DIY Blackberry Vinegar

Growing up in the wet, coastal country of northwestern America, our farm was always “blessed” with blackberries. The hardy, tough vines overran fence lines, took over pasture near the pond and were forever popping up on our sledding hill! Annoying as they were, when late summer arrived we didn’t hesitate to harvest more blackberries than we knew what to do with.

Jams, pies, cobblers and crisps often made appearance in the farmhouse kitchen. It was wonderful to have such a surplus of berries and looking back, I wish I’d know how to DIY blackberry vinegar at that time!

Blackberry vinegar is made by fermenting the rich, delicious juice from blackberries. It makes an excellent salad dressing and when added to water with a bit of sweetener, creates a delicious sweet summer drink. Like a shrub!

Today, I live where you have to plant blackberries if you want ’em. I confess there are days when I long for the overrun fences of the farm where the tart, flavorful fruits hung in grape-like clusters!

Whether they are native to your land or planted in your back yard, here’s how you can take your homegrown blackberries and make a delicious, blackberry vinegar!

How to Make Blackberry Vinegar from Scratch

Have you ever found yourself searching for ways to use an over-abundance of blackberries? That even after making jams and syrup, after freezing and preserving blackberries in every manner you can possibly think of, you still have more ripening in the berry patch?

Today, I’m going to help you solve this problem by teaching you how to make blackberry vinegar from scratch! Here’s a step by step breakdown of the process!

Step 1: Harvest Sun Ripened Blackberries

The first thing you need to do is harvest the juiciest blackberries you can find! Ripe fruit contains the highest concentrates of sugar and will create the strongest ferment. Always aim for sun-ripened fruit when making blackberry vinegar!

And in your harvesting, avoid berries that are old and saggy, those that show signs of break down or decay. For this recipe, you’ll need to collect approximately 2 quart (2 litres) of fresh blackberries!

Step 2: Clean Your Blackberries

After you’ve collected your blackberries, it’s time to head inside and clean them up! Place a colander in your kitchen sink and gently dump the blackberries into it. Give your fruits a quick rinse to remove dust, bugs and spiders.

Step 3: Choose a Juice Extracting Method

In order to create blackberry vinegar, you must first find a way to extract the juice! There are 3 ways to do this with soft fruits. I’m going to give you three viable options and you can decide which one you’d prefer to use!

And this is where you’ll have to click over to my friend’s website to get the rest of the story. Yup, I wrote a guest post on making blackberry vinegar for a New Zealand blogging acquaintance. You can read the rest of my article over on Dana’s blog, Piwakawaka Valley!

See you there!