# Chocolate question



## LieutenantFF (Mar 29, 2012)

I have chocolate peppermint wine in the gallon glass jugs right now and after i fermented the peppermint leaves i put real chocolate extract into the alcohol. after about 20 days a gave a taste to see if it had imporved at all and the chocolate taste is GONE. 
i have seen on here folks that add chocolate wafers or pieces into the aging wine. however what i dont know is how much chocolate per gallon. and i assume, the darker the chocolate (higher % of cocoa) the better because of less fat seperation. any help would be great!


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## Deezil (Mar 29, 2012)

Moved the thread to a different section for ya - so more people see it, things kinda get lost in the recipes section.

You're right in that you want a higher % of cocoa for the lesser amounts of fat separation that you mentioned. The amount of chocolate, i believe, is determined by how fast you want the flavor to be put into the wine - i think its a 1-2 combo of how much chocolate you put in and how often you stir the wine. 

Now keep in mind that your chocolate addition might have gone away temporarily due to the wine being young & it may come back out later on as it ages. You know you put the flavor in there, its just not expressing itself right now.


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## Julie (Mar 29, 2012)

Hi LieutenantFF,

Is the extract natural or artificial? I would think if it was artificial, it might not be able to carry thru the wine process. I use at least 70% cocoa chocolate squares and never had a problem with the chocolate taste disappearing.


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## Runningwolf (Mar 29, 2012)

I also use chocolate. Like Julie said get chocolate with the highest % of cocoa and least butter fat. I would try about 1/4 lb per gallon first and see what you think. I know I am cutting back on what I use. The chocolate is very pronounced and good, but this is not what I really want. The chocolate should be something you taste on the back half, tasting the fruit first. I tasted another ice wine where you actually didn't taste the chocolate until you took a second sip, it was excellent.


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## Deezil (Mar 29, 2012)

Never thought about putting chocolate in an ice wine, sounds delicious... But i wont do it to my Riesling Ice Wine.. Maybe on the next "go-around" though


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## Julie (Mar 29, 2012)

Deezil said:


> Never thought about putting chocolate in an ice wine, sounds delicious... But i wont do it to my Riesling Ice Wine.. Maybe on the next "go-around" though


 
did this cuz Dan did this and just loved it, I added chocolate to a vignoles ice wine, it is heaven.


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## Runningwolf (Mar 29, 2012)

Deezil said:


> Never thought about putting chocolate in an ice wine, sounds delicious... But i wont do it to my Riesling Ice Wine.. Maybe on the next "go-around" though


 Yeah why make a great wine into a panty dropper. How much wine did you make. I think you should try it on a third of what you have. It'll take way too long before you can get a taste of it if you wait.


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## Deezil (Mar 29, 2012)

I still have 5 gallons of the riesling ice wine lol.. But its so darn good as it is, i hate to mess with it. 

Maaaaaaybe i'll try it with a gallon... Maybe. 

I see more ice wine kits in my future though as well


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## Runningwolf (Mar 29, 2012)

I would try one gallon with about 1/4 pound of chocolate for about 30-45 days. Use wafers or chunks.


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## LieutenantFF (Mar 29, 2012)

I used natural chocolate extract. I removed a small amount of wine and added extract until I got what I enjoyed. I then added that back into one gallon and I could not achive the same taste in the gallon jugs.

I hit up the store today and got some lindt 85% chocolate bars and added 4oz per gallon. Ill wait 15ish days and retaste to see if whats I want.


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## Deezil (Mar 29, 2012)

Just to back up a few steps... You did add sorbate/sulfite right? Just wonder if it would have fermented the sugars out of the chocolate & maybe changed the taste to something not readily-identifiable.

Hopefully the Lindt chocolate gives you what you're looking for, regardless of what the answer is to my above question.


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## Lurker (Mar 30, 2012)

How do you get the chocolate wafers, (parts of a bar, I presume) to melt in the wine?

Richard L.


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## Deezil (Mar 30, 2012)

They dont melt, they just sit in the bottom and slowly release the chocolate flavors. Lemme see if i can find Dan/Runningwolf's picture, its a supreme example of what we've discussed here.

Edit: Yep, here's the thread, its a Chocolate Cherry Almond wine - you can see the toasted almonds and chocolate wafers in the pictures, in the 3rd post.


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## GreginND (Mar 30, 2012)

Does anyone know how commercial wineries that are producing red wine with chocolate make their wines? How are they infusing the chocolate flavor?


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## Runningwolf (Mar 30, 2012)

Every winery has it's own methods. Some will Infuse it the way I did and others may use artificial flavoring. Some even blend in cocoa. Different methods will produce different results.


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## saramc (May 5, 2012)

I use 4 ounces in weight of natural and/or Dutch processed cocoa powder per gallon, added at the start of the wine. Just finished a Chocolate Raspberry Chambourcin and I must say it is amazing. I have made wines using natural unsweetened cocoa powder, a combo of natural unsweetened and Dutch processed, and all Dutch processed...and it really is a matter of what you want the chocolate to bring to the wine. So far, my favorite is Hershey's Special Dark powder.

I have also added 8 oz by volume Hershey's Syrup per gallon of wine. It needs to be clear and stabilized with k-meta + sorbate prior to the addition of the syrup. It takes about 30 days for it drop clear, and you can then rack, and confirm it is not dropping anymore sediment and then bottle.


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