First, follow the recipies Summerthyme gives exactly.
I didn't, the first time I made this. I used too many fresh elderberries. The gallon jugs (there were four of them, we had a lot of elderberries that year) started to show fermentation.
Because I used too many fresh elderberries, there was not enough room for all the alcohol I was supposed to put in, thus there was room for yeasts to grow, thus fermentaion.
At the time, I had the regular screw type lids on the wine jugs....if I had it to do over, I would have used a big balloon.
I was supposed to remember to go each day and open the caps, to let the gasses caused by the fermentation out.
I either forgot to do this, or I retightened the cap too tight.
Anyway, I returned to that room, to find that one of the jugs had exploded!
