Make Homemade Wine from Those Pesky Dandelions in Your Yard

You can always tell when springtime rolls around, at least in our neck of the woods. Just look at my lawn. It will be sprinkled- and then covered- with the bright yellow blossoms of Dandelions.

Some people moan when they see these weeds in their yards. They run to their local garden center to find a herbicide. While other people pay Chem-Lawn(TM) or some other yard care company to spray the Dandelions and eradicate them.

Myself, I think they're rather pretty. The birds like them, and they don't bother me at all. In fact, when I see the first Dandelions of the season, I don't think of "weeds", I think if "wine" instead.

Homemade Dandelion Wine is a "kicky" beverage that's been around for probably centuries. It's not expensive to make. And, it doesn't take any special equipment. Once you assemble all of the ingredients in the recipe, then you just let nature do its thing. The result will be a rather sweet, mellow wine that is light yellow in color.

The first and foremost ingredient in Dandelion Wine is, of course, Dandelions! You'll need about three quarts of the blossoms. Here are some tips to help you find the best blossoms for the best-tasting wine:

1. Be sure you pick the Dandelions from an area that has not been sprayed with herbicides and other toxic chemicals.

2. Choose Dandelions that are fully developed. Avoid using shriveled up plants.

3. Don't pick the entire plant. Just pluck the blossom off the top of the stem.

The next step is to gently rinse the Dandelion blossoms in cool tap water. Placing them in a sieve and rinsing them with a sprayer works well. While the flowers drain, dissolve one packet of dry yeast in a quarter cup of warm water. Set this mixture aside for now.

Place the washed Dandelion blossoms in a pan with six quarts of water. Stir in six cups of white sugar into the water until it's completely dissolved. Place the pan on your stovetop over medium heat. Heat the mixture until it comes to a boil. Boil for five minutes, then remove the Dandelion/sugar/water mixture from the heat. Allow it to cool down until it's warm before you proceed to the next step.