On Oct 15, 6:32*pm, Dick Heckman > wrote:
> I've just been given about 35 lbs of Kiefer pears. *I've made wine once
> before with them but it was a lot of work to core and grind them. *I
> remember seeing a recipe that involved cooking them but I can't find it
> now. *Anybody have any recipes and alternates to a meat grinder.
>
> Dick

Dick,

One of the best fruit wines I've ever made (or had) was a pear wine -
I made it dry, based on a variation of JK's recipe without the
raisins, and it tasted like a full-bodied sauvignon blanc (probably
because the fruit was a little underripe).

The main thing I would add is in the handling of the pears. I washed
them well, coarsely chopped them up whole (seeds, cores and all) and
froze them. When I was ready to make the wine, I put the frozen pears
in the bottom of my primary, then boiled water to pour over & cover
the pears, and let them sit overnight before proceeding to strain and
press out the liquid.

The freezing and thawing helps the fruit release its juices; thawing
covered with water helps minimize browning.

Good Luck

Leigh