It’s Wineberry Season!

It’s Wineberry Season! I picked a whole quart of these juicy red treats this afternoon, braving thorns, underbrush, and all manner of pesky little flying creatures, and there are still plenty left on the vine.

It’s a shame I can’t entice my children to collect berries as enthusiastically as they once did. Maybe I need to institute a “you can’t eat them unless you pick them yourself” rule…

If you have wineberries where you live, you might like to know that they make a delicious fruit crisp when paired with blueberries and peaches.

I like to use them in any baked goods that call for berries. Here are all of the recipes I’ve shared over the years.

The berries freeze well if you can’t use them right away (though they are delicate, so they may break apart a bit ; this doesn’t bother me, though). I was finishing up last year’s harvest in my green smoothies a few months ago, in fact.

I haven’t had a lot of luck turning them into jam in the past – I find it too fiddly to figure out the correct amount of pectin and sugar. And besides, I think I may be over my jam phase. Maybe.

They are good right off the vine. I say this as someone who is not much of a berry person. I do enjoy these though. Perhaps it’s the novelty of having them grow right in my back (and front, and side) yard that makes them so satisfying a snack.

I almost always bring in a new friend or two with a batch of berries. This guy was escorted gently back outdoors and left to find somewhere-not-my-kitchen to hang out.

Here are some wineberry resources for your nibbling pleasure:

• I’ve written a lot here over the years, about the wineberries that grow in our yard.
• Just because I haven’t had luck adapting my own jam recipes, that doesn’t mean it can’t be done. A quick Google search will turn up a few. I like the look of this Local Kitchen Blog recipe, myself.
• Wildman Steve Brill has recipes. They’re alphabetical, so you’ll need to scroll a bit.
• WNYC did a wineberry story a few years ago.
• Mother Earth News also did a story back in 1982, brought to you now via the wonders of republishing old stuff on the internet.
• While I was picking this afternoon, I listened to Erica Wides’ Let’s Get Real podcast on Heritage Radio. The topic was Berries and the Bullsh*t, and she talked quite a bit about picking wineberries. I found it entertaining, but beware the NSFW language, if you’re not listening alone.
• Got vodka? Make wineberry cordials!

Happy berry picking 🙂