Cribbed from http://www.brettonstuff.com/index.php/backpacking/dehydrated-red-wine/ with acknowledgement and thanks.
[Presented as an answer to those who keep wanting to get smashed in the bush without carrying the weight ... ;-) ]
Without revealing my sources . . . lets just say I had some dehydrated wine appear at my home one day last week. Sold in Europe and not FDA-approved in the USA this may be tricky to obtain - but - is it worth the effort?
Lets do the taste-test . . .
First the goods - comes nicely packaged in a foil pouch. Weighing in at 2.1 oz (60 g - see the label) - considerably less than your average 1 litre bottle, it's looking good so far . . .
Emptying the powder into a bowl, it has a distinctive musty smell - kind of like old cork. Can't be bad, right? Perhaps it's a vintage year?
The directions call for mixing with 6 fl oz of cold water, and letting stand for 5 minutes.
I was rather hoping it would make more than this . . . but I'm still hopeful . . . maybe the powder/liquid ratio helps the alcohol content, and the taste will be more divine this way . . .
After about 6-7 minutes of stirring - trying to get the powder to dissolve and get rid of the lumps, I finally give up and reach for the strainer.
Strained into a wine glass, the wine now has a delightful white scum layer floating on top . . . ok . . . I'm starting to get nervous . . .
I try and overlook the rotting beetroot smell as I bring the glass to my lips for the taste test . . . mind over matter, I really really want this to work out. It's dehydrated wine for heavens sake - cut it some slack.
'A nice fruity bouquet, wonderful legs, earthy structure, revealing layers of ripe berries, currants and vanilla oak.'
These aren't the words I would use. I tried really hard - but the following is the BEST I could come up with.
'Clumpy, musty odor, like drinking beetroot juice spiked with cheap vodka that has spoiled at the bottom of the ocean for three hundred years. '
Needless to say . . . this sucker won't be going in my pack on a trip anytime soon.
I wonder if I can sell the other two packets on ebay to recover my losses . . .