Last year I posted some notes regarding a small batch of Pomegranate wine we made - really an experiment to see what kind of dessert wine could be made from this fruit (happen to have loads of Pomegranates available to us).
Back at time of bottling the wine was too tart and had both a nose, and slightly on the palate, a presence of the pith in the fruit. While not vile, it was definitely not good.
After many months in the cellar, popped one open last night to check it out (we bottled in beer bottles under crown caps). The wine still has that amazing bright ruby-red color, brilliantly clear. The nose still has some sense of the pith but it has softened and the Pomegranate fruit is more noticeable and more pleasant. While the palate is still too tart it has mellowed consderably, and the flavor is appealing.
Still not something I would serve anyone other than an obsessed winemaker, but I've gained hope that more aging will mellow it further and make it quite pleasant. Think I'll try again this year or next but will soften the acids somewhat, either by blending with some other fruit dessert wine or through chemistry. Not sure what to do about the pithy character - that could, I suppose, be lessened also by blending but may simply be part of the character of Pomegranate. It does seem to be mellowing with time.