Spiced Pear Wine

You will need

• Pure pear juice (carton, no preservative)4.5 L
• Cinnamon stick1
• Star anise1
• Cloves3
• Wine or cider yeast1 sachet

Method

1. 1

   Sanitise. Warm a little of the pear juice with the cinnamon, star anise and cloves for ten minutes to draw out the spice, then cool and strain out the spices.

2. 2

   Combine the spiced juice with the rest of the pear juice in the demijohn (leave headspace).

3. 3

   Take a reading — pear juice sits near 1.050, so this is a gently spiced session-strength wine with no added sugar; pears' sorbitol keeps it soft. Pitch the yeast.

4. 4

   Ferment out; add the spice with a light hand — it should whisper, not shout.

5. 5

   Rack when clear and bottle.

6. 6

   A warm, softly spiced pear wine, lovely in autumn.