Wayne Johnson wrote:I found a huge amount of ripe elderberries last fall — in a private area of landscaping. The owner had no idea they were there! Well, I made a very large batch of heavy syrup with these, and to preserve it all, made a 5 gallon batch of wine with it. It is currently aging in my basement. Question— will the health benefits of the elderberry syrup be preserved in the wine, or has the yeast changed and ruined everything?
I'm no expert when it comes to elderberry or wine, but I do enjoy a bit of each. I feel that with the elderberry wine it is not much of a 'cure' for ailments. Perhaps my body just does better without alcohol when my immune system is encountering a virus. I too make my own wine and have added elderberry to many fruit blends. When it seems like everyone around me is 'catching something' and the bottle of wine I am on has elderberry in it I have seen a correlation with my staying well. I'm pretty sure the fermentation does not ruin everything as my children's favorite healthful tonic is elderberry water kefir. They seem to stay healthy and run a muck when all their friends get sick for a day or two.