Guava Wine (Vegan + Gluten Free)

Fresh, homemade guava wine.

Before I start writing out the recipe for guava wine, I have a little story to share. Years ago, my husband took me to a visit to one of his friends’ place at Kalpetta. An avid collector of exotic plants and fruit trees, this friend took us around his plantation. After admiring the variety and beauty of the collection, we happily tasted quite a few of the rare fruits. Then, he led us to his house for tea. There, we found that he had a penchant for collecting rare, organic perfumes as well. He took out little bottles of precious scents and dabbed them on our hands, one after the other, for smelling. Each perfume was unique in itself, but the one that captured our hearts was unimaginably sweet and enchanting. When asked what it was, his reply took us by surprise. “It’s made from discarded guava peels from factories making guava jam in the Gulf,” He said. I would have loved to have some of that perfume for myself, but our friend was having just a tiny bottle, and I could not bring myself to ask him for it. The memory of that guava perfume has stayed fresh in my mind.

Tasty country guavas!

Grape guavas! Ripe ones burst like grapes in your mouth as you bite!

We have over a dozen varieties of guavas growing in our garden. From tiny grape guavas and Australian miniature guavas to tasty Allahabad Safedis and Sardar guavas, from large, white kilo-weight guavas to those with rosy red flesh inside, from little red pejovas to larger purple-rose guavas, and gigantic thai guavas which taste like wood apples, they all do well here. Though I love them all. the ones I like best are the medium sized local guavas of superb flavor and taste. Though guavas grow all through the year, they yield more in this season. The trees are laden with fruit, the branches often bent to the ground, more than even the birds can eat. And so, it is time for me to make delicious guava jam.

A guava tree heavy with fruit!

While making the jam, the nostalgic memory of that marvelous guava perfume began haunting my thoughts. So I thought of making a little guava wine in the hope of smelling just a wisp of that perfume again. I used the ripe, fragrant, local guavas from our courtyard for the wine, but you can use ripe guavas of any variety. The wine became ready to enjoy in just 25 days. Sweet and tingling, amazingly fragrant, the first sip brought forth a rising sensation of joy in my heart. The wine had captured the same wondrous scent of the guava peel perfume. The taste was superb. Here is the recipe for you. Enjoy!

Guava wine, 5 months old.

Print Recipe

Guava Wine Yum

A sweet and tingling, amazingly fragrant, delicious, simple and easy-to-make homemade guava wine.

Prep Time

30 minutes

Cook Time

30 minutes

Passive Time

25 days

Servings

litres

Ingredients

• 1 kg ripe guava
• 1250 gm sugar
• 10 gm yeast (see note)
• 4 litres water

Prep Time 30 minutes Cook Time 30 minutes Passive Time 25 days Servings litres Ingredients 1 kg ripe guava 1250 gm sugar 10 gm yeast (see note) 4 litres water

Instructions

1. Sun-dry a 10 litre food grade container for an hour.
2. Wash, rinse and drain the guavas. Wipe dry with a clean cloth and chop roughly to pieces.
3. Put the pieces in the container and tip in the yeast. Mix thoroughly with a clean, dry spoon. Close the lid and set aside.
4. Pour the water into a vessel and set on high heat. Tip in the sugar and stir till it dissolves fully.
5. Let the syrup boil for a couple of minutes. Switch off the heat and cover with a lid.
6. As soon as the syrup cools down to body temperature, pour it over the yeasted guava pieces and close the lid loosely (so as to allow the carbon dioxide formed during fermentation to escape).
7. Put the container upright in a cloth bag (or just use a clean cotton cloth) and secure it at the top tightly with a string as you do not want flies or other insects to get into your wine.
8. Keep undisturbed in a cool, dark place for 25 days (the cellar would be ideal, see note).
9. Filter the wine using a clean, dry cotton or muslin cloth, or just siphon off the clear wine from the top with a steady hand, leaving the sediment undisturbed. Store in strong glass bottles and serve chilled. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

1. As guava wine ages, it matures, turning a clear, rich, dark brown in color, becoming stronger and lighter, while still retaining its distinctly enchanting perfume.
2. My guava wine matured in 25 days as I used baker's yeast. If you are using wine yeast, the wine may take 45 days or more to mature. You know that the wine is mature enough to use as soon as the bubbles stop forming.
3. Ageing brings color, strength and richness to the wine.

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