Ah, Lingonberry wine. Love it!

Back home in Canada, I remember my first taste of it – though it’s called Partridgeberry Wine there. Ah, beautiful. Though I’d never been a fan of red GRAPE wines, Lingonberry wine became a fast favorite for me. Not only was it great for drinking, it was a favorite ingredient for cooking wild game. It was one of 2 secret ingredients in my moose stew. Oh, yum. It’s been far too long…

Anyway, I digress. For those not in the know – or not living near an IKEA – Lingonberries/partridgeberries are a small berry that grows in boreal and tundra areas of Canada, Europe, and Asia. Tiny, round, ruby-red berries, they taste like a cross between a cranberry and a blueberry. They make fantastic muffins, cheesecake, jams, etc… when you can get them. You know, aside from the preserved products at IKEA.

A couple of years ago, I was inspired by lingonberry fudge offered at a local retailer – and I went on a search for wholesale lingonberries. I found em, bought a 25 lb case, and made MAGIC. Together, my husband and I made a 5 gallon batch of the most amazing lingonberry wine I’ve ever tasted. Most amazing wine that either of us has had, for that matter.

Though our supply of wine was dwindling last year, we didn’t end up buying a case of lingonberries, before it was too late. This year, we planned ahead… only to have those plans thwarted by mother nature. A bad crop meant NO lingonberry wine for us this year!

Luckily, we’d been notified that this may be the case, so I started a “Plan B” – I created a “faux lingonberry” wine! (more…)