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Raspberry Merlot Sorbet
The Thanksgiving holiday provided me with some much-needed rest and relaxation as well as time to think about my blog. I return today to blogging with a renewed commitment to providing exciting scoop adventures. During my blog hiatus, I received a lot of great feedback from friends on and off the blog about how I can add to my discussion topics. I would like to thank everyone for their positive feedback and encouraging words. Many suggestions were based around ice cream related topics, such as alternative recipes (shakes, semifreddos), taste comparisons, and equipment reviews. I plan to explore all of these options.
A friend enjoying a champagne cocktail made with raspberry merlot sorbet
Today I bring you another recipe. Its been a while, so you deserve another one. Plus this recipe was a huge success and hit at the Thanksgiving party I attended. No wonder this recipe is one of David Lebovitz's all time favorites. Enjoy!
Raspberry Merlot Sorbet
aka Red Wine Raspberry Sorbet from Ready for Dessert by David Lebovitz
I used a fruity merlot in this recipe which was complemented well by the tart raspberries. David suggests using a light and fruit wine such as Merlot, Zinfandel, or Beaujolais. For a lighter-tasting sorbet, use rosé in place of the red wine.
1 cup (200 g) sugar
¾ cup (180 ml) water
1 bottle (750 ml) fruity red wine
3 cups (15 ounces/400 g) raspberries
Place first three ingredients (sugar through wine) into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Allow mixture to boil for one minutes, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat and add the raspberries. Cover and let steep for 1 hour.
Pour mixture through a fine mesh sieve or strainer set over a medium bowl, and then use a rubber spatula to mash the berries and push the juice through the sieve (keeping pressing until you a left with seeds and juice stops running). You can also use a food mill fitted with a fine disk.
Cover and refrigerate mixture until thoroughly chilled. Freeze in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer sorbet to a container, place plastic or parchment over sorbet (to prevent ice crystals) and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.
Raspberries, Wine | in Sorbet 
Reader Comments (3)
I tried this recipe twice and there seems to be too much alcohol in the mixture to freeze properly. I froze it in the ice cream machine. Then in the freezer, a quarter of the mixture oozed out into a gooey mess. The rest of the sorbet was servable but very "boozey". I know that this isn't your recipe but I feel it needs some tweeking. Just my feelings...
Chris - I am sorry to hear that the recipe is not working out for you. There are couple of reasons that your sorbet could be "breaking." If your raspberries have less water in them than typical the sugar/water ratio may be off - too much sugar can lead to a gooey texture - so one idea would be to lower the sugar a bit and/or add a little water. Also, make sure that you are churning it enough - churn until is just starts to pull away from the sides.
I would also suggest checking the temperature of your freezer - make sure it is 0 degrees F, if not the sorbet will not set as well, especially since it has alcohol in it. This *is* a very boozy sorbet, so if you want less of a boozy taste substitute water for some of the wine - this might also help your freezing problem. Good luck!
I have made this recipe four times this past year and each time was perfect. I use an electric ice cream maker to churn it. I agree that a fruity merlot is important. A heavier wine would overpower the raspberries. It is my favourite treat to bring to a friend's for a party or dinner - a sophisticated yet simple dessert and gorgeous in colour. I make lots of different ice cream so my thought (though I am not an expert) might be that the churn centre from the machine is not frozen sufficiently and so the ice cream or sorbet itself isn't getting cold enough. You must churn it well before freezing it as just freezing it doesn't work well.