# 2020 is happening.



## CDrew (Sep 19, 2020)

A bit late. I got home from Alaska on 9/11 at midnight and the next day was picking Syrah and Sangiovese. THat's been working a week and as of today the Syrah and Sangiovese are in Carboys-All my carboys are in use. So 23ish gallons of each are waiting to settle and will siphon off the good wine tomorrow.

Today 9/19 we picked Primitivo near Auburn California and had a great time. Even the wife participated. We were aiming for 300 pounds of primitivo but likely have more like 400 pounds.

So for those interested, there are 24 gallons of Syrah, 23 gallons of Sangiovese, and now 400 pounds of Primitivo underway. It's been a chaotic week, but things are settling down and wine making is underway for 2020.

For the record, the syrah (25 Brix)was corrected with 1.5 gm/L of Tartaric acid, the Sangiovese(24 brix) needed 0.5gm/L tartaric, and the Primitivo picked today was pH 3.6, 25 Brix, and 6.8 TA. I did not make any additions/corrections.

I totally missed out on meeting @crushday as I was still in Alaska and @NorCal tried to include me in a Cab Franc buy but the timing just did not work. Hopefully next year.

The pics uploaded as a mess which I'll try and fix. Edit-basically cannot fix. Sorry about the duplicates.


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## crushday (Sep 20, 2020)

Very cool, @CDrew... It's been a long couple of weeks for you. My CF is still shedding tiny bubbles...


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## Kraffty (Sep 20, 2020)

sounds like you've been very busy, looking good. Where do you find those square crates? I've been using the rectangular milk crates but those look much better.


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## crushday (Sep 20, 2020)

@Kraffty asked: Where do you find those square crates?



https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WFQKMPR/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1


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## CDrew (Sep 20, 2020)

Kraffty said:


> Where do you find those square crates? I've been using the rectangular milk crates but those look much better.



Funny you should ask. Our local elementary school changed dairy suppliers and the new supplier uses rectangular crates. But the school one evening put about 30 of the small square crates out by the dumpster. I was there walking the dog and saw the custodian doing that. We went straight home and came back with the minivan and liberated all 30!


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## Chuck E (Sep 20, 2020)

@CDrew 

Pics did not come thru... I'm interested to see how your harvest turned out.


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## CDrew (Sep 20, 2020)

Chuck E said:


> Pics did not come thru... I'm interested to see how your harvest turned out.



Odd, they show up for me in the first post. But a very fast and brief season! 3 varietals/1000 pounds of grapes in 7 days. Racking the Syrah and Sangiovese off the gross lees this evening. Primitivo is fermenting away nicely! I tasted the just pressed Syrah yesterday and it is delicious. Should be really nice in a few years.

Still need to do a Rose though, so I forsee and additional harvest soon. Time has really flown by this week. Next week will be better when the wine is all safely tucked away in the dark to complete MLF for a few weeks. I'll edit this post with a test pic


This is about 46 gallons of new wine and 3 fermenters of Primitivo that I picked and started yesterday. My garage is a disaster, but should have tidy by tomorrow.


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## Kraffty (Sep 20, 2020)

Drews Garage & Tastings ?


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## Ajmassa (Sep 20, 2020)

@CDrew curious why is it that I’ve never heard of Primitivo until reading your postings? Is there a reason it’s not a more popular varietal?


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## franc1969 (Sep 20, 2020)

I got some new milk crates at Home Depot last month.


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## CDrew (Sep 20, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> @CDrew curious why is it that I’ve never heard of Primitivo until reading your postings? Is there a reason it’s not a more popular varietal?



I don't know but I have a theory. It's pretty common here and most wineries have a Primitivo.

It's a clone of the same parent as Zinfandel, and looks smells tastes the same to me. I think that since there is huge acreage of Zinfandel all over California, this was a way to make basically the same grape stand out from the crowd. It is said that Primitivo is "more refined" than Zin but I personally think it's the same grape.

I've made a primitivo now 4 years running, and since one of my friends has a small Primitivo vineyard, I assume I'll do one every year. This year the grapes were spectacular and I expect really good wine in the end. I'm pretty sure I'll yield 25 gallons or more. I wish I had diverted some to a Rose, but I just ran out of time and so, here we are!


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## AaronSC (Sep 21, 2020)

I've been doing some reading on Primitivo, since I was also confused. The vineyard by my house has both, and had both available for purchase this year.This is the story as I understand it. Zinfandel and Primitivo were at one time essentially the same grape. When Zinfandel was imported into the US in the 19th century and planted wildly in California it began to evolve based on human selection, in many cases to have higher yields and in other cases to produce better "white zinfandel", and in others to survive the very dry California summer. Since Zinfandel was always a strange case and no one knew what it really was (though it was clearly vinifera) ampelographers had always been trying to find its analog in Europe. Ultimately, DNA testing showed that Primitovo was close enough to "call it a match", mystery solved. They are clearly not genetically identical (or there would be no difference) but apparently they are so close that they fall within the range of variation within cultivars. More recently the original source was found in Croatia, but it has a weird name I can't remember.

OK, why is it here? After identifying Primitivo as the same cultivar as Zin, it was reimported into the US and places started planting it. What they found was that Primitivo had some interesting flavor characteristics that people liked and some preferred over the local variation, probably because some of the evolutionary pressures on Zinfandels were not geared towards producing elegant, wine, but a lot of wine that could survive with no water for six months (and maybe to make a lot of rosé, too).

That the story I could piece together. When it came time to buy my grapes I chose Zinfandel over Primitivo because the winery associated with the vineyard makes the best Zin in California, IMHO.

Here's some grapes I got yesterday from them -Zinfandel porn!


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## CDrew (Sep 21, 2020)

That Zin looks good. Crazy time right now. Nice connection for that. Fun that this year, everything is coming ripe in the same timeframe. Makes for some late nights and early mornings. I have to say, I prefer normal years with the harvest spread over a little more time.

I had a glass of brand new Sangiovese left over and am enjoying it right now. Sangiovese nouveau, Who knew? It's good. You can still see the yeast in it.


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## AaronSC (Sep 21, 2020)

Ha ha -I drank some Tempranillo nouveau and Barbera nouveau today while pressing my reds that finished fermentation. They're going to be good, I think!


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## Chuck E (Sep 21, 2020)

@CDrew The pics are coming through now. Thank you WMT gods.


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## jburtner (Sep 21, 2020)

I was planning to source a pallet of grapes/CD/FlexTank this year but plans changed of course... Might still do three buckets worth of frozen must to get a good 6g carboy in the pipeline. A good PN would be nice.

Cheers,
johann


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## buzi (Sep 23, 2020)

I love seeing the postings from you california guys. Someday I will make it out there. In the mean time I will live vicariously through your postings! Those grape bunches are beautiful!


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## CDrew (Sep 25, 2020)

An update--Looking ahead at my work schedule, I had to press the Primitivo yesterday. I was still at 4 brix. Early. That's a bit high but I went forward anyway. It's still very sweet tasting but very good and a nice balance. It's fermenting like crazy in the carboys. I like to do an initial press into carboys, which makes it easier to rack off the lees into more permanent aging containers in a few days. I'll wait until this primitivo finishes fermenting in a few days, and then rack. What a hectic 2020. 3 picks, 3 fermentations, 1/2 ton, lots of racking, but great looking wines. I still want another small pick to make a Rose.


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## CDrew (Oct 11, 2020)

There's a lot to update, but I'll start with the Syrah, sangiovese and Primitivo. They are all racked away in stainless steel, undergoing MLF, which is likely close to done. I'll check in a week or so. Strangely the Primitivo is still bubbling a bit even though pressed early. Brix are below -0- so not worried about it. Maybe the bubbles are a vigorous MLF. I'm planning a mass racking around November 1 when I'll oak and leave it until February. Will edit with pictures in a moment.


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## CDrew (Oct 11, 2020)

CDrew said:


> I still want another small pick to make a Rose.




So this turned out to be a huge understatement of what actually went down today.

One of the wineries I've been a club member at for the last 10 years or so, had said last year I could pick the excess Barbera that did not get picked, I could not because of scheduling, but this year the owner called me. He said they had the 2 1/2 tons they wanted and there were still 3 rows left of "perfect" Barbera if I wanted to come up and pick it. Today was the day.

Today started with me going to the LHBS to rent a crusher stemmer. I was there at opening and had it in the garage by 1015 am. Then drove up to Amador for the Barbera pick. I was expecting a gleaning type pick where the easy grapes have already been picked out and you sort through the small clusters and raisins to get what you want. Instead, this was a pick of #1 first class Barbera. RIGHT NEXT TO THE CAR. I mean it was too easy. I should have bought more Brutes, because we filled 2 40 gallon Brutes in about 1 hour. Big mistake on my part, if we'd had more brutes we could easily have had more grapes. As it is, I think we picked 400+ pounds of grapes and there's about 40 gallons of must in the garage now. We crushed after an on the spot crusher repair.

Anyway this was a great opportunity and I have to thank Rob Morse of Morse wines for the chance at these grapes. He said that they had picked these this past weeks and got the 2.5 tons they wanted, but there was at least another ton left. There were 3 full rows, and we picked the first third of each row. What we took today only dented what's there. The rest will feed the birds and deer. And they are beautiful grapes. Nutty seeds, beautifully ripe, we ate piles of them while picking. Will come back with pictures.

Things I learned today:

-Own your own crusher. The rental one sucked, had to be totally cleaned out, the gears didn't mesh and had to be repaired in real time by me. I'll have one by next season. Not doing that again. Still had fun though. Will edit with pictures.


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## Ajmassa (Oct 11, 2020)

That last picture of the full brute— looks like every one is a perfect cluster! So much waste though- what a shame. They should at minimum put an ad out on winebusinessdotcom for a bulk grape purchase. At least try and get something out of it. Barbera is a fun one too. Should be great rosé, single varietal, and as a blender. Good luck!

big ass berries too! Goin saigneé will be a real nice benefit.


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## CDrew (Oct 11, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> That last picture of the full brute— looks like every one is a perfect cluster! So much waste though- what a shame. They should at minimum put an ad out on winebusinessdotcom for a bulk grape purchase. At least try and get something out of it. Barbera is a fun one too. Should be great rosé, single varietal, and as a blender. Good luck!
> 
> big ass berries too! Goin saigneé will be a real nice benefit.



Yes. A great pick so now it's up to me!

All over, are unpicked grapes. I know of 25 acres of beautiful Zinfandel that normally goes to Napa that is going unpicked this year. Its sad. With wineries backing off this year, and crews being hard to find, and "smoke taint" being a thing, it's a strange time. But for me, it's been a great but busy year. This Barbera is a bonus. 3-4 cases of Rose and the same of Barbera will be huge. 

The Brix on this Barbera is 25.5, I just measured. So its ripe and ready. Going to press my Rose right now. It's had a 4 hour soak and that's all the time I have.


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## CDrew (Oct 12, 2020)

The plan has jelled. I watered back the must destined to be Rose to 23 with acidulated water. I'll press in another hour. Trying to get as much color as possible. Yeast D21. I'll add some optiwhite and then the yeast ater go-ferm. 

The other half, 20 gallons of must will go as is, but because of the high brix will get fermented with Avante. I gave it a dose of Lallzyme EX too. I want to drink this in 2 years so I want color but not big tannin.

And an update...I may have waited too long, because after press the Rose looks like red wine. Lol. This will not be a light colored "blanc de noir". More like Rouge de noir, pardon my French! Have 12-13 gallons of the Rose. I'm really thinking this will be good.

The Barbera is about 20 gal of must and will just be what it is. I don't have any opti-red but will add some fermentation tannin tomorrow.


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## CDrew (Oct 12, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> @CDrew curious why is it that I’ve never heard of Primitivo until reading your postings? Is there a reason it’s not a more popular varietal?




So I had a very interesting tasting today. Side by side 2014 Primitivo and Zinfandel from the same vineyard, same slope, fermented with the same conditions, same winery same everything. And dang, the Primitivo was better. It could have gone the other way, but it was what it was. Very fun and instructive.


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## Johnd (Oct 12, 2020)

CDrew said:


> So I had a very interesting tasting today. Side by side 2014 Primitivo and Zinfandel from the same vineyard, same slope, fermented with the same conditions, same winery same everything. And dang, the Primitivo was better. It could have gone the other way, but it was what it was. Very fun and instructive.



So, I have to say, it really sucks for me that you live in wine / grape country and I don’t.

LOL, sounds like a pretty cool experience all the way around.....


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## Mac60 (Oct 12, 2020)

Got our grapes on Friday we hand crushed the 2 tons took 3 of us 12 hours with setup and cleanup. We were a bit disappointed with the Lanza Sangiovese Brunello and Syrah, lots of raisins, and lots of sorting through grapes. the Number were good LMP Cab 168 Clone P




H 3.50 and .75 TA , 26 Brix
We didn't expect this from Lanza grapes, We had the grandkids help us sort out the mess.....


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## Johnd (Oct 12, 2020)

Mac60 said:


> Got our grapes on Friday we hand crushed the 2 tons took 3 of us 12 hours with setup and cleanup. We were a bit disappointed with the Lanza Sangiovese Brunello and Syrah, lots of raisins, and lots of sorting through grapes. the Number were good LMP Cab 168 Clone PView attachment 66941
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> ...


Make Amarone!!


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## Chuck E (Oct 12, 2020)

CDrew said:


> And an update...I may have waited too long, because after press the Rose looks like red wine. Lol. This will not be a light colored "blanc de noir". More like Rouge de noir, pardon my French! Have 12-13 gallons of the Rose. I'm really thinking this will be good.
> 
> The Barbera is about 20 gal of must and will just be what it is. I don't have any opti-red but will add some fermentation tannin tomorrow.



I took some of my Zinfandel grapes to make Rose. 4 hours on the skins and it is quite a bit darker than I thought it would be.


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## CDrew (Oct 12, 2020)

Chuck E said:


> I took some of my Zinfandel grapes to make Rose. 4 hours on the skins and it is quite a bit darker than I thought it would be.




How was it after fermentation? Did it lighten up any? Can you see through it? Last year I went 8 hours on the Mourvedre skins and it was too light. This year it was maybe 4 hours on the Barbera skins and it looks dark. I think it's going to taste great though. It's already off to a quick start with the D21 yeast. Super happy with it so far. I've never watered any wine back to lower the brix. This one I did so I'll be curious to see if that decreases the quality at all.


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## Ajmassa (Oct 12, 2020)

CDrew said:


> How was it after fermentation? Did it lighten up any? Can you see through it? Last year I went 8 hours on the Mourvedre skins and it was too light. This year it was maybe 4 hours on the Barbera skins and it looks dark. I think it's going to taste great though. It's already off to a quick start with the D21 yeast. Super happy with it so far. I've never watered any wine back to lower the brix. This one I did so I'll be curious to see if that decreases the quality at all.


Whenever reading any type of article or write-up for rosé I’m always seeing time ranges of “a few hours up to a day” on the skins. Obviously all grapes are different but 24 hours sounds crazy to me. I had plenty of color when I crushed & pressed _immediately_ for essentially 0 skins time on my Malbec. Just the time it took to crush and press. 
That’s why I’m planning on the same immediate saigneé method on an upcoming cab. C/D will be on site so I’m pulling my juice in the damn parking lot! No pressing this time, just strain. Then refrigerating to rack off the fallout into a carboy before inoculating. (My Malbec had a substantial amount drop out which would have darkened it more I’m sure)
I can always add some back for color, but can’t take it out!


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## CDrew (Oct 12, 2020)

So as usual, the Avante fermentation took off like gangbusters. I didn't pitch until about 10pm last night and at 8 am today it was pretty quiet. But by noon today thigs were looking promising and by 4 pm they are really rocking. Big thick cap, reforms immediately after punch down, I'm a bit worried it may try and climb out tonight. I don't get home from work until 1 am so I should be able to keep an eye on it. You can't really see it, but the color extraction has been beautiful so far.

The D21 fermenting the Rose, is a bit more sedate, but it's rolling along at this point as well. That fermentation is in an Intellitank. There's about 13 gallons in a 15 gallon container which so far is plenty of head space. Both ferments got their first feeding. I also added "Optiwhite" to the Rose at about half of what would be considered a "normal dose". I'm hoping to preserve the bright acidity of this barbera Rose and will eventually have to do something to prevent MLF. Torn on that issue though, because my last Rose went through spontaneous MLF in December despite normal SO2 additions.


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## Boatboy24 (Oct 13, 2020)

@CDrew: Lysozyme to prevent MLF in that Rose.


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## CDrew (Oct 13, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> @CDrew: Lysozyme to prevent MLF in that Rose.



I have Lysozyme to do that, but I was reading that you need to fine it before bottling which I was hoping to avoid. But it's a good thought for sure. I'll taste at the end of fermentation and decide.


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## Chuck E (Oct 13, 2020)

CDrew said:


> How was it after fermentation? Did it lighten up any? Can you see through it? Last year I went 8 hours on the Mourvedre skins and it was too light. This year it was maybe 4 hours on the Barbera skins and it looks dark. I think it's going to taste great though. It's already off to a quick start with the D21 yeast. Super happy with it so far. I've never watered any wine back to lower the brix. This one I did so I'll be curious to see if that decreases the quality at all.



This is 5 hours on the Zinfandel skins then pressed. It tastes great but very "young." 


. It looks dark in the carboy. Here are 2 pics. The glass by itself and a pic with the "top off" jug.


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## CDrew (Oct 13, 2020)

@Chuck E that looks fantastic. I'd be very happy with that outcome.


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## CDrew (Oct 13, 2020)

Back to the Barbera and Barbera Rose fermentation:

Barbera is at 80F, vigorously fermenting-punching down every 4 hours today. Brix has gone from 25.5 to 13, so I'm halfway home. Fed another 1q/gallon Fermaid O. Planning another 0.5g/gallon tomorrow morning. I don't want to speak too soon, but looks like another Avante win. Press trajectory is Friday or Saturday. MLB (CH16 0.5gm) just added, figuring 1/3 of the packet for 20 gallons of wine. The rest got vacuum sealed and back in the Freezer.


Barbera Rose is 75F. No real way to cool it so I'll ride it out. Smells fantastic. Brix was hard to measure because of the amount of foam in the test jar, but it looks like 15 ish, so 23 brix to 15 brix in 24 hours. Also fed with 1gm/gallon Fermaid O. No MLB for this one until an assessment can be made later. Will see if this YouTube upload thing works:

Rose Airlock


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## Boatboy24 (Oct 13, 2020)

CDrew said:


> Will see if this YouTube upload thing works:
> 
> Rose Airlock



It worked. And it looks like you have a very healthy fermentation going there.


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## AaronSC (Oct 14, 2020)

I made Barbera rosé this year too. My grapes we processed a month ago, so the rose is clearing now. It looked too dark when I pressed it, but it looks like it's not far from a white wine now! Same thing with Malbec -it tasted a bit tannic and very dark for a rose after first racking but now it's very light and no tannins. Hopefully the trend doesn't continue or they will hardly be rosé at all...


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## heatherd (Oct 14, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Whenever reading any type of article or write-up for rosé I’m always seeing time ranges of “a few hours up to a day” on the skins. Obviously all grapes are different but 24 hours sounds crazy to me. I had plenty of color when I crushed & pressed _immediately_ for essentially 0 skins time on my Malbec. Just the time it took to crush and press.
> That’s why I’m planning on the same immediate saigneé method on an upcoming cab. C/D will be on site so I’m pulling my juice in the damn parking lot! No pressing this time, just strain. Then refrigerating to rack off the fallout into a carboy before inoculating. (My Malbec had a substantial amount drop out which would have darkened it more I’m sure)
> I can always add some back for color, but can’t take it out!



That sounds really cool @Ajmassa!! I'll admit I had to check Wine Folly to figure out what you were walking about... 








Different Shades of Rose Wine | Wine Folly


Learn all about Rosé wine, from the different styles and grapes to the varied flavors. For example, White Zinfandel is produced with the same grapes as Red Zinfandel but the two wines are stunningly different.




winefolly.com





*"Maceration Method*
The maceration method is most commonly used for commercial Rosé. Maceration is when the grapes are pressed and sit in their skins. In red wine making, maceration usually lasts throughout the fermentation. For Rosé, the juice is separated from the skins before it gets too dark. For lighter varieties, like Grenache, it can take 24 hours. For darker red-wine varieties, like Mourvedre, the process sometimes only lasts a few hours.

*Vin Gris Method*
Vin Gris, translates to “Gray Wine” and is when red grapes are used to make a nearly-white wine. Vin Gris uses an extremely short maceration time. This style of Rosé winemaking is popular for the lighter red wine varieties such as Pinot Noir in the United States and Gamay or Cinsault in France.

*The Saignée Method*
The Saignée method is capable of producing some of the longest lasting Rosé wines. It is actually a by-product of red winemaking. During the fermentation of a red wine about 10% of the juice is bled off. This process leaves a higher ratio of skin contact on the remaining juice, making the resulting red wine richer and bolder. The leftover bled wine or “Saignée” is then fermented into Rosé. Wines made from the Saignée method are typically *much darker* than Maceration Method wines and also much more savory.

*NAPA VALLEY CABERNET SECRET: SAIGNÉE*
Many Cabernet Sauvignon producers in Napa valley use the Saignée method to increase the richness of their red wines. If you travel there, you’ll find an abundance of Rosé wines available at wineries, but usually nowhere else. A Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé is very rich, almost like a Pinot Noir, but with more savory notes of bell pepper, black pepper and cherry."


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## CDrew (Oct 14, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> @CDrew: Lysozyme to prevent MLF in that Rose.




I may actually embrace that. Bentonite fining does not sound hard, though I've never done it, I'm sure I can manage that. The primary fermentation is already slowing down, so I'll be giving this more thought by Friday. Seriously the wife is wiping out the Rose supply, so I need to make more. Looking to make 4 cases in 2020, instead of the 2 in 2019.

The red fermented Barbera has already passed the peak of fermentation. The Rose is about 12 hours behind. Headed in optimistic. It blows my mind that the Avante blows by anything and once established, finishes fermentation in 2 days. I'm going to hope to delay press until Friday or Saturday, but it's not clear yet.


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## Booty Juice (Oct 15, 2020)

Chuck E said:


> This is 5 hours on the Zinfandel skins then pressed. It tastes great but very "young." It looks dark in the carboy. Here are 2 pics. The glass by itself and a pic with the "top off" jug.




Wow that is a beautiful color.


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## CDrew (Oct 16, 2020)

The main Barbera fermentation was a -0.5 brix last night after work so I should have pressed then, but gambled that it would still be fine this am. After press I have exactly 15 gallons (2 x 6.5, 2 x 1) of new wine, so after racking off the gross lees I'll have 14 or so. I may have to supplement with a gallon or so of Primitivo to get to the 15 gallons I like at a time for aging. Color is fantastic as is the initial taste. I was carefully watching the bladder press output. I took it up to 1 bar and kept it there maybe 5 minutes, then took it to 2 bar for 5 minutes. By rough estimate I only got another 500ml at the most. Just not very much. So I'm still investigating press pressures and will likely just go to 1 bar from now on. I'll try and come back with a color shot.

The Rose was at +0.5 brix last night, and I did not check today, but I'm racking tonight regardless. Looks like 13 gallons or so so maybe I can yield 2 x 6 gallon carboys which I have and are currently empty. And BTW the color when I tested it last night is spot on for a light pink Rose. Very happy is isn't too dark.

Believe it or not, there are still grapes for sale up in the Foothills, but I am done after this. My two initial favorites of 2020 are the Primitivo and the Barbera. It will be interesting to see how the wine develops over time. At 2 years, I'm guessing the Syrah will have pulled ahead.

One other comment: I used Lallezyme EX as opposed to EX-V for the Barbera and it does a great job and I think there is less astringent tannin extraction. So going forward, for wine I want to drink at 2-4 years old, I'm using the EX. If I'm thinking something has staying power, I'll continue the EX-V but if 2019 Syrah is any indication it does make for a tannin bomb that will take awhile to mellow out.


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## Booty Juice (Oct 16, 2020)

CDrew said:


> Believe it or not, there are still grapes for sale up in the Foothills...



Yes they are, in both El Dorado and Placer counties - I am picking up 250 lbs of some beautiful looking Malbec fruit tomorrow here in San Luis Obispo county. This season has produced some great fruit.


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## AaronSC (Oct 16, 2020)

I'm very tempted to get more fruit since so much is out there that's going to rot on the vine, but I have already taken in almost 2 tons of strays and it's getting into crazy territory for a home winemaker. My original plan was 800lbs and I'm now up to 3,800lbs...


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## Booty Juice (Oct 16, 2020)

Hahaha I planned on 1,000lbs....ended up with 2,000. Too much beautiful fruit I couldn't pass up.

The best thing I did this year: Whole berry fermentation, started naturally, minimally augmented (because I'm chicken), and soft punch downs. Very happy with the results.


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## CDrew (Oct 16, 2020)

And to complete the thought-racked the Rose off the sludge today. It's basically dry but still fizzy. I got less than I had hoped and have 11 gallons (1 x 6 and 1 x 5) of cleanish wine. But here is the surprise: granny smith is in the house! Very, very strong taste of malic acid. I am going to put it through MLF and then will adjust acid levels and pH later. Great color.

Still fermenting a bit but tastes dry.

Again I was using CO2 to push the wine from one container to the other. Sanitary fittings are really great.


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## CDrew (Oct 16, 2020)

AaronSC said:


> I'm very tempted to get more fruit since so much is out there that's going to rot on the vine, but I have already taken in almost 2 tons of strays and it's getting into crazy territory for a home winemaker. My original plan was 800lbs and I'm now up to 3,800lbs...



Ha-I hear you but how much can you really drink. The grapes this year have been uniformly great. Really looking forward to 3 years from now and drinking the wine. This would be/is a good time to make some Rose that you can drink in March or April.


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## Ajmassa (Oct 16, 2020)

CDrew said:


> And to complete the thought-racked the Rose off the sludge today. It's basically dry but still fizzy. I got less than I had hoped and have 11 gallons (1 x 6 and 1 x 5) of cleanish wine. But here is the surprise: granny smith is in the house! Very, very strong taste of malic acid. I am going to put it through MLF and then will adjust acid levels and pH later. Great color.
> 
> Still fermenting a bit but tastes dry.
> 
> ...



looks great. And I like your plan of inducing MLF then adjusting later avoiding lysozyme and fining. Although I think I’m gonna use my rosè as an excuse to get a filter setup regardless of lysozyme. (Btw I never realized lysozyme specifically calls for fining before bottling). 
And I assume that’s StarSan bubbles in the receiving carboy in the pic right? The foam is what turned me away from using it. Fully aware it’s safe and whatnot. I don’t “_fear_ the foam”. I just didn’t like it lol.

Been a helluva 2020 season over there! Everything looks and sounds like it going great.


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## CDrew (Oct 16, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> looks great. And I like your plan of inducing MLF then adjusting later avoiding lysozyme and fining. Although I think I’m gonna use my rosè as an excuse to get a filter setup regardless of lysozyme. (Btw I never realized lysozyme specifically calls for fining before bottling).
> And I assume that’s StarSan bubbles in the receiving carboy in the pic right? The foam is what turned me away from using it. Fully aware it’s safe and whatnot. I don’t “_fear_ the foam”. I just didn’t like it lol.
> 
> Been a helluva 2020 season over there! Everything looks and sounds like it going great.



You are correct about the StarSan bubbles. I let the carboys drain for at least 30 minutes. The bubbles are a non thing for me. It's never been an issue in 4 years. I think the foam is good, and not a bad thing, It's a tiny amount of phosphoric acid, which is nothing in the grand scheme. 

Today I was filling carboys, and it was pushing out the StarSan bubbles, which I figured was a good thing.


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## buzi (Oct 17, 2020)

You guys are killing me! I am going to take two months off next year and I am coming to california to "hang out." I plan to come back to illinois with a 18 wheeler, a black trans am, a nice moustache and a load of high quality grapes! Keep those pix coming!


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## winemaker81 (Oct 17, 2020)

CDrew said:


> Ha-I hear you but how much can you really drink.


Actually quite a bit. Not that it's a good thing, but you asked.  

I LOVE fermenting stuff. I love the smell of fermentation. There are so many things I want to make, but managing storage and the question, "am I make far too much to drink?" are problems.


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## Chuck E (Oct 17, 2020)

buzi said:


> You guys are killing me! I am going to take two months off next year and I am coming to california to "hang out." I plan to come back to illinois with a 18 wheeler, a black trans am, a nice moustache and a load of high quality grapes! Keep those pix coming!



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
THIS! x 1000


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## CDrew (Oct 17, 2020)

Booty Juice said:


> Yes they are, in both El Dorado and Placer counties - I am picking up 250 lbs of some beautiful looking Malbec fruit tomorrow here in San Luis Obispo county. This season has produced some great fruit.





AaronSC said:


> I'm very tempted to get more fruit since so much is out there that's going to rot on the vine, but I have already taken in almost 2 tons of strays and it's getting into crazy territory for a home winemaker. My original plan was 800lbs and I'm now up to 3,800lbs...





Booty Juice said:


> Hahaha I planned on 1,000lbs....ended up with 2,000. Too much beautiful fruit I couldn't pass up.
> 
> The best thing I did this year: Whole berry fermentation, started naturally, minimally augmented (because I'm chicken), and soft punch downs. Very happy with the results.





buzi said:


> You guys are killing me! I am going to take two months off next year and I am coming to california to "hang out." I plan to come back to illinois with a 18 wheeler, a black trans am, a nice moustache and a load of high quality grapes! Keep those pix coming!





You know, I still have 60 gallons of unused wine storage.........

But actually, despite the news of how bad things are in Napa and Sonoma, everywhere else has had an ideal year. Amador county is saying this is one of the best years in memory. And it still hasn't rained since May or so, the weather is ideal, and they have not picked all the grapes, so @buzi load up the screaming chicken, and fire up your CB. There is still time.


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## franc1969 (Oct 17, 2020)

Oh, how I wish I lived a bit closer. The fruit and wine look great this year, sad the wineries aren't using it. We'd take it in seconds here on the east coast, but this isn't the fruit being shipped to us.


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## CDrew (Oct 27, 2020)

I just ordered from Wine Grapes Direct at @crushday 's recommendation 2 pails of Sauvignon Blanc and 1 pail of Semillion. Going to do a blended fermentation and will use Lysozyme at the end to prevent MLF. Shipping is expensive, almost worth a road trip to Portland!

I'm also going to use another Renaissance yeast-Allegro- which is a white wine yeast but with H2S preventing genes. I had to buy 500gm of it, so I'll use it next year too on Rose and more white wine projects. I was going to try TR-313 but Lodi wine labs does not carry that one.

Here is some info:








Gusmer Wine Catalog 2022-23


Gusmer's interactive wine catalog. No download, no waiting. Open and start reading right away!




www.gusmerwine.com


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## CDrew (Nov 6, 2020)

So two of my three buckets of Wine grapes direct arrived today. Tracking says the other is in Sacramento, but why they didn't deliver, I don't know. The boxes arrived pretty beat up. with holes and obviously wet (not grape juice). Mylar bubble packing and temp of the buckets on arrival is 37F. So that's fine. It needs to warm to 60F or so anyway, so it's fine with me. Once I get the third bucket tomorrow, I'll start to figure it out.

Lots of condensation between the Bubble wrap and cardboard, which soaks and destroys the cardboard. Next time I order, I'm asking for the better packaging with styrofoam and an outer box. (that's how they send further). But so far, the experience was favorable from Wine Grapes Direct. Very good communication, 2 day shipping from Portland to Sacramento. Now it's down to the quality of the juice.

This may work out really well, because the garage is holding 60F pretty steadily which would be a good fermentation temp. I'm thinking the first 1/2 of fermentation will be in the buckets, then will mix and ferment the second half in a 15.5 gallon keg. Anyone have different advice? 

Anyway, I'd rather pay $0.50/pound (or free) of red grapes than $3/pound for frozen white grapes but the wife wants some homemade white wine and so here we are.


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## winemaker81 (Nov 6, 2020)

The package is beat to snot, but the contents are good. Call it a win!

The wife wants you to make wine??? DO NOT argue! Run with it!


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## CDrew (Nov 6, 2020)

winemaker81 said:


> The package is beat to snot, but the contents are good. Call it a win!
> 
> The wife wants you to make wine??? DO NOT argue! Run with it!



It took her a few years to warm up to it. She really liked the 2019 Rose I made and so from there it was all about making some Sauvignon Blanc. I missed the 2020 SB harvest because I was away in Alaska. so frozen buckets is the next best thing. I like starting with actual grapes. This is an anomaly, but I'm hoping for a good result and spousal approval. We'll see. I'm interested in learning about cold fermentations and how white wines work. Starting small, but in 2021, may get serious about it because I like white wines too.


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## mainshipfred (Nov 7, 2020)

CDrew said:


> It took her a few years to warm up to it. She really liked the 2019 Rose I made and so from there it was all about making some Sauvignon Blanc. I missed the 2020 SB harvest because I was away in Alaska. so frozen buckets is the next best thing. I like starting with actual grapes. This is an anomaly, but I'm hoping for a good result and spousal approval. We'll see. I'm interested in learning about cold fermentations and how white wines work. Starting small, but in 2021, may get serious about it because I like white wines too.



Although grape whites are much more expensive than juice buckets and the process of extracting the juice is similar I still enjoy making them from grapes.


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## CDrew (Nov 8, 2020)

Up at 0430 to make a yeast starter and get my white wine going before going to work. Notice how dark it is outside! Unfortunately of my 3 pail shipment only 2 arrived, but they were at 60F the magic time to go. So GoFerm + water + Allegro + 120ml juice and a stir plate and it's all set. FedEx sent my other pail to SLC for some reason and by the time it gets here, I doubt it will still be good, such are the perils of shipping. Definitely driving to Portland next year if I miss the white grape harvest again.


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## CDrew (Nov 9, 2020)

After a cold start yesterday morning, at 60F, it took 24 hours to really take off. But now it's really going and foam is coming up a bit through the airlock. The must has warmed a bit to 64F. I may have to use a blow off tube system like in beer making. But it looks like a happy fermentation. It got the first feeding of Fermaid O 1gm per gallon. This Allegro yeast looks to be the white wine equivalent of the Avante Yeast. Starts strong and ferments clean.

In other news, the 3rd pail is still MIA. Wine Grapes direct emailed me yesterday on Sunday, that they would replace the missing pail even if it arrives (4 days late!) no problem so pretty good communication overall. Assuming the #3 pail of white wine juice appears soon, I can highly recommend them as a good source. I'll likely double my white grape order for next year assuming I'm not in town when it's time to pick.

WGD also sells a nutrients pack that's premeasured and easy to use. I used everything but the yeast they supplied (QA23). I made an epic starter, which is why I think it took off so fast despite the low temp. EPIC STARTER And they even supply a premeasured Tartaric pack to adjust the pH. I thought that was a nice touch.


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## Ajmassa (Nov 9, 2020)

Sounds great. And think when purchasing must through the mail— that tartaric pack/recommendation is somewhat standard. I recently looked into a brehms must purchase and noticed they do this same thing as well. And I agree. It’s a great touch to make sure you make the best wine possible.

curious why you are using Fermaid O. Any specific reason why you went with O?


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## CDrew (Nov 9, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Sounds great. And think when purchasing must through the mail— that tartaric pack/recommendation is somewhat standard. I recently looked into a brehms must purchase and noticed they do this same thing as well. And I agree. It’s a great touch to make sure you make the best wine possible.
> curious why you are using Fermaid O. Any specific reason why you went with O?



3 reasons-
1-It's what they sent with the pails
2-It's what I have at home anyway
3-I like it better

Seriously, I feel that it works as well as Fermaid K without causing the real rush of fermentation that you get with Fermaid K. edit: and in warm conditions, I feel the Fermaid O does not cause as much heat build up at peak fermentation. This is just an impression though.

Even so, and despite the cool fermentation, I'm worried when I get home at 1am tonight, there's going to be a mess to clean up!


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## Ajmassa (Nov 9, 2020)

CDrew said:


> 3 reasons-
> 1-It's what they sent with the pails
> 2-It's what I have at home anyway
> 3-I like it better
> ...


Good ol’ diammonium phosphate isn’t a bad thing though! No need to be so disrespectful towards DAP! 

Did those buckets come with a numbers panel including a YAN level btw?


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## ceeaton (Nov 9, 2020)

https://scottlaboratories.sharepoint.com/sites/SLIComplianceDocs/Shared%20Documents/Forms/AllItems.aspx?id=%2Fsites%2FSLIComplianceDocs%2FShared%20Documents%2FFermaid%20O%2Epdf&parent=%2Fsites%2FSLIComplianceDocs%2FShared%20Documents&p=true&originalPath=aHR0cHM6Ly9zY290dGxhYm9yYXRvcmllcy5zaGFyZXBvaW50LmNvbS86Yjovcy9TTElDb21wbGlhbmNlRG9jcy9FWmFXcVZhWkRSeEZ1eUdFMDl5RzMzMEJRcnBwX0dyOVBtMDJid3lqS1BSVm1BP3J0aW1lPS1lR0o2UjZGMkVn



AJ, I think the idea is to use both Fermaid K and O early on and use only O later in the fermentation. The yeast can use the O later on when the alcohol levels and stress on the yeast increase and not leave unnecessary nutrients after fermentation is finished for the nasty things to propagate in your finished wine. Just what I have heard and read before.


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## CDrew (Nov 9, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Good ol’ diammonium phosphate isn’t a bad thing though! No need to be so disrespectful towards DAP!
> 
> Did those buckets come with a numbers panel including a YAN level btw?



No YAN value but otherwise have pretty complete chems on the WGD website.

Not at all disrespectful to Fermaid K and I've used it a bunch. I will use again. But if WGD is recommending Fermaid O, and I have no experience with mail order must/juice, I'm willing to go with WGD recommendations/dosing at least the first time out. But like I said, I used up all my Fermaid K this past year but still have enough Fermaid O left for this 15 gallon fermentation.

I'm liking this Allegro yeast too. Dropped Brix 2 points in the first 24 hours after pitching, I'm expecting a big drop tomorrow. Even at 64F is rocking along pretty good. The yeast is rated to 60F, but I think it would go lower just based on what I'm seeing.

Right now I'm following the WGD program. The must is still in the buckets, I drilled a hole in the top to fit an airlock and will move to carboys when I'm at Brix of 12. This AM I stirred briefly for just a bit of O2 exposure, and measured the brix directly in the bucket.

Like I said, this bucket thing is a reasonable option if you can't pick your own, but honestly, next year if at all possible, I'll source locally, it just that the SB harvest always seems to fall when I'm on the annual trip up North. I'm still having fun with it though!


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## crushday (Nov 9, 2020)

Looks like you’re in good shape albeit only at 2/3rds capacity. Too bad... Next year, place your order and I’ll bring it to you when I pick up my CF...


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## CDrew (Nov 10, 2020)

crushday said:


> Looks like you’re in good shape albeit only at 2/3rds capacity. Too bad... Next year, place your order and I’ll bring it to you when I pick up my CF...



Honestly, I should have ordered more. The must is pretty nice. It tastes fantastic. Good colors and flavors already present before fermentation. But picking the grapes in hand gives you more control. But I'd rather catch Salmon in Alaska then pick Sauvignon Blanc in California, so it is what it is. Next year will be different, for better or worse.

Appreciate the idea, that you can bring it here. I'm still hoping to get some CF with you and @NorCal . Maybe in 2021.


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## CDrew (Nov 10, 2020)

The missing 3rd pail of Sauvignon Blanc must has arrived after a sojourn to Salt Lake City. So it traveled from the WGD world headquarters in Oregon, to Sacramento, then from Sacramento to Salt Lake City, then to Reno, then to Roseville, and finally to my doorstep. ANd even though it's clearly marked on every side to keep it upright and fragile, it arrived on it's side with a box that had been repaired at least once. AMazingly the bucket did not leak, which was a shocker. THe juice might be usable, it smells yeasty but not bad or vinegary. WGD was non-committal if I should use the juice or not. Not sure what I'll do but for sure it will stay separate from the other two.

I have to give props to WINE GRAPES DIRECT. I sent them pictures of the wandering must pail and they got back immediately that another would be on the way next week. So I'm very happy with Wine Grapes Direct and think they are a good outfit and will definitely get repeat business from me. Already plotting 2021, especially if @crushday stops in Portland on the way south.


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## stickman (Nov 10, 2020)

It's not funny, but it is almost comical how things get treated during shipment, starts out as a nice clean straight sided box with fragile sticker, then you see it at the destination, the cardboard patch, dented and banged up wrinkled box with conveyor belt burn.


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## Ajmassa (Nov 10, 2020)

stickman said:


> It's not funny, but it is almost comical how things get treated during shipment, starts out as a nice clean straight sided box with fragile sticker, then you see it at the destination, the cardboard patch, dented and banged up wrinkled box with conveyor belt burn.


And to top it off with a shiny red bow—the “This End Up” sticker half ripped up & pointing right -lol. It’s meme worthy tbh


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## winemaker81 (Nov 11, 2020)

Ferment is separately and see what happens. Things may work out well, and in any case, you've lost nothing but a bit of time.


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## Paulietivo (Nov 11, 2020)

crushday said:


> @Kraffty asked: Where do you find those square crates?
> 
> 
> 
> https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WFQKMPR/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1



Thats an expensive milk crate! $139.50! 
I'm waiting for a "But wait theres more" comment from the sham wow guy. Lol


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## crushday (Nov 11, 2020)

Paulietivo said:


> Thats an expensive milk crate! $139.50!
> I'm waiting for a "But wait theres more" comment from the sham wow guy. Lol


It is for 10 of them, you know...


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## Paulietivo (Nov 11, 2020)

crushday said:


> It is for 10 of them, you know...



Ha! That makes a bit more cents.


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## robert81650 (Nov 11, 2020)

Looks like a great deal,,,,,,I'm like you I would wanted to pick the 3 row left............................


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## CDrew (Nov 11, 2020)

winemaker81 said:


> Ferment is separately and see what happens. Things may work out well, and in any case, you've lost nothing but a bit of time.



So that's what I'm doing. I was going to toss it (the yeasty smell likely the start of a natural fermentation) but the juice still tasted very good. So I made a double strength Allegro starter (2g yeast per gallon) hoping that the yeast would get going fast and overwhelm whatever natural process was starting. The Allegro yeast is a "killer factor" yeast so hopefully becomes quickly dominant. This strategy seems to be working because it's bubbling away this am, about 14 hours after pitching the yeast, and it smells good too. I set it in the warmest room in the house and it's 67F this morning, so I'll move it to a cooler room today to ferment.

Just an interesting comparison. My first two on time buckets arrived at 37F after 2 days in transit From Portland to Sacramento. So while not frozen, that's still pretty good. There was no evidence of natural activity. The wandering must arrived at 60F, so not as bad as it could have been, but definitely had a slight yeasty smell, though no bulging of the lid or anything. I'm glad has been cool and not hot. The company, Wine Grapes Direct, uses better packaging if the buckets are going further, and supposedly the contents can remain frozen for 5 days, which is enough to get to the East Coast. They show the better packaging here.


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## CDrew (Nov 12, 2020)

A minimal update.

To me, it's interesting that that the Sauvignon Blanc is dropping about 4 brix every 24 hours, but the semillon is going about 1/2 that rate. They are about 64F. I have no idea why they would be different. They are literally side by side with the same yeast and the same nutrients. But they are active and going. But Semillon is slower than Sauvignon Blanc. These are the last wines not racked to long term aging. White wine is a different thing and I'm learning. ANd the wandering Sauvignon Blanc is darker than it should be, but it's fermenting OK with no bad smells. I still plan to keep it separate.

But today, I racked the red wines not previously racked. Primitivo (30 gallons plus a residual carboy), Barbera (15 gallons), and Primitivo Rose (10 gallons). So every 2020 red wine is in stainless or HDPE (Intellitanks). I'm trying to get away from glass carboys, but it's difficult for that last little bit. 

But the 2020 Primitivo is really good, even now. Funny, it tasted sweet enough I got out the hydrometer, but it's -2 Brix so it's dry despite how it tastes. For about 30 minutes I was thinking "oh shit" that fermentation did not finish, but it did, and it's just the early big fruit taste. But, it's really, really, good. I am super happy with it. I can't wait until 2021 to work with it again. But lots of residual CO2 so did a vacuum rack at high power!


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## David Lewis (Nov 13, 2020)

CDrew said:


> I just ordered from Wine Grapes Direct at @crushday 's recommendation 2 pails of Sauvignon Blanc and 1 pail of Semillion. Going to do a blended fermentation and will use Lysozyme at the end to prevent MLF. Shipping is expensive, almost worth a road trip to Portland!
> 
> I'm also going to use another Renaissance yeast-Allegro- which is a white wine yeast but with H2S preventing genes. I had to buy 500gm of it, so I'll use it next year too on Rose and more white wine projects. I was going to try TR-313 but Lodi wine labs does not carry that one.
> 
> ...


Hey CDrew.. Maybe we can arrange a swap some time. I drive down from Portland with a bunch of pails. You drive north with a bunch of grapes. We meet in the middle?? 

Edit... Nevermind... It looks like @crushday beat me to this offer


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## CDrew (Nov 21, 2020)

Two updates.

All the 2020 Red wine has completed MLF and is racked and sulfited. 80+ gallons in a small closet space. It stays right at 60F, though for a couple of weeks might get to 56. Also in there are 2 small carboys of 2019 Primitivo Reserve that I want to bottle around Spring of 2020. It was left over from the main bottling and there's about 9 gallons of it with just a hint of medium oak.

The second update is 5 gallons of the Sauvignon Blanc that WGD sent as a replacement for the one that was a week late, is nearly finished fermenting-brix today was 5 and dropping 3-4 brix per day so I racked it into a 5 gallon carboy so it can finish up and then already be in glass. I'll come back with a pic of that.

I have to say that Wine Grapes Direct really went above and beyond. They shipped a replacement pail without question. I also think that the amount they ship is genius. Instead of shipping 5 gallons, which wouldn't quite fill a 5 gallon carboy at the first rack out of the pail, they ship 5.25 gallons. So at the first rack, it will perfectly fill a 5 gallon carboy with no head space with just a tiny amount of dregs left in the bucket. Nice attention to detail for home winemakers. I'll edit back with a picture that illustrates this.

Also for the last 5 brix, I moved the carboy to a warmer part of the house. I was reading on the Gusmer site, that the Allegro yeast likes just a bit of warmth at the end to finish dry. I've had it at 63F and for the last 5 brix it will be 70F. The room it's in gets a bit of AM sun, so I put an old tee shirt around it to keep it mostly dark and out of the even indirect light.








Why it rotated this image, I do not know, but you get the idea.


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## CDrew (Nov 25, 2020)

I implemented the Lysozyme plan in all the white wine. I'm hoping it will prevent MLF because even newly fermented, it is tasting excellent. It makes it easy that they are in 5 gallon carboys. So each one got 1/2 of a SO2 tablet (50ppm) and an hour later 5gm of Lysozyme (a bit over 250 ppm). I used the measurements in the link posted by @Boatboy24 . So we'll see if it will need fining or not. Even dissolved in 40ml of water, lysozyme is almost clear. I can't believe in 5 gallon amounts, it's going to be much of an issue. Anyway, it was time to get comfortable with that.

I may still use bentonite in a month or just to learn about that as well. It doesn't look hard.

And one other thing. On the Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, WGD recommends Sur Lie and battonage for a couple of months. I'm going to give that a go as well.


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## CDrew (Jan 3, 2021)

A slight update. I stopped the battonage thing with the Sauvignon Banc/Semillion. It's taking forever to clear. But I was thinking I needed to get it off the yeast lees. So today, I racked all of it. Into a 50 L keg, went all the blended Semillion and Sauvignon Blanc, and into a 5.16 gallon keg, went the remaining sauvignon blanc which was the SB that was late to the party. It's not clear or even close, but it tastes great. I think I have about 18 gallons total out of this Wine Grapes Direct juice and very happy with them. The wine is good, the customer service was excellent. Highly recommended as a source of frozen grapes.

Anyway over the next 6 months, I need to get this clear. I'll check in about April but if it isn't clear, I'll have to get a filtration set up.


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## CDrew (Jan 21, 2021)

Since this thread serves as my diary of this vintage, an update.

All the red wine was racked and oaked back on 11/14. Medium toast StaVin cubes were used. The Primitivo is sensitive to too much oak, so it was time to rack it off.

I had two 15.5 gallon kegs of the 2020 Primitivo and racked into 2 more 15.5 gallon kegs. I had to top up with 1 gallon of 2020 Primitivo I had in a jug, and about 4 bottles of 2019 Primitivo. In retrospect, I should have "racked down" into 2 spare 15 gallon Intellitanks. That would have required almost no top up. But I like the stainless kegs for the fact that they don't need to sit in the dark, and my winery closet is pretty full right now! The wine is already pretty clear and there was minimal sediment, so the wine going forward is already very clean. I sulfited to 50ppm SO2 and will now leave it where it is and as is, until bottling next fall.

I still have an additional 5 gallons of this Primitivo in a Carboy that needs a home, and will probably become the base of my 2020 end of the vintage blend. That's become a bit of a tradition, but I seem to end up with 10-15 gallons of carefully tended leftovers that get blended after the main bottling events for the year are over. It's always a surprise! The 2019 version is PDG, and my picking buddy has already started drinking his case of it, despite my recommendation to wait at least 6 months and preferably 12.

But this 2020 Primitivo really good already. Fruit forward, nice acid backbone, enough tannin to go the distance. As in maybe the best balanced wine ever for me. And in the end, I should have 12 cases or so. It will be hard not to drink this early, so good thing there's a lot.

The other red wine will get racked in the next month. 20 gallons of lightly oaked Sangiovese, 25 gallons of Syrah and 15 gallons of Barbera. Then Spring time bottling planned for the Barbera Rose and then the Sauvignon Blanc/Semillion if it ever clears (I think it will but it's taking a while). The SB in the jug below, is right up to the stopper, so you can see the very upper part is clear and the rest is slowly settling.


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## CDrew (Apr 30, 2021)

Bottled the Rose made from Barbera yesterday. 10.25 gallons yielded 4 cases almost exactly. pH 3.3, nice color. It’s really good already. A few weeks in the bottle and I think it’s a summertime winner. I tried to show the color below:


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## Booty Juice (May 1, 2021)

Looks beautiful, bet it's delicious.

Dry Rose' has been enjoyed and taken seriously in Europe for many decades. In my family since I was a kid. It's a lunch wine, a fun wine, a party wine. Invite friends and family over for socializing and nosh, put the Rose' out next to the big reds, and see what you're constantly replenishing.

The first I recall of a US "Rose'" was the way-to-sweet "White Zinfandel" (White Trashvandel). Maybe that put people off Rose' before they were aware of true Rose'. Who knows.

In any case, dry Rose' has been getting more and more popular here for 20 years, particularly the last 6 or 8.

My personal observation has been - the lighter the color the faster it is consumed. Zero skins time and / or blend with a white.


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## CDrew (May 1, 2021)

Booty Juice said:


> Looks beautiful, bet it's delicious.
> 
> Dry Rose' has been enjoyed and taken seriously in Europe for many decades. In my family since I was a kid. It's a lunch wine, a fun wine, a party wine. Invite friends and family over for socializing and nosh, put the Rose' out next to the big reds, and see what you're constantly replenishing.
> 
> ...




I'm biased but it's really good. Bone dry. I also got a big thumbs up from the wife and from one of her friends. It's super fruity but with a good acid backbone. I think it will improve over the next month or two as it recovers from bottling. Just in time for summer! In the glass, this color is perfect, and unlike last year where it was pink/Orange, this year it's just pink, no orange. Don't know if it was the grapes or more careful handling or what.

I'm glad I watered it back a bit, and may go even further back in 2021. I took this to 23 brix from almost 26, and I may shoot for 21 brix this year to keep it light and refreshing.

I remember the white zin craze-right along with wine coolers. I think white zin is a huge seller still but I don't know anyone who admits to drinking it. (Just looked it up-17 million cases of white zin are still sold every year.) so it's still a HUGE seller, just under the radar.


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## Ivywoods (May 1, 2021)

Wow! Wonderful! What a bountiful crop!


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## CDrew (May 1, 2021)

Ivywoods said:


> Wow! Wonderful! What a bountiful crop!



Thanks Ivy. A very good year it was, and so far the maturing red wines are really showing promise. Next up on the bottling schedule is Sauvignon Blanc. There should be about 8 cases of that. I'll need some more clear bottles. The red wine will have to wait until fall.


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## heatherd (May 1, 2021)

CDrew said:


> So this turned out to be a huge understatement of what actually went down today.
> 
> One of the wineries I've been a club member at for the last 10 years or so, had said last year I could pick the excess Barbera that did not get picked, I could not because of scheduling, but this year the owner called me. He said they had the 2 1/2 tons they wanted and there were still 3 rows left of "perfect" Barbera if I wanted to come up and pick it. Today was the day.
> 
> ...





Ajmassa said:


> Good ol’ diammonium phosphate isn’t a bad thing though! No need to be so disrespectful towards DAP!
> 
> Did those buckets come with a numbers panel including a YAN level btw?


Brehm give you YAN, WGD does not.


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## Chuck Rairdan (May 2, 2021)

CDrew said:


> Bottled the Rose made from Barbera yesterday. 10.25 gallons yielded 4 cases almost exactly. pH 3.3, nice color. It’s really good already. A few weeks in the bottle and I think it’s a summertime winner. I tried to show the color below:
> 
> View attachment 74006


That does look good, plan on doing a rose first time this year


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## Chuck Rairdan (May 2, 2021)

CDrew said:


> Bottled the Rose made from Barbera yesterday. 10.25 gallons yielded 4 cases almost exactly. pH 3.3, nice color. It’s really good already. A few weeks in the bottle and I think it’s a summertime winner. I tried to show the color below:
> 
> View attachment 74006


Crew, I notice you are in Sac area, I'm in Davis. May contact you down the stretch for interest in possible group buys...


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## CDrew (May 2, 2021)

Chuck Rairdan said:


> That does look good, plan on doing a rose first time this year



You will be pleased how easy it is and how quickly you can drink it. Highly recommended. I only made 4 cases in 2020 and I'm guessing it won't make it to 2021 harvest. In fairness, I gave one case away to my picking buddy. His wife really likes Rose so I doubt it will last very long.


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## Booty Juice (May 2, 2021)

Mmmmmm good.


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## CDrew (May 23, 2021)

Had a bit of a bottling day yesterday-Yielded 2+ cases of varietal Sauvignon Blanc, and 5+ cases of Sauvignon Blanc/Semillion (66%/33%) blend. Of the two, the blend is the initial favorite. Very good flavors in both. We even opened a bottle of the new wine last night with dinner and it's good already. In another 2-3 weeks, I think it can become a regular.

While it's basically clear, it isn't crystal clear, so I will need to work out filtration for 2021.

This wine was from the frozen grape juice I got from wine grapes direct-I can highly recommend these guys as a great source of Washington wine grapes.

One other thing-the first picture, the Sauvignon blanc went into recycled wine bottles, hence the color variation. The Second picture I got all new clear bottles from Napa Fermentation for $6 per case. What a convenience-I am so done with label removal except in very select circumstances.


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## Ajmassa (May 23, 2021)

CDrew said:


> Had a bit of a bottling day yesterday-Yielded 2+ cases of varietal Sauvignon Blanc, and 5+ cases of Sauvignon Blanc/Semillion (66%/33%) blend. Of the two, the blend is the initial favorite. Very good flavors in both. We even opened a bottle of the new wine last night with dinner and it's good already. In another 2-3 weeks, I think it can become a regular.
> 
> While it's basically clear, it isn't crystal clear, so I will need to work out filtration for 2021.
> 
> ...



looks awesome man. If venturing into whites i guess a filter setup is inevitable. i still haven’t needed one but i know it’s only a matter of time. Especially if rosé is an annual thing. 

and bottles for $6 a case?! i hope you were wearing your ‘rona mask- because that’s straight robbery!!! i need a to find me a connection like that!


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## CDrew (May 23, 2021)

Ajmassa said:


> looks awesome man. If venturing into whites i guess a filter setup is inevitable. i still haven’t needed one but i know it’s only a matter of time. Especially if rosé is an annual thing.
> 
> and bottles for $6 a case?! i hope you were wearing your ‘rona mask- because that’s straight robbery!!! i need a to find me a connection like that!



Napa Fermentation buys surplus unused cases of bottles from wineries then sells at a nice discount. The only downside is you have to pick up at the shop. I got 30 cases of red wine bottles and 10 cases of white wine bottles. No labels!! Nice family business too so I like to support those.


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## Sailor323 (May 24, 2021)

CDrew said:


> While it's basically clear, it isn't crystal clear, so I will need to work out filtration for 2021.



I really like using Kieselsol and Chitosan for crystal clear wine.


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## Darrell Hawley (May 24, 2021)

CDrew said:


> Napa Fermentation buys surplus unused cases of bottles from wineries then sells at a nice discount. The only downside is you have to pick up at the shop. I got 30 cases of red wine bottles and 10 cases of white wine bottles. No labels!! Nice family business too so I like to support those.


Looked at getting 2 cases, but like you said, you need to pick up at the store. Shipping the 2 cases would have been $66.


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## stickman (May 24, 2021)

I too have been using Napa Fermentation for various products, very good people over there.


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## Chuck Rairdan (May 26, 2021)

Yup, Napa Fermentation is good people, will also be getting my glass there starting this year. I'm with you CDrew on the whole removing labels business. Less pealing, more pouring.


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## CDrew (Jun 17, 2021)

CDrew said:


> Had a bit of a bottling day yesterday-Yielded 2+ cases of varietal Sauvignon Blanc, and 5+ cases of Sauvignon Blanc/Semillion (66%/33%) blend. Of the two, the blend is the initial favorite. Very good flavors in both. We even opened a bottle of the new wine last night with dinner and it's good already. In another 2-3 weeks, I think it can become a regular.
> 
> While it's basically clear, it isn't crystal clear, so I will need to work out filtration for 2021.
> 
> ...




Drinking some of the Sauvignon Blanc/Semillion blend tonight. It's become quite good. Very much ready to drink, great body and taste, wife likes it a lot. Big win all around. Has an unfortunate slight haze that settles out. I think it's the bentonite. Will filter next year, but still it's awesome to have garage made wine, that is actually very good to drink, and ready in just 6 months.


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## Snafflebit (Jun 17, 2021)

@CDrew can I ask, when you added acidulated water to the Barbera rosé what did you target the amount of tartaric acid at? 

I am tasting several rosés of X and I noticed the Merlot had a long acid finish, clearly an addition, and crazy enough I think it may have used acid blend due to the malic ascorbic flavor.


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## CDrew (Jun 17, 2021)

Snafflebit said:


> @CDrew can I ask, when you added acidulated water to the Barbera rosé what did you target the amount of tartaric acid at?
> 
> I am tasting several rosés of X and I noticed the Merlot had a long acid finish, clearly an addition, and crazy enough I think it may have used acid blend due to the malic flavor.




I measured the TA of my juice and used that number to make up my acidulated water. So I measured around 7gm/L in my barbera juice, so to water back, I mixed up water at 7gm/l with grape derived tartaric acid, and used that to dilute the Barbera (Rose) juice. That way it didn't change the TA of the whole thing. I would never use acid blend. Also you need the right tartaric acid. The synthetic stuff has 50% of the wrong isomer, so only use the grape (natural) derived tartaric acid.


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## Snafflebit (Jun 17, 2021)

Thanks for that. Interesting about the isomer, I did not know. The flavor was slight but kinda citrusy, jolly rancher.


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