch of jelly during they drying cycle – the jars will not only be clean and sanitized, but they’ll be piping hot to accept the hot jelly mixture if you fill them as you remove them from the dishwasher.
If you don’t have a dishwasher, you can either sterilize your jars by boiling them in a large pot of water, removing them with a jar lifter right before you fill them with jelly (in order to keep excess moister from getting into the jars, removed them from the hot water and turn them upside down onto a clean kitchen towel on the counter. Flip them over as needed for filling – just make sure they stay hot!)
You can also put your clean jars in the oven while you make jelly – if your jars are cold, set them in a cold oven and then turn the oven to its lowest temperature setting. The jars will slowly warm up as your oven preheats, and stay nice and hot while you make the jam.
Make sure the area you are filling the jars has a heat-resistant surface. I usually flip my cutting boards upside down and use them to protect my kitchen counter or dining room table from the extreme heat (and jelly splatters).
Edited to add:
The Spin Cycle this week is “Fall recipes”, so since Jen thought this would fit in with the theme this week, I’m adding it to the Spin for good measure. Check back Thursday as I’ll have another yummy ‘Fall Recipe’ to tag along on the Spin Cycle then, too!
Very cool!
Thank you SO much! I would have never had a clue how to make this, now I've got some Christmas gifts..
It's extemely inconsiderate of Mother Nature to mess about with your wine-making schedule. I suggest sending a strongly-worded letter.
Again you put me to shame with my ineptness, but it is fun to read about.. and it all looks so delish.
xx
Homemade jelly is wonderful. My mom used to make it.
How about make me a batch of fig preserves? I love those!
Love this idea – love Shiraz – love to think I'll get off my lazy hind and give it a try – it could happen…
Awesome! Thanks for the recipe. I'm totally gonna make this for gifts for Christmas. We're gonna do a lot of homemade gifts this year….
Dang woman, I'm wondering if there's a 12 step program for what you're going through. 'Cause you can't seem to stop!
You need a store front or something!!!
Justine 😮 )
You have far more patience than I do. I'm sure it'll go down well over Thanksgiving dinners 🙂
Well, jelly seems a little easier thank wine, but I still think I will stick with buying it!!! I love Shiraz, I might have to give your jelly a try too!
I see sun this morning, but is is "cold"!
I love homemade jams and jellies, just aparently not enough to make my own! Love reading other small town, PA writers – I grew up in Prosperity, PA before moving to the big Pittsburgh suburbs.
Those are so pretty! What a lovely gift idea!
So one batch made 16 jars? I hope you charge a small fortune for that goodness.
very cool. this brought back some memories of my mom making jelly and preserves.
I am itching for some toast to smear that on! This would make a great recipe for the Spin Cycle, let me know if you want to link it!
Nice for the Holidays! I only made jelly once, and remember sealing the top with wax before capping with lid..
I am so sharing this link! I've got quite a few friends who would really love this!!
Your homemade jelly is proobably the best tasting there is! No preservatives.
I miss my MIL's canned goods – can't ship glass items…bummer.
Visiting from SITS. Have a great day.
http://www.tuesdaysattonyas.blogspot.com
Wine jelly?!?!?! mmmmmmm
I'm gonna pass your wonderful tips on to my mom…she's the jelly maker in our family.
So that's how you make the wine jelly! Very cool! Geez mother nature is really pissing me off this year! lol
I got the wine and cherries in the mail on saturday! Both boxes shipped beautifully, I will have to send you pictures.
And now I'm addicted to them, they are delish!
Grand Pooba is making me hungry!! I am jealous.
Wine jelly?! I want to know what that tastes like! I don't drink, but this sounds like it might actually taste yuuuummy!
This I have to try. Thanks for posting it.
How fancy, Shiraz wine jelly. How does it taste? I bet apple wine jelly would taste good too. I have made jam from different berries but have never made jelly. Is it a big difference?
You're linked!
Will you be my new best friend? Cause you had me at "wine".
I’d like to say that you always offer valid information and I have been an fascinated reader of your site for quite some time. I wanted to say thankyou really 🙂 for all the good work you do!