Bandit's Wine Making Adventures

"Year of the Blueberry" (August update)

2011-08-12T15:11:00.001-04:00

First I must apologize to any ignore any possible followers I might actually have for not keeping the Blog updated.

Trust me, I have been a a little busy little Wine/Beer maker. I finished up several Beer project with some good success. Currently it is all about Blueberry Wine. It all started back in May when a friend of the families dropped off a bucket of Blueberries (6lbs). The bucket turn into a 3 gallon batch of Blueberry Mead. Which is still in carboy aging. Later this summer just cruising Walmart for groceries, they had Blueberries for $1.00 for 11oz. heavily stocked on 9 lbs and started a batch of Blueberry wine. Later in the summer the price dropped to $0.75/pint(11-12oz). Bought even more (16lb). This was just turned into a 5gal batch of pure blueberry which was transferred/pressed on 8/11/11.

The Muscadine grapes in the home vineyard are slowly being harvested as they ripen. Should be able achieve a 1gal batch this year.

BLUEBERRY WINE

5g (yield)

16 lb. blueberries
10 lbs. granulated sugar Adjust to SG of 1.094
50 drops. pectic enzyme
7 tsp. acid blend
6 tsp. yeast nutrient
3/4 tsp. yeast energizer
water to 6 gallon
2 pkgs Pasteur Champagne wine yeast

Wash and crush blueberries and put in primary fermentation vessel with all ingredients except yeast. Check SG and make simple syrup and add mixture to adjust to SG of 1.094. Cover well and allow cooling to 70-75 degrees F., and then adding an activated yeast starter. Stir daily for 5-6 days or until specific gravity is below 1.030. Strain out fruit pulp and press. Siphon into secondary fermentation vessel and fit fermentation trap. Rack and sulfite in three weeks, and again in two months. When wine is clear, rack and stabilize. Sweeten to taste, set aside 30 days, and bottle. Allow a year to mature. Improves with age.

Mead update

2011-05-20T16:17:00.000-04:00

My 5 gal batch is still fermenting very slow. The SG 2 days ago was at 1.020. Still dropping but very slow. I am thinking that it is a character of the yeast. So I added 2 lbs of honey (total 14 now) some yeast nutrient and energizer. Mixed it in good. After a day the Fermentation seams to be more active today.

Blueberry Melomel (Mead)

2011-05-20T15:59:00.002-04:00

I was planning on making a Blueberry Melomel (Mead) this summer after I picked all my Blueberries. I would have to add some frozen ones as well to have enough. But a wonderful present appeared on the door step yesterday. A 1 gallon bucket of Blueberries (a little over 6 lbs.) dropped off by some friends of ours that have a 15 acre Blueberry patch . Just the right amount I needed for a 3 gallon batch. So I proceeded to wash and crush the berries. Heated up some water and dissolved 6 lbs of honey into it. Stretched a 5 gallon paint strainer bag over the mouth of the 5g fermenting bucket and started pouring in the crushed Blueberries.

Blueberry Melomel

6-7lbs honey
6 lbs Blueberries
30 drops Pectic Enzyme
3 tsp Yeast Nutrient
1 1/2 Tsp Yeast Energizer
4 Campden tablets to sanitize must
EC-1118 Yeast in a starter

Initially only added 6 lbs honey, but after checking the SG 18 hours later it was 1.072. I added another 1 lbs or so of honey to get an SG of 1.082. I want it to have no trouble fermenting since it is in an open fermenter. So I decided to us EC-1118. I will ferment it dry and after stabilizing back sweeten to about 1.010 using honey.

Mead Recipe

2011-05-02T17:40:00.001-04:00

My Current Mead Recipe for 5 gal

12 lbs quality varietal honey
5 tsp yeast nutrient
7 tsp acid Blend
1 1/4 tsp yeast energizer
4 gallons water (about 5g total must)
1 sachet Lavlin ID-47 yeast

Put everything in a 6g Carboy to ferment.

After stabilizing add 2- 3lbs honey to approx SG of 1.012

And on Day 3 Fermenting nicely. Airlock very active.

Mead

2011-05-01T12:09:00.000-04:00

I started a batch of Mead on Friday. And now 36 hours later it is fermenting nicely. I also bottled up some more Beer on Friday. This was my forth batch, it is a 2.5g batch of American Style Wheat. Drier finish, less fruiter and more hops than a German or Belgian style. It tasted pretty good but flat. I actually had for a short time on Friday where nothing was being fermented or aging. All my wine/beer projects had been bottled. That was the perfect time to start some mead. I plan to start concentrating more of my wine making efforts of my home grown grapes. Which are growing quite nicely, including the vines I added this year. I should have a real good crop of Muscadine Grapes. Next year I expect to have 3 times the amount as my vines mature.

Dabbling in Beer

2011-04-04T15:56:00.000-04:00

My wife got me the Coopers Brewery Micro-Brew kit for Christmas. So I have been doing some dabbling into beer making. Started with a simple Can kit the was supplied with the kit. Then I made an Extract W/Specialty grains version of a Dunkelweizen. and than another Canned Kit but added some extra flavoring Hops. The first batch came out real well. The Big battle in making beer in Florida is the Temperature. Since most ales light to be fermented at 68F it does make it a little more difficult with temp control. Nothing like a fermentation swamp cooler

(tub with water and a towel wrapped around the fermenter and frozen water bottles to help control the temp). A little Ghetto, but it works. I use the same thing when fermenting White Wines.

Spring in the Vineyard.

2011-04-04T15:00:00.003-04:00

Looks like it is going to be good year in the Vineyard. These are a couple of pics of my Black Spanish Grapes. I have expanded my Vineyard as seen in some previous posts. All my more mature vine have grapes, except for my largest Magnolia. It is just now waking up.

Total of 18 vines 17 of which are for Wine Making:

7 Black Spanish, 3 new this year

5 Blanc du Bois, new this year

2 Muscadine Noble

2 Muscadine Magnolia

1 What was suppose to be Muscadine Carlos

And

1 for eating, Thompson Seedless, new this year

Been Busy

2011-02-17T20:00:00.000-05:00

This past couple of Weeks I have been busy bottling some of my wines.
A List of what I have bottled:
1 gal- Blackberry/Concord
1 gal- Red Muscadine finished dry
3 gal- Red Muscadine back sweetened with 12 oz Concord Grape concentrate
5 gal- Elderberry/Concord blend. 48oz Concord Grape concentrate was added to help with body
6 gal- Pinot Chardonnay Kit

Still waiting to bottle is the Cranberry Juice blend I got from ALDI Market, 5 gal pure Apple and 1 gal dry mead.

The new grape vines that were added to my vineyard are already taking to their new home and starting to grow.

New additions to the Vineyard

2011-01-19T17:50:00.000-05:00

I received my new Vines today. 5 Blanc Du Bois and 3 additional Black Spanish to give me a total of 8. I added an additional row for the Blanc Du Bois and integrated the Black Spanish into the existing row to space them 5 feet apart.

Blanc Du Bois is a Hybrid that was developed by the University of Florida. It is capable of producing a nice White Wine. The Black Spanish has been around since the Spanish settle the New World. Supposedly the Catholic Priest brought the from Spain and planted them in Texas. They thrive in the southern Gulf climate.

Bottled the White Muscadine (Scuppernong) blend

2010-12-28T08:50:00.001-05:00

After spending a couple weeks in cold stabilization, a large amount of tartaric acid crystals (wine diamonds) had fallen out. I removed it from the fridge and let it come back up to cellar temp for a few days. The wine is extremely clear, so I decided to bottle it. The flavor is pretty good, Still young tasting but with lots of promise to be good wine.

The cellar is filling back up

2010-12-14T14:18:00.000-05:00

After a few bottlings, the cellar was getting a little bare of batches under-construction. I just added a couple of new batches. My 100% Apple from Fresh, but pasteurized Apple Cider. and a 3g batch from a juice concentrate Cranberry Blend. I basically followed the same recipe for Welch's Concentrate since it is very similar.

Here is what I did

Cranberry From concentrate

7 cans (12 oz) Cranberry juice blend frozen concentrate
4 1/2lbs granulated sugar (starting SG was 1.094)
3 tsp acid blend
15 drops pectic enzyme
3 tsp yeast nutrient
water to make 3.25 gallon
wine yeast 71B-1122

The rest of what is in the Cellar is: Elderberry 5g (3g no-oak, 2g oak'd), Red Muscadine 4g, Blackberry/Concord 1g, Mead (dry) 1g, and in the Fridge: White Muscadine 1g ( Fridge, cold stabilizing)

Apple Wine update

2010-12-03T08:37:00.000-05:00

After averting the near MESS. I noticed on Thursday that the activity has seemed to have slowed down. So I check the Specific Gravity and it was down to 1.005. Time to rack, put into a 1 gal and 5 gal with a little head space for foaming since it is still fermenting.

November Update

2010-11-30T14:26:00.001-05:00

In the past months I have continued to Rack and monitor the following Wines. Red Muscadine, I racked and Stabilized. White Muscadine/Scuppernong was racked and sweetened just a little off-dry. The Elderberry was racked and seperated into 3g and 2-1gal. In the 1gal I added light toasted American Oak. After 2months i will evaluated both wines and decide on a blend. By the way the Elderberry, even being very young, tastes great. The Elderberry Rose is completely clear and stable so I bottled it today (pictured to the right).

During the last 2 months I started and completed a Wine Expert VR Liebfraumilch Kit.

Apple Wine batch #3 5 gal.

2010-11-30T10:39:00.002-05:00

I started a batch of 100% apple Yesterday and in less than 24 hours I am getting foaming in the airlock. I even had over 2 1/2" of space in the fermenter. So, I added a blow-off assembly help eliminate a possible disaster. The ferment was also creating a lot of heat. So I placed it in a tub of water and added ice to cool the ferment down a little. I will try to keep the water between 60-68deg.

Here is the Recipe for what is in the bucket.

Apple Wine (Full Body)

5 gal seasonal Apple Cider with lots of pulp. (pasteurized)
5.75lbs sugar dissolved in 5 cups hot water. Achieved a starting SG of 1.085
1.25oz. Tartaric Acid to get .6TA
5tsp Yeast Nutrient
2tsp. Yeast Energizer
1/2 tsp Pectic Enzyme
1 pkg. Montrachet Yeast in a starter.

I have had mixed results using Montrachet. But I have real good results with the first Apple Wine I made. It did require some aging but it came out great. I actually still have 2 bottles left. going open one at Christmas time.

I have had troubles in the past getting my Sugar additions correct until I found Fermcalc . It is a fabulous tool. There is an online version as well as a Downloadable standalone application. If you enter accurate information it will return extremely accurate numbers.

October Updates

2010-10-18T15:18:00.000-04:00

I bottle the Welch's White Grape a couple weeks back. I needed to add some Bentonite to get it to clear completely. I racked and bottled right off the Bentonite. The wine turned very good. It made a very nice light White wine. I have had $5 - $10 bottles that were not as good. At about $1.00 a bottle including the cork I cannot complain. I have racked the Muscadine a my Elderberry wines. The Elderberry Rose is already clearing and stable at an SG of 1.008. Added more Pot Sorbate and 2 Campden tablets. I also started a Wine Expert Liebfraumilch kit I purchased a while back.

Elderberry update

2010-09-21T12:57:00.005-04:00

On the 4th day I checked the SG was at 1.010. Decided to move the berries and give a light squeeze. Transfered to a 5 gal carboy and topped up with 500ml of red grape wine I made. Big mistake topping up, it started to foam and right out through the airlock and down the side. (luckily I placed the carboy in a large tub). Removed some of the wine and after a couple days the foam decreased. Cleaned up carboy and replaced the airlock again.

I did keep the left over pulp and started a 3g batch of second run Elderberry Rose'.
I used this recipe:

Elderberry Rose’
3gal

Elderberry pulp from first wine
3.0 lb. (0.45 kg) fully ripe bananas
3-12-oz. (355-mL) can white grape concentrate (Welch’s, Old Orchard, etc.)
6.0 lbs. (0.91 kg) granulated sugar
6 Campden tablets
1-1⁄2 tsp. potassium sorbate
3 tsp. yeast nutrient
6 tsp. citric acid (i will check level and add later)
Cote des Blanc

Step by Step
Bring 6 quarts (6 L) of water to boil. Meanwhile, place elderberry pulp (in nylon straining bag) in the primary fermentation vessel and add sugar and grape concentrate in primary. Pour boiling water over contents of primary and stir until sugar is dissolved. Cover primary. Put another 4-quarts plus 1 pint of water on to boil. Cut bananas, skins and all, into 1⁄2 inch slices and add to boiling water. Cover pot and boil for 25 minutes. Skim any scum off water and strain to remove fruit. Add banana liquid to primary and re-cover primary. When cooled to room temperature, stir in citric acid and yeast nutrients and activated yeast, re-cover primary, and set aside. Stir twice daily for 2 days – 3 if additional color requires it. Remove straining bag, squeeze lightly, transfer to secondary, add one finely crushed and dissolved Campden tablet, top up if required, and fit airlock. Rack every 60 days until wine falls clear and no sediments form during 30-day period. Stabilize with potassium sorbate and one finely crushed and dissolved Campden tablet and bottle this wine dry. Allow to age one year.

The starting SG was 1.100, I will try to stop the fermentation at 1.005 for a semi-dry finish.

9/22/10 Update. Remove the pulp this afternoon and checked SG= 1.042

9/24/10 Update: SG reach the target of 1.010. Racked to Carboy, added Pot Sorbate and 3 Campden Tablets. Placed in Refrigerator to cold stabilize for 2-3 weeks.

New Batches

2010-09-13T20:20:00.000-04:00

I know it has been a while since I updated my Blog. Don't worry I have been still making and bottling lots of wines.
I have started 3 new batches in the past couple weeks. Red Muscadine, White Muscadine, and an Elderberry. A couple weeks back I pick a bunch of Muscadine grapes at Shady Oaks U-Pick. And I have been collecting Wild Elderberries since July and it is now time to start it. Below are the recipes used.

Muscadine 5 gal batch (4g yield)

32 lbs Muscadine (red) Grapes (mix of about 30% Noble and other red varieties)
7.2 lbs sugar. Water to bring level 5.5 gal on primary
10 drops pectic enzyme. (stir well)

Doing a cold Maceration for 6 days to extract color from the skins.
After 6 days removed from frig. Checked sg of room temp juice 1.094, made a starter with water and juice. The juice was sweet, smelled and tasted good. Could feel a little tannins in the mouth.

Lavlin 71b-1122 yeast
Added 5 tsp Yeast nutrient
Notes: Separated from seeds and Skins after 5 days and SG =1.000. 11 days later racked off the heavy sediment (about 1.5" deep in 5gal glass). to 4gal and 750ml SG=0.994.

White Muscadine (1g)

6+lbs White Muscadine (scuppernong)
1 can white grape concentrate (Welch’s)
4 drops Pectic enzyme
Sugar to 1.088 (less than 1 lb)
Water level to 5.5 qts (including Crushed grapes)
1tsp Yeast Nutrient
Campden
Champagne Yeast in a starter

Crushed the grapes and placed in a strainer bag. Checked SG after a little water had been added. 1.030 added a can of White Grape concentrate and raise the level to 3.5qts SG was better but still a little low. Created simple syrup with a 1lb of sugar adding slowly along with water until the SG was 1.088. Added 1 campden tablet and set aside for 24 hrs.

Note: I have no press so to extract more of the flavor and juice I need to ferment with the skins. The juice taste very fruity with the taste of the original grapes maintained, but sweeter.

Elderberry

15 lbs elderberries
8.0 lbs. granulated sugar, approx. (adjust to SG of 1.095)
4-12-oz. (355-mL) can red grape concentrate (Welch’s, Old Orchard)
30 drops Liquid Pectic Enzyme
5 tsp. yeast nutrient
14 tsp Acid blend (TA=0.60%)
Oak Chips (optional)
1 sachet Red Star Pasteur Red, wine yeast in a starter

Simmered berries to extract liquid and attempt to fix the color better. Dissolve about 6lbs sugars in the simmering berries. Adjusted to 1.095 at 5.5gal, added 1-3/4lb sugar. Placed the simmered berries in a strainer bag and added the cans of concentrate. Check acid level was at about .2% added 14 tsp acid blend and now at .60% Let cool to room temp. Adjusted the liquid level to the 5.5gal mark with berries, while adjusting to an SG of 1.095

Mead...

2010-07-03T02:15:00.001-04:00

Bottle the Mead Thursday. I am very happy with the Mead. I turned out exactly as I thought it would. I actually like it better than the commercial Mead I had last year. It ended up a Semi-Sweet with an SG of about 1.012 and at about 11-11.5%abv. It is a nice balance between sweetness, acidity and Alcohol. Very nice, but also very young. It has only been 5 months since it was started. After few months in the bottle it may actually improve a little more. If it lasts that long.

June Updates

2010-06-29T14:06:00.001-04:00

Started 3 new batches this month.
Peach Wine from my neighbors peaches.
Blueberry Burgundy
Welch's White Grape (from Concentrate)

Existing batches:
Racked the Cabernet kit of the heavy sediment and added more oak since the oak powder supplied did not seem to leave much of an impact.
The Porto Corinto sat on some additional oak after stabilizing and clearing for 1 month and has now been bottled.
My Semi-Dry Muscat has been bottled.
The Grapefruit and Apple Wines are stable, clear and sweetened a bit. And are now aging
The Clean out Freezer Berry is finished fermentation and is just aging and clearing.
The Mead is just waiting to be bottled.

Welch's White Grape

2010-06-29T13:38:00.002-04:00

Since my first batch of Welch's White Grape turned out so well I though it was time to start a second one. This time a little bigger 3g. I followed the below recipe:

7 cans (11.5 oz) Welch's 100% frozen grape concentrate
3-1/4 lbs granulated sugar
4 tsp acid blend
9 drops pectic enzyme
3 tsp yeast nutrient
water to make 3.25 gallon
wine yeast (RJ Spangols unknown yeast, probably EC-1118)

6/28/10
The starting SG was 1.094 after temp correction. I just so happen to have 4 gallon Pet 1 bottle that works real good for fermenting my all juice 3 gallon batches. Made a starter and pitched the yeast in the evening.

Blueberry Burgundy

2010-06-29T13:24:00.002-04:00

Started a new wine from scratch. I had this can of Sun Country Burgundy Concentrate and thought this would be a good idea for a wine.

Blueberry Burgundy

6 pts Blueberry (about 4 ½ lbs)

1 (46oz)Can Sun Country Burgundy Concentrate

3tsp Yeast Nutrient

3 Campden tablets

3 tsp Acid Blend

30 Drops Pectic enzyme

Approx. 4lbs sugar to 1.095 with temp correction

Cote des Blanc Yeast

6/28/10

Rinsed and froze blue berries after purchase. Thawed berries and crushed into sanitized primary bucket. Added the Sun Country juice concentrate. Water to 2.5 gallons 3 Campden tablets added..

6/29/10

After 12 hours added Pectic Enzyme, Yeast Nutrient and Acid Blend. Checked SG 1.055 and used Ferm Calc and came up with 10 cups water 4 lbs sugar to get 3.4 gallons must at 1.093. Created starter with 1 cup water and 1tsp sugar and adding 1 tsp every couple hours. Boiled 9 cups and added 4 lbs. sugar to water. After cooled added sugar water mixture to the 3 ¼ gallon level. Checked SG and it was at 1.095 with temp correction.

Cabernet Sauvignon Kit

2010-05-14T17:56:00.002-04:00

On May 1st, I went to Custom Winery, Vinters Cellar, in South Lakeland. They were going out of business and clearing out their inventory. I picked up some Carboys $10 each, some wines and a Cabernet Kit. The lady at the shop said the kit is better at 5g instead of 6g.

5/10/2010 My largest batch yet.
Started the kit and added water to 5g and a little more. Checked sg and it was 1.090. it looks like here advice was good. At 6g this would have been a batch. Added the bentonite and created Yeast starter and added it. After a day it was really going strong and starting smell up the house.

Clean Out the Freezer Mixed Berry Wine

2010-05-14T17:46:00.001-04:00

4/12/2010:
My Wife was looking for some fruit in the freezer to make a smoothie. She came across a couple of bags that had been there awhile. She decided that they were not good enough for a smoothie. Instead of just tossing it in the trash I though a better use would be some wine. So here is what I came up with.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
(all fruit amounts as estimated)
2.5lbs Frozen Strawberries
0.5lbs Frozen Raspberries
Handful of Blackberries
12oz Grape Juice concentrate
1.5 tsp Yeast Nutrient
0.5 tsp Yeast Energizer
10 drops Liquid Pectic Enzyme
4 cups of sugar
Campden
Montrachet Yeast

Intial SG 1.030 after sugar addition 1.100
starting vol 5qts
Must has a very strawberry taste
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thawed fruit with Grape Concentrate water and Pectic Enzyme and 1 Campden Tablet for 2 days in the fridge. Brought to room Temp overnight. Checked SG and adjusted with sugar to 1.100. Added Yeast Nutrient and Energizer. Re-hydrated Yeast and added to the must.

4/19/2010.
SG 1.010 Strained through a strainer bag and yielded 1 gal and 375lt.

4/23/2010.
Fermentation appears to have slowed to almost stopped with lots of sediment. Racked to clean Carboy. When racking accidentally knocked the 375 on the floor and broke the bottle. So all I had was the gallon, Racked, stabilized and topped up with 9oz water. Since the taste of the wine is very pronounced the water should not hurt it in flavor, just lower the Alcohol a little.

Port Kit

2010-05-14T17:23:00.001-04:00

Started a Port kit a couple weeks back. The kit is Porto Corinto by Cellar Craft. It currently has been in the Secondary for a couple of weeks now. The smell on this kit during the Primary fermentation stage was wonderful. Starting SG was 1.160, after a few days it was down to 1.060 so I move it to the Carboy. Ended up with 3g and 1lt. More updates coming

Good Stuff

2010-05-14T17:16:00.000-04:00

I opened a second bottle of the Apple Wine this week. Wow this came out very good. I think a large batch is going to be in the works soon. You would never know this wine was almost completely dry (SG 1.001). Very full body and nice mouth feel with a slight taste of apple. definitely a winner.

April Wine Updates

2010-04-09T17:22:00.000-04:00

I know it has been a while since I wrote anything. Not to worry I am still making wine. Just nothing to really update. everything is just aging and clearing. It is getting time to do some racking in the next couple weeks. The last I checked the Blackberry/Zinfandel had a good taste and mouth feel. It may be ready to bottle soon. The mead is just aging. since its first racking and stabilizing when the SG was at 1.012. It appears to be clearing on its own. My Grapefruit is completely clear. The 2 gallons of Muscat is also clearing nicely. The Apple Wine I made Is looking good and I added to Oak chips the other day to try and add some vanilla taste to it.

Down the Drain

2010-03-17T06:10:00.001-04:00

I had to pull the plug on the Cinnamon Wine. The fermentation stalled at 1.052. Which gave it about 10.5% alc. But it was the taste that did it. The cinnamon taste was ok, but there was a woody taste that followed. Something like I was sucking on an old popsicle stick. So down the drain she went.

Muscat

2010-03-07T23:42:00.003-05:00

Started another new batch of Vino. This is from a can of Sun Country's Muscat Juice Concentrate. Originally I was going to blend this with peaches for a 3 gallon batch of Peach/Muscat Wine. But I decided to just make a 2 gallon batch of a full/medium body Muscat Wine. Using the Recipe from the can as a guide here is what I came up with.

Dry Muscat (Concentrate) 2 gal

1 Can (46oz) Sun Country "Muscat" Juice Concentrate
Sugar to SG 1.085 about 2 cups (just a little over)
Water to 2g + Finger width over Mark
2 tsp Yeast Nutrient
3 tsp Acid Blend (acidity to .6-.7)
4 drops Liquid Pectic Enzyme
Lavlin 71B-1122 Yeast
1oz Light Toast American Oak

Added Concentrate and most the water near the 2gallon mark, took SG reading 1.070. Created a simple syrup of sugar and water bases upon some calculation from charts I have found at Jack Keller's site. and then added in and checked SG. with temp correction measured 1.085. right were I wanted it. Adjusted the Acid level and added Yeast Nutrient and Pectic Enzyme. soaked the Oak in Sulfite solution for 30 mins and then added to the primary fermenter (actually a 4 gallon carboy I have). Re-hydrated yeast and made a starter. Added The yeast starter after 60 mins and lots of foaming action. I am trying for a Dry Muscat wine with a little hint vanilla maybe from the oak in the primary. Alcohol between 11-12%. I plan to leave the wine for 3 weeks before racking. Stirring twice daily for the first 5 days and then adding an airlock. Hopefully this achieve my desired outcome.

Zinfandel/Blackberry Updates

2010-02-27T17:07:00.000-05:00

12/27/2009: Created starter with Premier Cuvee. After adding the Yeast energizer it appeared to die. Started a new Yeast Starter with Montrachet without energizer. After a few hours the starter was foaming real good. Added to Must.

1/1/2010: Stirred the must twice daily until the SG was 1.023 in the AM. Racked in the afternoon. Split between a 3g and 3l carboys.

1/14/2010 Checked SG 0.990 Waiting for my Orange Muscat to reach 1.030 to free up my 3.5g carboy.

as of 1/20/2010 still waiting Orange Muscat is now at 1.036

2/27/10: Taste tested today for Oak Level. The Oak is definitely present in the wine and at a level I think will be good. So I racked it off the oak and topped up the 3g carboy with the non-oaked wine in the small second container. The Mouth feel of the wine is getting better with a nice Oak taste on the palette.

New Label (Cranberry)

2010-02-24T18:04:00.000-05:00

She did it again. I need a label for my Cranberry wine, so I asked my daughter, and she pulled out real winner again.

Bottling day

2010-02-22T21:32:00.003-05:00

Bottled the Orange/Muscat Port Kit today. It's taste is good. I think it will get better with time. Here is the picture of another killer label from my daughter.

Grapefruit

2010-02-20T17:55:00.009-05:00

I was in Webbs Candy the other day and was looking at their Florida Wines. They sell a lot of Wines made by Florida Orange Groves Inc, and Winery. I noticed a wine from Grapefruit, it had a nice pale straw color. Then I remembered I had a fellow co-worker give me a big bag of Ruby Red Grapefruit the other day. I got thinking, OK, I could make make Grapefruit wine. Did some looking on the internet, of course Jack Keller was the first instinct. And of course he did not let me down. Several versions of Grapefruit Wines. And here is the one I decided on using:

----------------------------------------

GRAPEFRUIT WINE (Dry) (1)

6 large grapefruit
2-1/2 lbs granulated sugar
water to 1 gal
1/2 tsp pectic enzyme
1 crushed Campden tablet
1 tsp yeast starter
Sauterne yeast

Scrub grapefruit clean. Peel one grapefruit thinly, making sure no white pith adheres to peel. Put peel in primary with half the sugar, the crushed Campden tablet, juice from all six grapefruit, yeast nutrient, and enough water to bring up to one gallon, stirring well to dissolve sugar. Cover primary with clean cloth. After 12 hours, add pectic enzyme. After additional 12 hours, add yeast. After two days of vigorous fermentation, add remaining sugar, stir well, and allow additional two days vigorous fermentation in primary. Discard peel, transfer to secondary and fit airlock. Rack every 30 days, topping up each time. After fifth racking, bottle and set aside at least 6 months. [Adapted from Dorothy Alatorre's Home Wines of North American

----------------------------------------

I did not have what I would call large Grapefruit, so I used 8.
I added 1.5lbs of the sugar. Fermex Yeast Nutrient and used Montrachet Yeast.
SG=1.080
Recipe calls to add 1lb more sugar, the only problem that would put the PA way above where I would like it. So I will probably add only 5-8oz more sugar to add 0.015 to the SG. This should make a nice dry wine around 12-13% abv.

2/21/10: Added the rest of the sugar about 6oz raised the SG by 0.010 so the effective starting SG would be 1.090 which will put it in the 12% range when finished.

Cranberry Bottling

2010-02-16T13:43:00.001-05:00

Cranberry stayed clear and only small dusting on the bottom of the carboy after racking off the Bentonite 2 weeks ago. Wine finished at about 13% abv with some residual sugar at a SG of 1.012, for a semi-Dry Finish, Tastes a little like a White Zinfandel with a some tartness from the Cranberry. Now to let it age for a couple months before tasting. Hopefully it will smooth out some.

Mead

2010-02-15T22:00:00.000-05:00

I have friend who brought up the idea of making some Mead. I have tried mead only once, Chaucer's Mead. It is sweet mead at 10% abv and not too bad. I thought that possibly a little more Alcohol and not as sweet would be a good start. for some Mead. I did a lot of searching and decided to use Jack Keller's Recipe for semi-dry as a guideline.

2.5 - 3 lbs quality varietal honey
1-1/4 tsp yeast nutrient
1-1/2 tsp citric acid (Acid Blend)
1/4 tsp yeast energizer
Water to make up 1 gal (about 3 liters
1 sachet Montrachet yeast (Côte des Blancs)

My Actual Recipe

9 lbs Clover honey
4 tsp yeast nutrient
1-1/2 tsp Acid Blend
3/4 tsp yeast energizer
Water to make up 3 gal + a finger width
1 sachet Côte des Blancs

I decided to make a 3 gallon batch since I have a 4 gallon carboy and a 3 gallon emptying soon. I got 9 lbs of Clover Honey from Wal-Mart. I decided to use a different Yeast than Jack used. I did some research and decided to try Côte des Blancs.It appears to have some favorable characteristics for Mead making. Starting SG 1.103 (with temp adjustment)
Target SG 1.015
This will put it near 12% abv and Semi Sweet. Just what I am looking for.
Stay Tuned

2/16/10 The little yeasties appear very happy this morning
2/20/10 Checked SG this morning 1.040

New Wine Batches

2010-02-03T17:53:00.000-05:00

Started 2 new batches. Cinnamon Wine and another batch of Apple Wine. Used the same recipe as the Tennessee Apple since it came out so good. But the juice is from Whole Foods here locally. Got the jug of juice when acquiring 1 gallon jugs.

Cinnamon Wine?

2010-02-02T17:08:00.001-05:00

Ben Evert posted this Cinnamon Wine recipe on his Beer and Wine Making Blog. It sounded interesting and the next day I just happened to be at Dollar tree and there was a pack of a 18 Cinnamon Sticks. So I thought I would give it try. I also thought I could blend some of the finished wine with some Apple that I am starting at the same time.

Here is the recipe:

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Cinnamon Wine

* 12 six-inch cinnamon sticks

* 3 lbs granulated sugar

* 7-1/2 pts water

* 1 tsp yeast nutrient

* 1/8 tsp tannin

* 3 tsp acid blend

* 1 crushed Campden tablet

* Champagne wine yeast

Put cinnamon sticks and one quart water in a pot with a tight-fitting lid.

Bring to a simmer and hold for 10 minutes with the lid on, turn off heat, and let steep for two hours.

Strain the water into a secondary and discard the cinnamon sticks.

Add sugar to remaining water and bring to a boil.

Turn off heat and stir until sugar is dissolved.

Add all remaining ingredients to secondary except Campden and yeast and then pour in the sugar-water.

Cover with a napkin held in place with a rubberband and allow to cool.

Add Crushed Campden, stir, and allow to sit 24 hours covered.

Add activated yeast and recover.

Ferment 5-7 days, or until specific gravity falls below 1.030.

Fit with airlock and continue fermentation 30 days.

Rack into sanitized secondary, top up, and refit airlock.

Ferment another 3 months, rack again and ferment additional 3 months.

Stabilize, sweeten to taste, and let sit under airlock additional 10 days.

Rack into bottles and store in dark place.

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Tennessee Apple: Bottled

2010-02-01T22:28:00.004-05:00

The Apple stayed nice and clear after sweetening. I got five bottles and a glass. Well of course I had to drink it. I think it came out really good. It has real good body and hint of the apple on the taste buds. The alcohol is not over powering but gives it a nice little bite. Should be about 12-12.5% abv. I stabilized it at 12.9% but with rackings and topping up I am sure it dropped a little. After a couple months in bottle it should be even better. I will make this again. Soon

Wine Updates

2010-01-26T14:30:00.003-05:00

1/22/10: Racked and stabilized the Zinfandel/Blackberry and my Orange Muscat Port. The Orange Muscat finally got to an SG of 1.034. That puts it about 17% alc. Followed the instruction for the Orange Muscat which included adding the Fining agent as well. The next morning it was amazing how clear the wine actually was. And in the days to follow even better. It looks ready to bottle, but no I need to wait 3 more weeks to rack again.
The Black/Zin I racked and stabilized also added some Medium Toast French Oak chips to the carboy. SG is at 0.990, this stuff is real dry and a little rough to taste, unlike the Orange Muscat which actually almost is drinkable already.

1/26/10: The Tennessee Apple is real clear after the last racking. There is a little sediment, so I racked the wine off the sediment. Did a little taste test, one sweetened just a little and one not. By adding some sugar it brings out more of the Apple Flavor. Added just 2oz. of sugar which raised the SG from 0.996 to about 1.001. that seem to get the results I was looking for. If in 2 weeks if no sediment is dropped, into bottles it goes.

Starting the Vineyard

2010-01-21T18:04:00.000-05:00

I have a good size Backyard and one half is pretty much unused. We have tried a couple of different Landscaping options but with the Florida Heat, bugs and the weeds constantly taking over, we gave up. So this past year my wife agreed to give that half of the yard. So I plan to install a small Vineyard and a Garden area. The Garden will include some fruit trees and raised beds for some vegetables.

The Vineyard will consist of 3 40 foot long rows. I will be planting 3 varieties of Grapes that grow here in Florida. 2 Muscadine Noble. 2 Bronze Magnolia Scuppernong, and 4 Black Spanish Hybrids.

I started work on the Vineyard area yesterday. I have included a couple of photos to show the progress. First I had to remove the pond I install years ago for the Turtles and fill in the hole.

After filling in the hole from the pond, day 2 was all about making sure the ground was somewhat even and packed. Then to install the trellis system. I got it all laid out and posts are set. Here are a couple of pictures to show progress.

1/21/2010: Adding the support wires today. I think I will probably make a change by adding a tensioning device to the wire later.

Orange/Muscat Updates

2010-01-20T12:58:00.000-05:00

1/3/2010: SG was at 1.080 today. According to the instructions it is time to rack to secondary. My secondary bottle must be larger than 3 gallons. When I racked it over it was not even close to the full. So I added 4 cups of water with 1 1/2 cups sugar to the secondary. Still not full, but ok. the SG was maintained at 1.080 so the finished alcohol level will be the same.

1/14/2010 SG at 1.038

1/20/2010 SG at 1.036

Muscadine Final Bottling

2010-01-19T11:03:00.001-05:00

I bottled the final 5 bottles of my Muscadine wine. I got 10 bottles in all from 2 one gallon batches, both were finished differently. First, I bottled "All Noble" a Semi-Dry 2 weeks ago, I had sweetened to an SG of 1.006 and added a small amount of Tannin. Second I bottled "Sweet Noble" yesterday I sweetened to 1.012 originally then I added more sugar a couple of weeks later to about 1.020. Waited a couple weeks and bottled it. The All Noble is a little rough but there is some potential, I will see in a few months. My Sweet Noble actually isn't too bad right now, but a little time in the bottle will definitely do it some good.

Orange/Muscat Dessert Wine (3gal kit)

2009-12-28T20:16:00.003-05:00

I received an Orange Muscat Port Style kit from my wife for Christmas. Unfortunately the bag has a leak and some juice has been leaking out. I contacted the Company that it was ordered from and they are shipping a replacement kit. They did not want it shipped backed, they will put in a claim with FedEx. Since I still have the kit I figured I might as make it. Followed the instructions provided except I added 3 Campden tablets to sterilize the must in case the leak causes a problem with it. Added the Bentonite and will add the yeast after 24 hours. Staring SG is 1.160 using Lalvin EC-1118 Yeast this will finish sweet at about 18-19% alc. Includes a Flavor/Juice pack to add at the end. Let see what happens. The Juice could be bad so it may not come out. I taste tested the juice and it appeared to be ok.

12/29/2009: Added yeast starter prepared the method in the instructions

12/30/2009: No Active fermentation. Completely still and almost clear. Created a new starter with a similar yeast K1V-1116 incorporating 2 packages as originally suggested in the instructions. This is one very active yeast starter before adding to the must.

12/31/2009: Fermentation is really rolling now

Zinfandel/Blackberry Recipe (3gal)

2009-12-26T16:27:00.001-05:00

Zinfandel – Blackberry

Base Recipe

1can Suncountry Zinfandel Concentrate

2lbs Frozen Blackberries

3tsp yeast nutrient

5lbs sugar? To 1.095

1tsp Tannin

1 ½ tsp Pectic Enzyme (dry)
6-7 tsp acid blend (test and adjust to 0.60%)

3 Campden Tablets

water as needed

Premier Cuvee Yeast
Add Medium Toast French Oak during aging

Zinfandel/Blackberry Dry Wine

2009-12-26T16:24:00.005-05:00

I recieved some new wine making supplies for Christmas including 3g carboy. So now it is time to increase the batch sizes. I had a can of Alexanders Suncountry Juice Concentrate (Zinfandel). So I created this Blackberry Zinfandel Recipe to make.

Zinfandel – Blackberry

Base Recipe

1can Suncountry Zinfandel Concentrate

2lbs Frozen Blackberries

3tsp yeast nutrient

5lbs sugar? To 1.095

1tsp Tannin

1 ½ tsp Pectic Enzyme (dry)

3 Campden Tablets

water as needed

Premier Cuvee Yeast
Add Medium Toast French Oak during aging

Day 1 (noon)

Added: Juice, Blackberries (crushed) in net bag.

1 ½ tsp Pectic Enzyme

3 Campden Tablets

5lbs sugar dissolved in water

starting SG 1.098, 23.5 brix, PA 14%

begin yeast starter. Premier cuvee ½ tsp yeast energizer

--12hrs. later--
add 3tsp Yeast Nutrient
Check SG was 1.098

check and adjust acid level (added 7tsp Acid Blend to 0.60%)

Day 2 noon

Pour in starter.

***Notes: Brought the water to 3 gal before checking SG and adding sugar. That would have been OK if I would have used the juice to dissolve the sugar in instead of creating a simple syrup of water and sugar. I only used 6 cups of water for the 5lbs of sugar. But it added well over 2qts of volume. It will probably be a little light on the body

Polk County White was a hit

2009-12-26T14:32:00.001-05:00

Served a bottle of my Polk County White during Christmas Dinner. It was a hit. Mother in Law and her husband liked it. The wine turned out much better than I thought it might. I was very please. Not bad for some Welch's White Grape juice, Sugar and yeast. Only one bottle left.
I think I need to make another batch of the same stuff in the future.

Muscadine Final Racking (hopefully)

2009-11-19T20:04:00.008-05:00

Been a month since the last racking. The wine is super clear with some crystal looking sediment. Racked and filtered through a sanitized coffee filter. I adjusted the SG (sweetness) level of both gallons during the previous racking to different levels between the to gallons. I took very small samples and like the difference in flavors between them. One gallon I was adjusted to an SG of 1.012 and the other I adjusted to 1.006 and added 1/8tsp of Tannin.

The finished wine is a far cry from the completion of Primary fermentation.

If there is no sediment in next 2 weeks I will be bottling the wine to free up my carboys for wine to make more.

12/3/09: Still dropping sediment. Guess I better slow down and wait. Just let nature takes its course and not try to rush it.

Cranberry Update

2009-11-13T00:33:00.002-05:00

The bubbles were noticeably slower today. Checked the SG and it was at 1.012, with it starting at 1.110, puts the wine at. just over 13% abv with a semi sweet finished. Racked, stabilized and degassed the wine. There was lot sediment left, but since I started 5 qts, I still have a gallon.

Tennessee Apple Clearing

2009-11-11T20:50:00.006-05:00

It has bee a month since racking and stabilizing. Wine has not cleared any since the second day from racking. There is almost no deposits in the jug. Decided to add some Sparkolloid to try and clear it. Mixed up a batch and stirred it in thoroughly. Now I wait and see.

11/19/09: Placed jug in Refrigerator for cold stabilization and help to clear the Apple Wine. Wine appears to be stable but just not clearing, even after adding Sparkolloid.

12/8/09: Not clearing yet. Racked and added Bentonite. Lets see what happens now
12/12/09: Looks like it is beginning to clear.

Polk County White: First True Tasting

2009-10-31T10:42:00.007-04:00

The Polk County White is 3 months old and has been in the bottle for a month. I decided it was time to give one a try.

Nose: Light fruity and tart aroma.

Taste: Slightly Tart and Sweet at the same time. Light fruit with a hint of Muscat or Muscadine taste and a good sweetness balance.

Alc: I did not have a hydrometer when I started the batch, so I am unable to determine the alcohol content of the wine. The feel is around 10% if I had to guess. It definitely is not prominent or over powering at all just sort of in the background.

Final Notes: For a first batch, not bad. It makes for an average White Table Wine. I actually wish I had left it dry and had not sweetened it. It is very easy drinking and goes done very quick. I might actually be able to make this stuff.
If I make this again I think I will leave it dry and definitely make the alcohol near 12%.

Try another bottle in a month.

Muscadine Update

2009-10-22T08:59:00.001-04:00

I was going to wait another 30 days before messing with this wine. But there had not been a hint of a bubble in over a month and with cooler temps in the house the air lock level was moving back towards the wine. So I decided this would be a good time to rack and sweeten. Racked both gallons to one of my primary buckets. Adjust the sugar to taste. (measured sg 1.006) Just a little off dry. Taste other than being high in the alcohol department (over 15%) was good. similar to a high alcohol version Southern Red from Lakeridge Winery. A little lighter on the body but good. Transferred back to the cleaned gallon jugs. To one jug I added 1/8tsp of Tannin. To the other a little more sugar (sg 1.012). Airlocks back on and put away for a couple of months.

Tennessee Apple Racking

2009-10-12T19:10:00.001-04:00

It has been about 3 weeks since the first racking. Fermentation has slowed considerably , bit still some signs of fermentation and thin firm deposit on the bottom of the jug. Checked the SG and it is .995, that puts it at 12.9% abv. Racked to a clean jug, added 1 Campden tablet and Potassium Sorbate. Did some degassing and topped up. Put it away for 2 months. Taste is a little rough but I could taste its potential.

Cranberry begins

2009-10-09T11:15:00.021-04:00

10/9/09: Started my Cranberry Wine today. The picture shows the cranberries I used in it. I am following the recipe in the previous post. With one addition; 6oz grape juice concentrate to add a little more body to the wine.

10/10/09: Pitched the yeast this morning from a starter. Decided to use Lalvin 71B-1122. The must started at SG of 1.110, the higher starting SG combined with the yeast should give about 13-14%abv semi-sweet to sweet wine. I have about 5qts of must including the rehydrate Cranberries. As of 12 hours the Must was showing very little signs of fermentation. I snapped the lid down tight on the fermentor and it was pushing some bubbles but very slowly. If the fermentation does not improve by morning I will probably make a new starter and toss it in.

10/11/09: Checked this morning and the fermentation is starting to get going a little better, I can actually here the bubbles working through the fruit. Starting to produce that distinct odor of fermenting fruit. By the afternoon (almost36hrs.) it is rolling good now.

10/15/09: Been punching the cap and stirring twice daily. Checked SG this morning now at 1.060 (6.5%abv). targeting 1.030 to rack.

10/17/09, Day 7: Racked to secondary ended up with 1 gal + 750ml. SG at 1.046. Fermentation is a little slower than previous batches I have done. Hours later in the secondary lots of sediment appearing.

10/18: Appears the 1 gal shows no sign of fermentation but the residual in the 750ml is going like gangbusters. The sg on the 1 gal had not changed from 24hrs earlier. Added 1/2 teaspoon of nutrient and by afternoon still no sign of active fermentation. Recombined the 2 bottles in the primary fermenter and active fermentation again. I am not sure what happened. Maybe not enough of the yeast transfer with wine? Will just monitor and try again in a couple days. This time wait to rack/transfer until below 1.030.

10/19: Stll not making progress. Added a new yeast starter. I will have really review my notes to see what went wrong on this one.

10/22-23/09: Fermentation has been continuing since adding a new starter. Slow but still working. On 10/22 stirred must and transferred to the secondary fermentation containers. (1gal and 750ml), after a couple of hours a lot of sediment. 10/23; fermentation is still continuing nicely and the lees (sediment) are compacting down. I can actually see the bubbles coming up from the bottom of the sediment area. I think it might end up being ok.

10/25/09: Checked on the secondary and it is bubbling good

11/11/09: Still bubbling

Cranberry

2009-10-07T21:14:00.000-04:00

I came across a recipe for using dried Cranberries on Jack Keller's site, that looked simple and inviting. So I was at the store with my wife tonight and picked up some Cranberries, good ones, no sulfite or sorbic acid, Just cranberries and sugar. This should be ready in time for Thanksgiving 2010. I may use this or kick up sugar and alcohol content and make a dessert type. I will need to use a different yeast for that purpose.

Here is Jack's recipe:

DRIED CRANBERRY WINE

1 lb dried, unsulfited cranberries
2-1/2 lbs granulated sugar
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1/8 tsp tannin
1 crushed Campden tablet
water to one gallon
1 pkt Lalvin RC212 (Bourgovin) wine yeast

Chop the cranberries or run them through a mincer. Place in primary and add one quart warm water. Stir in crushed Campden tablet. Cover and set aside 12 hours. Add pectic enzyme, recover primary and set aside another 12 hours. Meanwhile, bring remainder of water to boil and stir in sugar until completely dissolved. Cover sugar and allow to cool to room temperature. When 12-hour pectic enzyme treatment is complete, combine remaining ingredients in primary and add sugar water. Stir well and cover primary. Stir twice daily for 7 days. Strain out cranberries, rack liquid into secondary and fit airlock. Rack every 60 days for 6 months, topping up and refitting airlock each time. Stabilize, sweeten to taste, wait 10-14 days, and rack into bottles. Store in cool, dark place for additional 6 months.

Wine Labels

2009-10-07T08:12:00.003-04:00

I challenged my daughter with designing me a label for my homemade wines. We decided it needed a catchy fictitious Winery name as well. The picture shows what she came up with. A very classy label with a Cool name.
(Click on image for a larger view)

Bottling Day (My First Batch)

2009-09-29T21:22:00.000-04:00

The wine is nearly 2 months old. Clear and stable. I had sweetened it a couple weeks ago and it actually tastes OK. A little off the dry mark and good flavor, a nice light table wine and cheap. A little more time in the bottle and might actually taste real good.

Tennessee Apple (First Racking)

2009-09-24T08:33:00.001-04:00

Checked the S.G. and it was below 1.030, so I racked it into the secondary fermenter last evening. Taste good, a little yeasty, it actually has a beer type taste. I would imagine that would be from of all the yeast and CO2 in the must.

2009-09-23T21:19:00.003-04:00

My Wine projects. Back to front (White grape concentrate), Muscadine Noble from grapes (2gal), and Tennessee Apple.

Tennessee Apple Wine

2009-09-20T14:56:00.009-04:00

Finally located some 1 Gallon jugs. A freind of mine brought back some from Tennessee. Only Problem they are full of Apple Cider from The Apple Barn, 2 solutions; drink it or make wine from some of it. Found the following formula from Jack Keller's site which I followed.

1 gallon pure apple juice (no preservatives)
1 lb. granuated sugar
1-1/2 tsp. acid blend
1/2 tsp. pectic enzyme
1/4 tsp tannin
1 crushed Campden tablet
Champagne yeast and nutrient

Put juice, sugar, crushed Campden tablet, pectic enzyme, acid blend, and tannin into primary fermentation vessel. Stir vigorously to dissolve solids and cover. After 24 hours, add yeast and nutrient and cover. Stir daily. When S.G. reaches 1.040 (3-5 days), rack into secondary fermentation vessel and fit airlock. Rack again after 30 days and again after two months. When wine is clear, rack again and bottle. Taste after six months. [Adapted from Raymond Massaccesi's Winemaker's Recipe Handbook]

The only change I made was the Yeast I used Red Star Montrachet. And made sure I added the correct sugar for an SG of 1.090. This morning 12 hours after putting in the stater, the Must fermenting well.

Muscadine Racking (3 weeks in secondary)

2009-09-18T11:24:00.004-04:00

Racking went smoothly. Had to make up some volume after racking off the lees. I used some cheap Merlot I had on hand and some water. This gives a full 2 gallons still. Took a taste, Alcohol Level is real high (about 16.4% before topping up), I may sweeten it at the end to bring some flavor back, time will tell. But there is the underlying flavor of the Muscadine Noble grape. The Wine is completely dry with SG at 0.990. Added 1 Campden tablet per jug and Potassium Sorbate to hopefully stop the Yeast. Now to put it to rest for a couple of months.

Ramblings

2009-09-17T08:24:00.002-04:00

I am thinking of making a Blueberry Port styled wine and possibly a Cranberry Wine for the holiday season next year (2010). Since fresh cranberries will start being available soon. I will be definitely starting my Pumpkin wine in the next couple of weeks.

Pumpkin Wine

2009-09-17T08:18:00.000-04:00

After I my research, I have decided on the Jack Keller's Pumpkin recipe he has posted on his website.

Pumpkin Wine

2009-09-14T16:53:00.004-04:00

I am planning a pumpkin wine. I have found lots of recipes, but lots of mixed reviews as well. Any Suggestions would be great

Muscadine Update 9/14/09

2009-09-14T15:42:00.005-04:00

2 1/2 weeks since transferring to the 1 Gallon jugs and there is still active fermentation going on. A pretty good sediment layer is forming on the bottom. Also some dead yeast sediment collecting on the ridges on the sides so I just give the jug a jiggle every few days to knock it down.

Welch's Frozen Concentrate update 9/14/09

2009-09-14T14:45:00.007-04:00

Racked off the Bentonite today, stirred vigorously to degas the wine. The wine is very clear now, the bentonite really worked well. Added one crushed campden tablet. Took a taste and it is not too bad. Added a little sugar and topped up with a little water. Refitted airlock and will watch out for fermentation restart. There should be none since I added Potassium Sorbate at the last racking. This stuff might not even taste too bad when finished.

Welch's Frozen Concentrate update

2009-09-02T17:46:00.004-04:00

Appears that all fermentation has stopped. No indication of a bubble in many days. There was a small Amount of lees on the bottom. Racked over to a temp container and washed out bottle. Racked back added 1 crushed campden tablet and 1/2 teaspoon potassium sorbate to stabilize. In a couple days to the fridge to cold stabilize.
Had a small taste, not too bad. very dry and lots alcohol. Needs to be sweetened up a little and might actually be OK.

Muscadine day 7 update

2009-08-28T23:22:00.012-04:00

Transferred wine to secondary container and removed the pulp and seeds. I now have 2 gals of beautiful deep ruby red Muscadine Nobel Wine and actually doesn't taste to bad. SG was 1.032 at the time of transfer from a starting level of 1.111 on 8/23. When it was time to transfer I only had 1 airlock and the only thing large enough (2gal) was my 2.5 gal primary bucket. Transferred to that, but by morning it did not see the bubble rate I expected to see. But by afternoon my other airlocks arrived. So I transferred to two 1gal bottles. I am not sure the bucket had an air tight seal, since these are bubbling quite well still.

Muscadine Wine 54hr.

2009-08-26T08:33:00.005-04:00

The Must is really bubbling and still putting off a strong odor, but not quite as strong. SG down to 1.060 this morning, was 1.081 at the 36hr. mark. Color is a real nice dark ruby red. Probably will be down to 1.030 to 1.040 by tomorrow afternoon and time to remove the skins and seeds.

Muscadine Day 2: The Yeast

2009-08-23T21:25:00.005-04:00

Gave the strainer bag a squeeze to get some more juice out. Checked the SG today it is at 1.110. Higher than my target was color of the juice is a dark pink. Added the Yeast Nutrient to the Must and created a yeast starter with Pasteur Red yeast. An hour after re-hydrating the yeast in 1 cup of warm water, added 1/4 of the juice every 1.5 hours until I added 1 cup of juice. The started was realing foaming and bubbling good (should have taken a picture). Stirred into the must and with in a couple of hours it is already bubbling real good.

2009-08-22T17:33:00.007-04:00

Went the Grapes of Kath vineyard for the annual grape stomp celebration. Tasted some very interesting wines today. Picked some grapes (Muscadine Noble) while I was there. After arriving home almost immediately crushed the grapes and started my first batch of Muscadine wine. Took measurement of SG and calculated what should have been the correct sugar amount. Disolved and added. Oops too high. I was going for a dry wine. Added some water and brought the SG down to 1.120 still higher than I want. So I guess I will be making a semi-sweet wine instead. I will be using Pasteur Red Yeast so it might push the alcohol higher instead only time will till. Added Potassium Metabisulfite and pectic ezyme. Now tomorrow i will check the SG again before adding the yeast.
Lesson learned: go slow with the sugar and add in small quantities.

Weekly Update (Going Grape Stomping)

2009-08-21T07:39:00.006-04:00

It has been 2 weeks since my first batch of wine was started. The fermitation looks like it is long finished. There is positive pressure in both bottles and the wine is starting clear a little. Very tempting to open and taste, but I need to wait 2 more weeks. I will be going to a Grape Festival in Sebring Fl. tomorrow at the Grapes of Kath Vinyard and Nursery. I plan to pick up a couple a supplies and some U-Pick Muscadine grapes and start a batch of some Muscadine based wine from grapes. Stay tuned and there will pictures.

1 Week Update

2009-08-14T12:28:00.007-04:00

Tried a little experiment today with the 20oz bottle on the left. I had added some water to it already just to get the level up some. Here is what I tried today; Poured off a little of the wine. Made a simple syrup with about of 2tbls of sugar and added to the bottle. It appeared that there is no fermentation activity as of today. I figured the added sugar will either start the yeast back to work or sweeten the wine.

What I pored off was a little clearer then when I racked it into the bottle. Took a small taste and it was not to bad. Very dry with a good bite, but a yeasty smell. I guess time should cure this issue. The small bottle should be a good representation of what is in the 3L bottle, but a little diluted because of the water I used to top it up.

Day 5 First Racking

2009-08-12T10:20:00.008-04:00

Checked the batch this morning and did not detect a bubble in the few minutes I watched it. Not using a hydrometer, so decided it was time to rack into the3L (could not find a 1gal) glass jug. It did not all fit so added the last bit to a clean 20oz bottle with a balloon (poor mans airlock). The wine? looks OK smells closer to wine. Took a small taste, almost completely dry tasting but not good. But it does have wine taste and feel, just very raw, a little yeast taste, but it also very cloudy still. Time is now going to be our friend I hope. Not much to do for a few weeks now but watch it. Hurry Up and Wait

96 hours

2009-08-11T17:59:00.006-04:00

Checked wine and it resumed the bubbles through the airlock. The rate is the same as this morning still a 65-66 seconds between bubbles. Still going strong.

Day 4

2009-08-11T09:24:00.005-04:00

Another quick stir and let it sit. Bubbles have slowed from 23 seconds last night to 66 secondes this morning. Actually smelling closer to wine than bread, unlike previous days.

Thought I messed it up

2009-08-10T07:20:00.006-04:00

I checked on my batch a few hours after giving the must a stir and there were no bubbles after watching for a few minutes. I am thinking I messed it up, but I figured I better leave it alone. Checked this morning and bubble rate resumed to the same as before I stirred it. Now just let it go for a few days until the bubbles slow down.

2009-08-09T16:26:00.005-04:00

Nearly 48 hrs since pitching (adding) the yeast; Still a good strong fermentation going on. The Must has gotten real cloudy. Gave it a quick mix and refitted the lid and Airlock. Disturbing or not disturbing the Must? About a 50/50 opinion on it. I noticed a good layer forming on the bottom, it will resettle in a couple of days. Probably rack into a clear glass jug in about 3-4 more days.

hour 12

2009-08-08T11:13:00.006-04:00

Got up this morning and checked on the Must. No bubbles or foam, So being the rookie and chicken to mess it up I fitted the lid and airlock to the container. Yeast is working quite well, lots of bubbles coming through the airlock. I guess I could have left the paper towel covering and been ok. Better safe than sorry.

2009-08-07T23:34:00.002-04:00

Started my first batch of homemade wine tonight. A very simple concoction from Frozen concentrate white grape juice. Mostly to get a feel of the wine making process in the simplest form. And maybe I will actually make something drinkable.