Written by Jamie Coppa
What’s better than a little wine and girls time? Not very much. There’s already plenty out there to promote the healthy effects that a little red wine can have on your health, but what if I told you how to make it even better? In our first installment of the Herbal Guide, I will be sharing with you a recipe for herbal wine. That’s right. Wine that’s even healthier for you... Who’s the going to be the real MVP at the next girls night? You are.
Ingredients for herbal wine:
- 1/2 astragalus root
- 1/2 ginseng root
- 1/2 ashwaganda root
- one small piece of ginger root
- 1 tbsp of cardamom seed
- 1 tbsp of anise
- a few cloves
- 1 bottle of organic sweet red wine
- 1 large wide mouth canning jar
(enough to fit herbs and at least most of your wine)
Note: Even if these ingredients seem oddly specific, they are recommended portions of each herb that made for a good tasting wine. In any case, don’t fret over one or two ingredients. Any addition of herbs will only elevate the quality of your wine. Lacking one or two of these ingredients won’t make or break the recipe.
Step-by-step guide to herbal wine
1. Place all herbal ingredients into a wide mouth canning jar.
2. Pour sweet red wine over herbs, filling jar. Cover with airtight lid and be sure to save your wine bottle!
3.Shake herb and wine infusion daily for two weeks. Store somewhere without direct sunlight. (Ideally, a room temperature countertop is a good place.)
4. After two weeks, strain herbs from wine and pour wine back into original wine bottle and cork.
You are now ready to share your herbal wine. This herbal wine recipe can be somewhat strong and may be used as a daily tonic, in which case you could have about one fourth a cup daily. If you are looking to make some herbal wine in a pinch, just gather a few ingredients and let the herbs sit as long as you can before serving. Anything herbs are better than none.
Remember, our ancestors knew the value of alcohol for its antiseptic properties and for its relaxing quality over both the mind and body. Infusing alcohol with herbs dates back as far as 10,000 years ago, so this is nothing new. In fact, I like to think that by making our own herbal wine we are simply getting back to the true nature of our drinking spirits. I hope you guys have luck making this recipe and enjoy the company you keep when you decide to share! Let us know how it goes... Tag @conquerloud on Instagram!
Photograph @jamiecoppamusic
Retouch @indigo_harvest