Fig Wine Recipe

Clean and sanitise the equipment

Wash away all visible dirt first. Prepare the sanitiser according to its label, then sanitise the fermentation bucket, lid, large coarse straining bag, spoon, hydrometer, trial jar and anything else that will touch the cooled must.

Prepare the figs

Wash the figs gently, remove the stems down to clean flesh and discard any damaged fruit. Weigh out 2.25–2.5kg of prepared figs, chop them into rough pieces and place them in the sanitised large coarse straining bag inside the fermentation bucket. Do not blend or purée them.

Make the first sugar syrup

Dissolve 750g brewing sugar in about 1.5 litres of boiling water. Stir until no crystals remain.

Build and cool the must

Pour the hot sugar syrup over the bagged figs, then add cool water until the liquid level is roughly four litres. Stir thoroughly and allow the must to cool below 25°C. Do not make the final 4.5-litre volume yet.

Add the acid blend and Campden tablet

Stir in 3½ teaspoons of acid blend. Crush one Campden tablet to a fine powder, stir it into the cooled must and fit the sanitised lid. Leave for 12 hours.

Add the pectolase

After 12 hours, stir in one teaspoon of pectolase. Replace the lid and leave for another 12 hours. Fig pulp can be stubborn to clear, so this step is especially useful.

Drain the fruit temporarily

Lift the fruit bag with sanitised hands or utensils and let it drain over the bucket for about 10 minutes without wringing it. Place it in a sanitised container while the liquid is measured.

Set the initial liquid volume

Stir the liquid thoroughly and add cool water to bring it to approximately 4.2 litres. This leaves room for any small sugar solution needed after the hydrometer reading.

Take the first hydrometer reading

Make sure the must is close to the hydrometer's calibration temperature, normally 20°C. Use a well-mixed, pulp-free sample and read the hydrometer at eye level.

Adjust the sugar only if needed

Aim for a final starting gravity of 1.085–1.095. If the reading is low, dissolve 50g brewing sugar in about 40ml boiling water, cool it below 25°C, add it and stir thoroughly. Retest and repeat only as required, using 25g portions when close to the target.

If the gravity is already on target, add no more sugar. The hydrometer target matters more than using the whole 1kg packet.

Make the final volume 4.5 litres

Add cool water to make the liquid volume exactly 4.5 litres, stir thoroughly and take one final reading. Record it as the original gravity, or OG. Return the fig bag to the bucket once the reading has been recorded.

Add nutrient and yeast

Stir in one teaspoon of yeast nutrient. Prepare the Lalvin K1-V1116 according to the sachet instructions and use the full sachet. Keep the fermenter at 18–22°C.

Manage the fruit each day

Fit the lid and airlock. Once or twice each day, sanitise the spoon, gently push the fruit bag beneath the liquid, stir briefly and replace the lid immediately. A light press on the bag is enough; do not squeeze it hard.

Start checking the gravity from day three

From about the third day, take a hydrometer reading once a day. The fruit is removed by gravity rather than by the calendar alone.

Remove the figs at about 1.040

When the specific gravity reaches around 1.040, usually after three to five days, lift out the fruit bag and let it drain over the fermenter. Press only lightly. Hard squeezing forces fine fig pulp into the wine and makes clearing more difficult.

Transfer to the demijohn

Syphon the wine into the sanitised 4.5-litre glass demijohn, leaving the thickest pulp and sediment behind. Avoid pouring or splashing. Fill to around the shoulder and fit the sanitised bung and airlock.

Let secondary fermentation continue

Keep the demijohn at 18–22°C and out of direct sunlight. Fermentation normally continues for several more weeks after the fruit has been removed.

Confirm fermentation with two readings

Take a hydrometer reading once activity has clearly slowed, then repeat it at least 48 hours later. Fermentation is complete only when the readings are identical and normally around 0.995–1.000 or lower. If the gravity is above 1.010 and does not move, do not bottle it.

Rack the finished wine

Once the gravity is stable, syphon the wine into a clean, sanitised demijohn and leave the sediment behind. Minimise splashing, refill to the shoulder and replace the airlock.

Allow the wine to clear

Leave the racked wine somewhere cool, dark and steady. Fig wine can carry a lot of fine pulp, so give it time. Rack again only when a meaningful new layer of sediment has formed; a further racking after roughly two months is often useful if the wine is still dropping sediment.

Bottle without splashing

Bottle only when the gravity is stable, the wine is clear and no meaningful new sediment has formed for at least two weeks. Sanitise the clear wine bottles, syphon tubing, corks and corker as their instructions require, then syphon gently into each bottle and cork it. Keep the bottles upright for the first 24 hours, then store them somewhere cool and dark.

Mature before drinking

Allow at least six months from brew day before making a final judgement. Fig wine can be drinkable young, but around nine to twelve months normally gives the fruit, acidity and alcohol much more time to integrate. Further ageing can improve a well-made batch.