The best year I have ever seen for Chokecherries [now Chokecherry syrup]

[CANNON-MAN]

Chokecherry syrup
This has been an unbelievable year for chokecherries. Every tree is loaded. I have picked 15 gallons and have them in the freezer. This going to be kind of a teaching process and believe me this is the best syrup you have ever eaten on Ice-cream. If this is also a good year in your area, it is time to get out and pick a few gallons. I will finish the process as I complete making the syrup. The first step after picking is cleaning. I fill a pan to over flowing cold running water. The good berries will sink and the bad berries and leaves and stems will float over the edge with the overflowing water. I rub the berries together to clean then drain them in a colander and then zip lock bag them and into freezer. Freezing the berries helps break down the berries for juicing. For now it is time to get out there and get some berries picked. By the way they taste like crap just off the tree but trust me they are great when turned into syrup.
Here is the 7 gallons my wife and I picked this morning. My wife is a picking machine.



Most berries are not this dense but this year was unbelievable.



Now 7 gallons heading for the freezer.



More to come when I thaw these out and make the syrup.

Well today I thawed a couple of gallons of berries so here we go.

OK here is the rest of the process.

First is add two gallons of  berries to a larger pot and cover them with just enough water to cover the berries. After slow boiling for a little over 30 minutes until the berries start to split.
First the colander that I have found works best is the cone shaped one like this.


this is what they look like when the juice has been extracted.

What you want to do is place the colander in a large bowl and add a couple of cups to the colander and grind it until the berries are very smashed. I found that scooping some of the liquid out of the bowl and pour it back into the colander to extract more flavor from the berries. Now to add the sugar and pectin. Make sure that you measure accurately and don't be cheap with the sugar, use the full amount. It takes 1 1/2 cups of sugar for each cup of pulpy juice. Now stir the juice and sugar and bring to a slow boil. Add the pectin before things come to a boil. Now here is the fun part. The slow boil will attach bubbles to all the pulp in the juice and float it to the surface.



Now while the slow boil is happening start skimming off the foam. Especially near the edges. You will see that the foam is really the pulp coming out of the syrup.



When you no longer get foam off the syrup while it is slowly boiling you will have removed most of the pulp.



When I first put the pulpy juice in the pot it was kind of pink but after the boil it is nice dark purple. Notice how nice it looks after has boiled off the pulp.



So here it is again

boil berries
extract juice
for each cup of juice you add 1 1/2 cups of sugar.
 
1 1/2 package of fruit pectin for each gallon of juice.

You will find that 2 gallons of berries will allow you to extract around 1 gallon and one quart of juice. Now when you add the sugar you will end up with around 2 gallons of finished syrup.

You can either can it in jars. Or like we do is put it in containers and freeze it. Now I guess I need to find a bowl of ice-cream.

Kirby

[sliding_billy]

Awesome haul!

[CANNON-MAN]

You are only seeing part of it. More like 15 gallons in the end.

[ACW3]

Thanks for posting.  It looks wonderful.  I wonder how it would taste with a little country shine added to it.  Sounds like it would make one heck of a drink.  Chokecherry shine.  Hmmm.

Art

[teesquare]

Thanks for posting.  It looks wonderful.  I wonder how it would taste with a little country shine added to it.  Sounds like it would make one heck of a drink.  Chokecherry shine.  Hmmm.

Art

I think I could ...ahem..."choke it down"....

[drholly]

WOW! That looks good rain or "shine" this is a great process. Thank you - bookmarked!

[CANNON-MAN]

Thanks for posting.  It looks wonderful.  I wonder how it would taste with a little country shine added to it.  Sounds like it would make one heck of a drink.  Chokecherry shine.  Hmmm.

Art

Well you might have to cut some of the sugar as it is a little too sweet even with the shine. When I was a high school kid I used to make chokecherry wine just because I liked to do it. My folks never let me keep it. They just let me make it. They drank it all. [Well almost all ] It sure was good.

[CANNON-MAN]

Thanks for posting.  It looks wonderful.  I wonder how it would taste with a little country shine added to it.  Sounds like it would make one heck of a drink.  Chokecherry shine.  Hmmm.

Art

I think I could ...ahem..."choke it down"....

Tee
You would not need to choke it down!!
Look what I found. ;



And POOF all gone. 



OH dang that was good!![/b]

[spuds]

You are only seeing part of it. More like 15 gallons in the end.

Great post,thank you!!

[Las Vegan Cajun]

Does that look so good.   

[aliengriller]

Have had lots of GOOD chokecherry wine!  Never made it myself, but understand it's not that difficult.   Problem around here is we don't have chokecherries!   A few up in the mountains west of town, but not all that many.   Probably too hot, dry and alkaline around here for them to thrive.   That I have had (wine) was made up in Colorado. 

[muebe]

I have never had chokecherries but the syrup looks great!