# One wheel in hand and eight on the ground...2022 Wine Making Season



## crushday (Aug 22, 2022)

I'll be traveling to North Central California (10 hour drive) in a couple days to pick up my order of grapes. On this run I'm getting these varieties:

1. Cab Franc (macro bin)
2. Petite Sirah (macro bin)
3. Mourvèdre (macro bin)

My plan on the Cab Franc is to pull 10% as a Saignée. This will provide a concentration on the remaining red wine and produce an early drinker as a Rose'.

The Petite Sirah continues my quest for an amazing wine made from this difficult variety. The Mourvèdre will be part of a planned GSM blend (225L barrel) as well as a single variety. Also, the Mourvèdre will help produce a Rose' made using the Saignée (10%) method. I'm not really a fan of Rose' wines but I am a fan of big bombastic red wines. BTW, I also like my coffee dark, hot and uninterrupted by adjuncts.

Yeast will be Harmony from Chr. Hansen. (see pic)
MLB will be CH16, co-inoculated on the first strong cap on Cab Franc and Mourvèdre. I will add bacteria to the Petite Sirah post ferment. The PS can be a tannic monster and I don't want the wine on the skins and seeds any longer than necessary. Co-inoculation adds about 4-5 days to the prepress fermentation. I suppose that's only true since I use the condition of the cap as my guide to tell me when to press.

If you care to follow my trip and wine journey, please join in. This Sunday will be Crush Day at Crushdays!


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## NorCal (Aug 23, 2022)

Looking forward to it @crushday!


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## Busabill (Aug 23, 2022)

crushday said:


> I'll be traveling to North Central California (10 hour drive) in a couple days to pick up my order of grapes. This year I'm getting these varieties:
> 
> 1. Cab Franc (macro bin)
> 2. Petite Sirah (macro bin)
> ...


Looking forward to it!


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## Gilmango (Aug 23, 2022)

Commenting to follow the journey, loved your write up from last year's journey to NorCal!

As I said last year, your epic trip from WA down to CA helped inspire me to get my ass out of bed before 5 a.m. so I could hand pick some grapes in Brentwood/Oakley/Livermore area (Brentwood Mourvedre last fall). And I am set to do that again this year, but probably a different varietal or two (after only making kit wines for my first half dozen wines).


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## ibglowin (Aug 23, 2022)

So the burning question is why are you driving 10 hours South when you could drive 3 hours East for as good if not better quality grapes! 



crushday said:


> I'll be traveling to North Central California (10 hour drive) in a couple days to pick up my order of grapes. This year I'm getting these varieties:
> 
> 1. Cab Franc (macro bin)
> 2. Petite Sirah (macro bin)
> ...


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## crushday (Aug 23, 2022)

ibglowin said:


> So the burning question is why are you driving 10 hours South when you could drive 3 hours East for as good if not better quality grapes!


Fair question. Many facets to the answer. Friendship with other winemakers from that area is high on the list. Additionally, the Cab Franc grown in the Sierra Foothills AVA has a unique flavor profile due to terroir and weather conditions. It's very good.

And, I get my share of great grapes from other regions in Eastern Washington such as Walla Walla, Rattlesnake Hills and Red Mountain. Other grapes come from Eastern Oregon (Columbia basin) and Northwestern Oregon (Willamette Valley) as well as prized areas of California (Lodi, Knights Valley, Glen Oaks and Oaks Knoll) as recent (2020 and 2021) examples.

Circling back, the ability to swap wine with other winemakers is a benefit allowing my cellar and winemaking skills continue to expand and improve. Also, I'm an adventurer at heart, don't mind the road and love time away from my professional life. The 20 hour round trip clicks a lot of boxes...


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## ibglowin (Aug 23, 2022)

This translates to something like..........






crushday said:


> Fair question. Many facets to the answer. Friendship with other winemakers from that area is high on the list. Additionally, the Cab Franc grown in the Sierra Foothills AVA has a unique flavor profile due to terroir and weather conditions. It's very good.
> 
> And, I get my share of great grapes from other regions in Eastern Washington such as Walla Walla, Rattlesnake Hills and Red Mountain. Other grapes come from Eastern Oregon (Columbia basin) and Northwestern Oregon (Willamette Valley) as well as prized areas of California (Lodi, Knights Valley, Glen Oaks and Oaks Knoll) as recent (2020 and 2021) examples.
> 
> Circling back, the ability to swap wine with other winemakers is a benefit allowing my cellar and winemaking skills continue to rise.


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## BarrelMonkey (Aug 23, 2022)

Only 4 wheels on the ground? Unless you have a big flatbed truck I'd have thought you'd need a trailer to haul 1.5T of grapes... 

Good luck with this year's trucking and winemaking!


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## Kraffty (Aug 23, 2022)

following, especially interested in the rose, planning an attempt at a grenache rose this year. Similar strategy fermenting mostly as a white with a small separate amount fermented on skins to blend back in for desired color. Looks like you're running a few weeks ahead of us down here.


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## crushday (Aug 23, 2022)

BarrelMonkey said:


> Only 4 wheels on the ground? Unless you have a big flatbed truck I'd have thought you'd need a trailer to haul 1.5T of grapes...
> 
> Good luck with this year's trucking and winemaking!


I figured my error in the title would eventually be noticed and mentioned. I totally neglected my trailer...Opps! And, the title field is not editable.


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## ibglowin (Aug 23, 2022)

crushday said:


> I figured my error in the title would eventually be noticed and mentioned. I totally neglected my trailer...Opps! And, the title field is not editable.


How many wheels on the trailer?


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## crushday (Aug 23, 2022)

ibglowin said:


> How many wheels on the trailer?


trailer has four wheels.


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## ibglowin (Aug 23, 2022)

crushday said:


> trailer has four wheels.


Better now? Assuming your not driving a dually.


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## crushday (Aug 23, 2022)

ibglowin said:


> Better now? Assuming your not driving a dually.


THANKS! - No dually. I appreciate it.


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## crushday (Aug 24, 2022)

Update:

I heard from the vineyard managers yesterday that actually the Mourvèdre isn't quite ripe. The Brix over the weekend came in between 25 and 26. Several confirmation tests proved it was only 22. Everyone was suspicious of the Saturday reading considering the week before the average brix was 17. While a 5 point jump is likely, 8 or 9 points would be a head scratcher.

So...no Mourvèdre this trip. But...the Petit Verdot is ready. PV (1/2 bin) is on my list too, so I'll just grab it now instead of later and get the 'Ved later instead of now. Staying grateful and flexible.

Lastly, I'll be hitting the road at 4am on Friday morning (August 26). I want to get through the Portland Metroplex before traffic takes on the characteristic of my arteries after a nice meal of Fettuccini Alfredo and shrimp sautéed in butter. At the wrong time of day, it can take 2-3 hours on I-5 from Portland to Salem. Not fun.


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## NorCal (Aug 24, 2022)

@crushday the barn opens at 5:00 and I'm planning on having the following open for tasting and critique. Unfortunately, I do not have any new wine to share, as the Petite Sirah won't be bottled for another 6 months and the other wine I did bottle is not worthy of a trade.

I will however have a barrel sample and all my disappointing wines available for tasting and critique.

- 2021 Barrel sample of Petite Sirah blend (all freerun)
- 2021 Estate blend of Zin, Syrah, Cab (the few good clusters among an uncared for vineyard.
- 2021 Spritzy Cab Franc (sat at .5 brix for 11 months in spiedels, and now it decides it will go dry in the bottle)
- 2021 Mourvedre (still in two carboys and deciding what to do with it)


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## crushday (Aug 24, 2022)

NorCal said:


> @crushday the barn opens at 5:00 and I'm planning on having the following open for tasting and critique. Unfortunately, I do not have any new wine to share, as the Petite Sirah won't be bottled for another 6 months and the other wine I did bottle is not worthy of a trade.
> 
> I will however have a barrel sample and all my disappointing wines available for tasting and critique.
> 
> ...


Sounds great and fulfilling!


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## crushday (Aug 25, 2022)

Imagine, if you will, grapes flowing down this chute into this hungry auger on Sunday morning!


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## sour_grapes (Aug 25, 2022)

That tableau augurs well!


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## NorCal (Aug 27, 2022)

@crushday makes the 1/2 day trek and absolutely crushes the wine tasting. @Busabill, @4score and I brought out our latest. There was not a bad wine in the house. My favorite wine and label of the evening goes to @crushday 

Favorite wine on the left, label right.


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## crushday (Aug 27, 2022)

Update:

I hit the interstate on Friday morning a few minutes early. Glad I did as it took about 25 minutes to fill my gas tank when I stopped to refuel at the Express Fuel in Yreka, CA. I saw how slow the pump was so I walked into the store, stood in line to use the bathroom, and when I came out it was still clicking away, LOL. A few minutes later I was back on the road.

Traffic coming into Sac was to be expected on a Friday afternoon. Lot's of weekend get-awayers headed to Lake Tahoe.

I dropped my trailer and bins at the vineyard staging area after what turned out to be an 11 hour drive. I regret not taking pictures. All the macro bins laid down next to each other would have produced a pretty cool shot. I met the new vineyard manager, Rick. Nice guy.

After getting settled at the hotel, I drove over to the KK Ranch ( @NorCal ) for the wine tasting. Previously in this string and at least one other, @NorCal was critical of his 2021 wines and lamented nothing worth sharing. IMO, the host at the KK Ranch is way too hard on the content of the three bottles I tried last night. I would take any one of them home with me. Wines from @Busabill @4score and his son Chris were amazing too.

Picking up grapes this morning and scooting back home.


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## NorCal (Aug 27, 2022)

Safe travels George. We tasted 15 wines and I can honestly say there was not a bad one there. 
The scale, breadth and quality of wine @crushday makes is truly remarkable.


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## crushday (Aug 28, 2022)

Update: HOME

Just finished what ended up being a 12 hour drive home. I decided not to push it too hard and hung mostly to the far right. I've always wanted to hang with the big boys...

Grapes traveled well. I'll get the crush pad set up tomorrow at 7am. Tomorrow I'll post crush pics and numbers.

Here are some pics of the grapes from this morning...


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## crushday (Aug 28, 2022)

Update: Crush Day at crushdays

As was planned, I started getting the crush pad all set up at 7am. We were crushing by 8am - finished at 10am. All cleaned up by 11am and started initial tests.

Here are the numbers on the following fermentations:

Petite Sirah 1: 24.5 Brix, 3.67 pH
Petite Sirah 2: 25.8 Brix, 3.68 pH
Petit Verdot: 27 Brix, 3.59 pH
Cab Franc 1: 25.4 Brix, 3.69 pH
Cab Franc 2: 25.4 Brix, 3.61 pH

I'm happy with the numbers and not planning on making any adjustments, sans the Petit Verdot (I'll see what happens overnight and if the numbers creep a little bit).

Had one problem with the Petite Sirah (twice) - the must was so thick that my must pump clogged twice. I thought that might happen as there was more raisins than I typically see from Clos Du Lac. I don't typically sort; choosing, rather, to take what nature provides. The resulting wine is either going to be a massive, inky and concentrated masterpiece or a really great blender. I'm more excited about the first notion...

I pulled 6.5 gallons (Saignée) from the Cab Franc. Pitched the same yeast as the others.

SO2 added to 50ppm, GoFerm, Fermaid O and Chr. Hansen's Harmony yeast pitched.

Now, a few pics...


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## crushday (Aug 29, 2022)

Update: First punch down this afternoon. Light cap on everything but overnight will continue to develop. We should be F1 by tomorrow morning...

Not much change over night from the initial Brix readings. But, I'm going to water back the Petit Verdot tomorrow morning. At now 27.6 Brix, that's too high of a ABV for my taste and for the yeast. Acidulated water will be added tomorrow if the readings are anywhere near what they are now. I'll account for any yeast consumption.

The Petite Sirah is posing a difficultly to me. Here is a pic of the punch tool. You can see how much already is coating the handle. There's not much juice in the must at this point. If I had to guess, what would normally produce 65 gallons of wine will only be 40 gallons. 40 gallons per 1000 pounds of grapes - that makes the price per gallon too high for satisfaction. Bright side: maybe with all the raisins, I’ll get more of a Petite Sirah Amarone style!


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## BarrelMonkey (Aug 30, 2022)

Nice going, that's a lot of crushing in 2 hrs!

Those raisins can lead to confusing brix numbers in the early days - as they rehydrate they can give up their sugar and increase brix (or at least make it look as if your fermentation isn't moving. I'd measure brix/temps daily if you're not doing do already...


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## mainshipfred (Aug 30, 2022)

crushday said:


> Update: First punch down this afternoon. Light cap on everything but overnight will continue to develop. We should be F1 by tomorrow morning...
> 
> Not much change over night from the initial Brix readings. But, I'm going to water back the Petit Verdot tomorrow morning. At now 27.6 Brix, that's too high of a ABV for my taste and for the yeast. Acidulated water will be added tomorrow if the readings are anywhere near what they are now. I'll account for any yeast consumption.
> 
> The Petite Sirah is posing a difficultly to me. Here is a pic of the punch tool. You can see how much already is coating the handle. There's not much juice in the must at this point. If I had to guess, what would normally produce 65 gallons of wine will only be 40 gallons. 40 gallons per 1000 pounds of grapes - that makes the price per gallon too high for satisfaction. Bright side: maybe with all the raisins, I’ll get more of a Petite Sirah Amarone style!


My guess is you will be surprised with the yield. My Norton is always similar to what you described and I usually get a pretty good yield even though it has thick skin and large seeds. 


crushday said:


> View attachment 92252


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## crushday (Aug 30, 2022)

mainshipfred said:


> My guess is you will be surprised with the yield. My Norton is always similar to what you described and I usually get a pretty good yield even though it has thick skin and large seeds.


Thanks, Fred. That is reassuring. I've been in communication with the vineyard and they are looking for a replacement. I'll know more as early as this evening.


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## crushday (Aug 31, 2022)

Update:

I have been punching twice daily at 6am and 6pm. Everything is going well on the Cab Franc and the Petit Verdot - as expected. The Petite Sirah punch down was easier this morning than previous punchdowns. The yeast is beginning to eat through the sugar and creating alcohol (liquid) which is helping. Before it was like punching cake batter; a cacophony of skins, seeds and concentrated sugars mixed in with what little juice was there. I'm holding to my original estimate of 40 gallons of finished wine. Mrs. Crushday says it's going to be awesome. We'll see...


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## crushday (Aug 31, 2022)

This is my new bottle filler that I had welded up. After all the aluminum was welded, according to the plans I drew up, I assembled the other parts. The powerplant of the system is my All In One unit. @vacuumpumpman

Right now it’s set up with two fillers with the option of a third. I taped off and sprayed the base with a rubberized paint.


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## crushday (Sep 1, 2022)

Update: Capectomy?

If you've been following this journey, you'll know that the Petite Sirah has been a challenge. We had an extraordinarily high level of raisins in the bin. We decided to crush everything together and hope for the best. I'm certain several winemakers will want to pushback on this decision - but, the decision was made. Now, we live with the consequences or _pro_sequences (I made up a word!).

I'm providing a couple links to videos that I shot this morning during the punch. The first one is the cap from Petite Sirah #2. The second one displays the cap of Petite Sirah #1. And, for contrast, I'm including a link to the cap of Cab Franc #1 - which by all accounts is a normal ferment.

I'm aware that the food grade 55 gallon drums I use don't match the 'high as wide' ideal of wine fermenting. I like the volume (and the cost) of the drums and I can get the contents of one drum in my hydraulic press for...the press.

I'm considering moving both Petite Sirah batches to one Macrobin and letting them finish out. Or, I might perform a Capectomy (I made up a second word!) on Saturday and remove 6-8 inches of cap from each batch. I'm leaning toward the Macrobin and have many suggestions for such from @NorCal @4score and @Busabill. To do so, I'll have to devise a screen to keep out the pesky fruit flies that are hovering about...

Here are the links (links expire 10/01/2022):

Petite Sirah 1 - iCloud

Petite Sirah 2 - iCloud

Cab Franc 1 - iCloud


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## Cynewulf (Sep 1, 2022)

Crush, your videos remind me of a couple of videos of Clos Fantine in Faugères, France doing punch downs I shared in another thread about two years ago . It takes them probably around 5 minutes to break through the cap of their Syrah and Grenache!

Post in thread '2020 Fall Grape Season Coming Up'
2020 Fall Grape Season Coming Up


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## Kraffty (Sep 2, 2022)

You were not exaggerating about that cap, holy cap! That looks to be some intense wine.


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## crushday (Sep 4, 2022)

Update: Brix Check

Just pulled a Brix test during last night’s punch down. A few surprises:

CF 1: 10
CF 2: 5.5
PV: 8
PS1: 7
PS2: 5

CF1, in relation to CF2, is a surprise.

PS2 is a surprise.

I would think that PV would be the highest at this time considering it was the highest at the onset. 

Maybe press Monday if we can stay at a good pace.


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## winemaker81 (Sep 5, 2022)

crushday said:


> I would think that PV would be the highest at this time considering it was the highest at the onset.


The yeast in that batch are overachievers! Or maybe just really hungry!

Seriously, it's likely that either that colony started our larger, or the conditions for reproduction are better, or both. Most ferments are about the same, but on occasion I get a surprise (preferably good surprises!).


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## Kraffty (Sep 5, 2022)

Did you end up pressing today?


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## crushday (Sep 5, 2022)

Kraffty said:


> Did you end up pressing today?


Mike, no pressing today. But, I did strongly consider it.

Current Brix readings are:

CF1: 5.5 (previous reading was 10)
CF2: 2 (previous was 5.5)
PV: 5 (previous was 8)
PS1: 4 (previous was 7)
PS2 3 (previous was 5)

I don’t have any logistics driving me to press except I don’t work today. Any pressing T-Th will be in the evening. But, I am concerned with seed tannins leaching in the high alcohol environment.

Because I’m keeping free run and press wine separate, I could look at CF and PS as composite brix readings at 3.75 and 3.5 respectively as I plan to blend them together while they settle out.

I decided to let them go dry before pressing.


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## crushday (Sep 6, 2022)

Update: Press Day on 9.8.2022 (Thursday)

I punched down this morning and decided to taste everything just to get a sense of tannins - which are my big fear with both the Petite Sirah and Petit Verdot. Both of these can produce an overly tannic wine that I don't think 100 years in the bottle would even tame (purposely exaggerated). All three varieties taste good. The Petite Sirah, though viscosic, isn't displaying much tannin but is very chewy. Chewy since it has the density and texture of slighly reduced balsamic vinegar. This thing is going to be a tooth stainer for sure! Actually, the Petit Verdot isn't much different - just less thick. It's huge - really huge.

The cap on the CF is easily broken up but still forming. The cap on the PV is second in line in terms of ability to break up. The PS is a whole other story. I don't even touch those two fermenters unless I've taken a 500g carb load since I need so much energy to break the cap up...

I have cleared my calendar for a Thursday afternoon press.


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## crushday (Sep 6, 2022)

Update: New Brix Readings on evening of 9.6.2022

*Brix readings today verses yesterday 

CF1: 3 Brix (preciously 5.5)
CF2: 0.7 Brix (previously 2)
PV: 3.5 Brix (previously 5)
PS1: 2.6 Brix (previously 4)
PS2: 1.7 Brix (previously 3)

Moving along to my goal of 48 hours from now I’ll be cleaning everything up…


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## crushday (Sep 8, 2022)

Update: Press Day

I had a successful press, but not one without incident. More on that later...

You can see from the pictures, how I set things up. I pressed the Petit Verdot first so I could pump the free run to a stainless container. I needed the fermentor to pump the Cab Franc into after I cleaned it. Cab Franc was second and last was the Petite Sirah.

The free run of the PV was just that and whatever was produced at 1/4 bar. Yield was 30 gallons free run and 6 gallons press. Press was at 1 bar.

The free run of the CF was just that and whatever was produced at 1/2 bar. Yield was 52 gallons free run, 6 gallons press and 5 gallons Rose'. Press was 1 bar.

The free run of the PS was just that and whatever was produced at 1/4 bar. Yield was 35 gallons free run and 7 gallons press. Press was 1/2 bar first fermenter and 1 bar for second.

My motivation on keeping both the PV and PS at such a low pressure for the press is all about tannins. Those varieties are plenty tannic and I did not want to extract anymore from pressing too hard. HOWEVER, you'll notice in the pictures that the PS at only 1/2 bar did not create a dense enough cake so when I lifted up the cage, the pomace fell everywhere. A little bit of mess but I got it cleaned up. Lesson learned...

All in all, the press was fun, educational and most importantly, a success. I'll let these guys settle out until Sunday at which time I'll transfer off the gross less, get under airlock and add the bacteria (CH16).

After press brix readings are as follows:

PV: 1 Brix
CF: 0 Brix
PS: 1 Brix


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## crushday (Sep 8, 2022)

Here’s a few pics of the Cab Franc being pumped into the settling tank. I’m very happy about the color, aroma and taste.

Sunday I’ll rack into Speidels…


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## Boatboy24 (Sep 8, 2022)

Looks awesome and well thought out. I have only one question: how can you be in the Purple Fingers Club if you wear gloves?


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## mainshipfred (Sep 9, 2022)

crushday said:


> Update: Press Day
> 
> I had a successful press, but not one without incident. More on that later...
> 
> ...


First off I like your press surround, pretty clever. As far as press goes I've always been a little unclear on the bar measurement. My experience with commercial presses is they keep a constant pressure. As the grapes are pressed the pressure drops and the commercial presses monitor this drop adding air to maintain the selected setting. The press last 20-30 minutes then the drum is rolled for the second of 3 cycles. There is still wine produced at the third cycle with the same pressure. It's a lot easier with a commercial rolling drum than with our bladder or basket presses. 

I probably waist more time than it's worth but my first press takes quite a while as I'll get the press to say 1 bar and sit there constantly adjusting the valve to maintain as close to 1 bar as I can. Once I get it to maintain 1 bar I call it quits. I don't often do 3 cycles but once I remove, fluff and reload the skins after the first press there is still a considerable (at least percentage wise) at the 1 bar pressure. The skins actually come out quite dry even at my standard 1 bar press.

Thoughts anyone?


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## crushday (Sep 9, 2022)

mainshipfred said:


> First off I like your press surround, pretty clever. As far as press goes I've always been a little unclear on the bar measurement. My experience with commercial presses is they keep a constant pressure. As the grapes are pressed the pressure drops and the commercial presses monitor this drop adding air to maintain the selected setting. The press last 20-30 minutes then the drum is rolled for the second of 3 cycles. There is still wine produced at the third cycle with the same pressure. It's a lot easier with a commercial rolling drum than with our bladder or basket presses.
> 
> I probably waist more time than it's worth but my first press takes quite a while as I'll get the press to say 1 bar and sit there constantly adjusting the valve to maintain as close to 1 bar as I can. Once I get it to maintain 1 bar I call it quits. I don't often do 3 cycles but once I remove, fluff and reload the skins after the first press there is still a considerable (at least percentage wise) at the 1 bar pressure. The skins actually come out quite dry even at my standard 1 bar press.
> 
> Thoughts anyone?


Good morning, Fred. As far as I know, 3 bar equates to 40 pounds of pressure.

My pressing routine only accommodates one press cycle; I don't rotate or fluff. I have a Lancman press. The only reason for that is availability at my local warehouse (winemakersdepot.com) - that's the brand they carry. The pressure valve doesn't seem to make much difference in the amount of the pressure. It does affect, however, the speed at which it takes to get to a desired pressure. Even with the pressure valve turned down all the way, the unit would still get to 3 bar - it just takes a LONG time.

So, yesterday, I had the valve set on the lowest speed. When I load the hopper, using a one gallon pitcher, the wine runs through the unit and into 5 gallon stock pot that I have fitted to drain into a Blichmann RipTide pump. I also have a sieve to catch any seeds or skins that would also flow in there. The sieve serves another purpose and actually catches a good portion of the gross lees. I have two and when one sieve gets "clogged", I trade out, rinse it off and keep going. When I get about 4.5 gallons of wine, I turn on the pump, which is not self-priming. I've learned how to use it this way but occasionally I have to prime it.

Once I get the hopper completely loaded up, I put the lid into place, screw it down and turn on the water. I'm always shocked at how much additional wine begins flowing without a registration on the pressure reading. Once I get to a 1/4 bar, I turn off the incoming water and it keeps that pressure. While all of that wine is flowing, I take time to clean the fermenter I've just emptied while keeping my eye on the wine, pressure and stock pot level. After I've captured the free run and 1/4 bar wine, I transition to the press wine.

Depending on the variety, I have allowed the press wine to take a full 3 bars. Yesterday, I didn't press anything over 1 bar. Like you said, even at 1 bar the skins are dry. I need to start lifting weights! That basket, full of seeds and skins, is getting pretty heavy!

Here's a few pics of the setup. However, not taken yesterday...


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## winemaker81 (Sep 9, 2022)

crushday said:


> HOWEVER, you'll notice in the pictures that the PS at only 1/2 bar did not create a dense enough cake so when I lifted up the cage, the pomace fell everywhere. A little bit of mess but I got it cleaned up. Lesson learned...


In the future you might, after reserving pressings at whatever levels you chose, do a harder press on the remainder and segregate that wine. I understand your concern regarding excess tannin; however, the final pressings may be valuable for blending into low tannin wines.

Keep in mind I'm a cheap SOB and have a hard time throwing anything out until I've gotten everything I can from it.


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## crushday (Sep 9, 2022)

winemaker81 said:


> In the future you might, after reserving pressings at whatever levels you chose, do a harder press on the remainder and segregate that wine. I understand your concern regarding excess tannin; however, the final pressings may be valuable for blending into low tannin wines.
> 
> Keep in mind I'm a cheap SOB and have a hard time throwing anything out until I've gotten everything I can from it.


Bryan, that's a very good point. Last night, in celebration, I had a Carignan wine that I made last year. Although very good, I was wishing it had a few tannins to interact with my tongue.


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## winemaker81 (Sep 9, 2022)

In 2019 I produced a second run wine from batches of Merlot, Malbec, and Zinfandel. I pressed just enough to fill a barrel, then *hard *pressed the remainder. [I have a basket press and have no idea of "bars". I cranked the handle until it wouldn't go further, over a period of 2 hours.]

The result was very dark and tannic. I expected little of the 'squeezins and initial tastes were not good. However, I needed it for topping, which left me with a carboy that I bottled the following August.

Wow. A few months in the bottle mellowed it, and it was surprisingly fruity (no oak). My younger son liked it enough that he asked me to serve it at his wedding reception.  [I declined, and made a WE CS kit, which worked very well. The 'squeezins would have been wasted on that crowd.]

I gave him the last 2 bottles a few weeks ago, knowing he liked it so much. At the 3 year mark, this second run wine is still in its prime. This taught me to keep an open mind and not discount a wine too quickly.


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## Kraffty (Sep 9, 2022)

I'm amazed that you do this single handedly, having the right tools helps, but still.... impressive


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## crushday (Sep 9, 2022)

Kraffty said:


> I'm amazed that you do this single handedly, having the right tools helps, but still.... impressive


That's right, equipment helps. I started at a little before 1pm (12:50p) and finished cleaning everything and putting everything away by 5:20pm. 

I don't mind working alone - I'm around people all week (staff and clients) and will take the "people" break.

Hope you're season goes well as it starts in a few days...


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## Snafflebit (Sep 9, 2022)

that Petit Sirah must looks like chocolate pudding!


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## CDrew (Sep 9, 2022)

Just catching up on your thread and things look like another knockout year for you. Congrats on another great year. You are nearing commercial quantities! Very good looking and efficient set-up you have there.

I have been remiss at starting a 2022 vintage thread, but I do have 35 gallons of foothill syrah I just pressed today. Nice to be on the board, and will pick 9/17 and share some pics then.


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## crushday (Sep 11, 2022)

Update: Rack off gross lees

I checked the Brix this afternoon. Here are the numbers:

PV: 0.3 - previous reading: 1 Brix
CF: -0.3 - previous reading: 0 Brix
PS: 0.9 - previous readying: 1 Brix

The Petite Sirah didn't change much. Hmmm... It's likely all those raisins hydrated and leached some resident sugars into the must. That of course will raise the sugar level - hopefully not outside the capability of the yeast. We will see.

I'm going to rack tonight off the gross lees. My business partner will be here Sunday night through Wednesday night. He leaves on Thursday morning. He's never taken part in any of the winemaking experience - only enjoyed the vino... So, tonight he'll get to see a very small portion of the process.


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## crushday (Sep 12, 2022)

Update: First BIG mistake of the season...

*Here’s why this picture is important…*

Last night, I started getting a little H2S in the Cab Franc. So, in my haste, I grabbed what I thought was the FerMax nutrients and mistakenly grabbed the Potassium metabisulfite. I have all my “powders” in similarly shaped and sized jars.

Without double checking, since I couldn’t readily find my measuring spoon set, (you can feel where this is going…) I started sprinkling K-Meta into the must. It wasn’t much as I noticed it right away. I immediately stopped and changed to the nutrients. 

This morning, I wanted to check the damage. Only 47.3 ppm FSO2. Not bad. But, too much for the CH16 bacteria I want to pitch this evening. Specs say max is 40.

Do I roll the dice and pitch anyway - as is? Or, because I have two containers of the same wine and the same volume, blend (thereby cutting the free SO2, likely not by half…), refill, and then pitch?

Any suggestions?


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## CDrew (Sep 12, 2022)

Yikes. I'd wait for sure. No sense stressing out the MLB, and you want to make sure the H2S problem is solved. I'd probably concentrate on that. For instance, if you splash rack, the added O2 will lower the SO2 level. Your idea of reblending also sounds like it would work.


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## crushday (Sep 12, 2022)

CDrew said:


> Yikes. I'd wait for sure. No sense stressing out the MLB, and you want to make sure the H2S problem is solved. I'd probably concentrate on that. For instance, if you splash rack, the added O2 will lower the SO2 level. Your idea of reblending also sounds like it would work.


Thanks, @CDrew - I'll splash rack tonight, thereby blending both containers and refill like they are now. I'll also retest to see the outcome of the SR and the blend. Should be interesting. Any predictions?


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## cmason1957 (Sep 12, 2022)

I know the MLB packages say Free SO2, but I am pretty well convinced that Total SO2 also can be a limiting factor in will the MLB work. I think I would blend the two together and then hope you are below the max it can handle. Time will tell.


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## winemaker81 (Sep 12, 2022)

I agree -- treat the H2S first and make sure it's gone. One thing at a time, and H2S always takes priority. Then blend and pitch.

This is a great lesson in _always read the label_! I recall a friend adding K-meta instead of acid to a wine ...


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## CDrew (Sep 12, 2022)

crushday said:


> Any predictions?



Haha:
After a vigorous splash rack and blending your free SO2 measurement will be 17.

When do you want the admonishment about your containers of "powders"? Hospitals went through this 20 years ago. Almost everything has it's own unique shape and color and the truly dangerous stuff has been removed to the pharmacy.

Also, I thought you were using Renaissance yeasts. I read back and saw this was a Chris Hansen Harmony yeast. What was the thinking there? It sounds interesting, but H2S is NOT interesting!

=


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## crushday (Sep 12, 2022)

CDrew said:


> Haha:
> After a vigorous splash rack and blending your free SO2 measurement will be 17.
> 
> When do you want the admonishment about your containers of "powders"? Hospitals went through this 20 years ago. Almost everything has it's own unique shape and color and the truly dangerous stuff has been removed to the pharmacy.
> ...


Last year, I did a dual yeast with Prelude/Avante on a few wines. This year, I wanted to experiment a bit and found the Harmony. Here's the description:

Viniflora® Harmony is a blend of three yeast stains, Saccharomyces cerevisiae (80%), Torulaspora delbrueckii (10%) and Lachancea thermotolerans (10%).

Harmony is an excellent choice for white or red wines that demand subtle but multi-dimensional differences, *produces low H2S and SO2*, and is gentle on Malolactic Bacteria. (bold added)

I can easily rectify the storage medium of my powders...point well made and kindly taken.


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## Kraffty (Sep 12, 2022)

Sounds like splash rack and blend is leading in the polls, also agree.


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## winemaker81 (Sep 12, 2022)

@crushday, check the free SO2 in a couple of days or a week. One early treatment for H2S is K-meta, which binds to the H2S. I'd be surprised if your free SO2 isn't lower as the K-meta is doing its job, although it sounds like you were pleasantly surprised at the SO2 reading you got, so it is possible that K-meta has already done its job. Do you smell H2S?


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## crushday (Sep 13, 2022)

winemaker81 said:


> check the free SO2 in a couple of days or a week. One early treatment for H2S is K-meta, which binds to the H2S. I'd be surprised if your free SO2 isn't lower as the K-meta is doing its job, although it sounds like you were pleasantly surprised at the SO2 reading you got, so it is possible that K-meta has already done its job. Do you smell H2S?



Really sound advice here. I didn't do anything last night except check the SO2 levels of both fermenters (pics below). Again, fermenters have the same wine in exactly the same quantity. There is a faint H2S smell still on the wine with the erroneous addition and no visible fermentation activity. The second fermenter also has the H2S _and_ visible fermentation activity. It's obvious that the addition of the KMeta disrupted the yeast. At last Brix check, the reading was -.3 a few days ago.

I'l likely splash rack the begeebees out of both tonight blending them and then immediately separating them. At 3 gallons a minute (pump speed) it won't take long. 

Now, a few pics...

*Free SO2 with Meta added:* It's come down 8 tenths since yesterday.




*Free SO2 without Meta added: * This wine basically has no free SO2 - the unit doesn't register anything less than 3.


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## winemaker81 (Sep 13, 2022)

I'm happy my thoughts are useful.

Upon reflection, don't blend the wines. The un-K-meta'd batch should go through MLF, while the other may not. Instead of potentially scotching both batches, inoculate them separately.

good batch -- you smell a bit of H2S? Splash rack or stir vigorously and monitor it a couple times per day. Did you add more nutrient to it? If so, you should be able to contain and minimize any damage. However, if you still smell H2S, it may be necessary to add a bit of K-meta (say 10 ppm) to bind the H2S. I don't SO2 test, but this is a situation where it is certainly warranted.

H2S batch -- Definitely splash rack or stir vigorously. If the yeast is stunted, make another starter -- it may be unnecessary, but it sure won't hurt!

If it were me, I'd keep the 2 batches separate until the good batch completes MLF. At that time (or later) you can evaluate both batches to decide what you want to do. I'd rather have half a batch that is exactly what I want, and half that is "good", in lieu of a full batch that is merely good. [You caught the H2S early so the wine should be fine, even if it doesn't undergo MLF and isn't what you were planning.]

While I'm sorry this happened to you, it's a good illustration for everyone else how important nutrient management can be. I will be keeping a stricter eye (and nose!) on my wines during fermentation and being diligent about nutrient additions.


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## crushday (Sep 14, 2022)

@winemaker81 - More good advice.

I separately splash racked both containers of the Cab Franc. I was able to alleviate the H2S... I checked the FSO2 after the racking and the reading was 38.4 - so, I pitched the bacteria. The specs indicate that max limit for FSO2 is 40, like previously mentioned. 

I have four containers of wine and added bacteria to all four. 

I'm done with that for about 4-5 weeks now...


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## Kraffty (Sep 14, 2022)

Crisis averted…. Carry on. CH 16 if I remember. Affordable and reliable yearly for me so far.


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## CDrew (Sep 14, 2022)

You are right at the limit though. I'd keep a close eye on the progress of MLF in the storage container at 38.4. And if it doesn't finish up in a few weeks, it may still be necessary to blend the two together. 

Super glad to hear that your H2S problem is solved.


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## Snafflebit (Sep 15, 2022)

crushday said:


> Really sound advice here. I didn't do anything last night except check the SO2 levels of both fermenters (pics below). Again, fermenters have the same wine in exactly the same quantity. There is a faint H2S smell still on the wine with the erroneous addition and no visible fermentation activity. The second fermenter also has the H2S _and_ visible fermentation activity. It's obvious that the addition of the KMeta disrupted the yeast. At last Brix check, the reading was -.3 a few days ago.
> 
> I'l likely splash rack the begeebees out of both tonight blending them and then immediately separating them. At 3 gallons a minute (pump speed) it won't take long.
> 
> ...



Somewhat unrelated...how do you like the Sentia? Have you used the malo strips also and have any idea about its accuracy?


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## crushday (Sep 15, 2022)

Snafflebit said:


> Somewhat unrelated...how do you like the Sentia? Have you used the malo strips also and have any idea about its accuracy?


I love the Sentia. I absolutely HATED setting everything up, drawing 25ml of wine and the jazz to run the proper tests with my SC-300 to ascertain the FSO2. It would literally take all morning! Now, each test takes 30 seconds after about a minute setup.

I have not tried the Malo test. The function was just released this spring, about the time I was was doing my spring wine making (frozen grapes from wine grapes direct) and testing media wasn't available in time. It's available now and I'll likely get some of the test strips and reactant. And, a glucose test was just released although I'm not certain what benefit it is to me knowing the outcome of that test. If you know, please share...

I appreciate you.


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## CDrew (Sep 15, 2022)

I think that Sentia is cool as heck. I could see buying one. Please continue to report specific experience with it. It looks like the free SO2 function is a winner, and I'll be curious how useful the malic acid function is.


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## Snafflebit (Sep 15, 2022)

My guess is the glucose (if it also measures fructose) can test for residual sugar levels. That may be important to know for commercial wineries. Because once ethanol gets included in the mix and at the low levels of glucose near the end of ferment, using specific gravity to measure the glucose would be inaccurate. The yeast used some of the glucose/fructose to grow its population, so not all gets converted to alcohol, as our final potential alcohol calculations assume.


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## BarrelMonkey (Sep 15, 2022)

@crushday , what's that pump that you're using to move pressed wine from the press into tank?

This is the achilles heel of my operation. My little pump is great for wine and OK for juice, but the prefilter gets clogged with cloudy juice/free run wine and it's a bear to disassemble, clean and put back together.

Hope your SO2 problem has resolved. If not there's always peroxide, though I would try gentler methods as you have done first...


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## crushday (Sep 16, 2022)

BarrelMonkey said:


> @crushday , what's that pump that you're using to move pressed wine from the press into tank?
> 
> This is the achilles heel of my operation. My little pump is great for wine and OK for juice, but the prefilter gets clogged with cloudy juice/free run wine and it's a bear to disassemble, clean and put back together.
> 
> Hope your SO2 problem has resolved. If not there's always peroxide, though I would try gentler methods as you have done first...


The description of your pre filter is what drove me to the Riptide at Amazon.com: RIPTIDE BREWING PUMP by Blichmann Engineering (from March Pumps) With Integrated Valve: Home & Kitchen

BTW, problem is fixed and all is well. Thanks!


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## CDrew (Sep 18, 2022)

Updates?


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## crushday (Sep 19, 2022)

CDrew said:


> Updates?


Update: No wine activity this weekend. I pitched the bacteria a few days ago and will run a test for completion in a couple of weeks. I took the trailer out and went camping. Here's a picture of the backside of Mount Rainier that I took this morning:


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## crushday (Oct 1, 2022)

Update: Time Will Tell

Running MLB test today on the following wines:

Knight's Valley Cabernet Sauv
Sonoma Merlot
CDL Cab Franc 1 (this one accidentally got the K-Meta infusion - )
CDL Cab Franc 2
CDL Petit Verdot Free Run
CDL Petit Verdot Press Run Carboy
CDL Petite Sirah Free Run
CDL Petite Sirah Press Run Carboy
CDL Petite Sirah Press Run 1 gallon
CDL Petite Sirah Press Run 1/2 gallon


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## BarrelMonkey (Oct 1, 2022)

That's what I call getting value for money out of your chromatography kit! Except the scientist in me can't help but comment that you've left out your control lanes...


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## Boatboy24 (Oct 1, 2022)

BarrelMonkey said:


> That's what I call getting value for money out of your chromatography kit! Except the scientist in me can't help but comment that you've left out your control lanes...



I don't use 'em either. Love having a full sheet of chromo tests.


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## crushday (Oct 1, 2022)

BarrelMonkey said:


> That's what I call getting value for money out of your chromatography kit! Except the scientist in me can't help but comment that you've left out your control lanes...


@BarrelMonkey what makes the test effective is the consistency of the “control lanes”. Like you, I know where they show up and if I see anything in the middle I’ll know I have to wait a bit longer and test again…


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## crushday (Oct 1, 2022)

Now, time to develop…


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## SCAndy (Oct 2, 2022)

Mr. Crushday,
I have to say I love your posts.
Informative
Instructional 
Inspiring
Motivating!
Especially for a newbie. Lots of knowledge provided. I Especially like how you list your numbers. It's like a home study project as I follow along imagining what the $÷@##&* I would do if faced with the varying scenarios.

Overall what is your opinion of the Harmony yeast so far if I may inquire?


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## crushday (Oct 2, 2022)

SCAndy said:


> Mr. Crushday,
> I have to say I love your posts.
> Informative
> Instructional
> ...


@SCAndy Thanks for the very kind words. Most of what I have learned about winemaking has been from this site, experience and a few other seasoned winemakers whom I've developed relationship with through this site - and, in that order. I suspect you're (or will be) the same.

Overall, I'm pleased with the Harmony yeast. The jury is still in chambers though as not enough time has elapsed to really appreciate all the yeast provides for the wine. I did learn something about how to step feed the yeast. Because I've used Avante so much, I assumed that Harmony (although a different company of manufacture) wouldn't produce ANY H2S. Boy was I wrong and the description is clear had I simply read and not jumped to some really poor conclusions. All is rectified now but if you use the yeast, just be aware. PM your address and I'll send you some...

Initial taste and sensory profile was favorable.


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## crushday (Oct 2, 2022)

Update:

You can see from the test that Malic Acid is clogging up the middle. Actually, this is VERY instructive for me in future ferments.

All of these represented wines had the MLB added after alcoholic fermentation was complete. ALL my other wines I have co-inoculated the bacteria after the first solid cap had formed.

I added the bacteria to the Cab and the Merlot on August 8th. If I had added the bacteria as per my normal, I'd be done now. I'm sure of that.

Because some will ask why I changed my protocol, I'll tell you now. At the time of these ferments, I was looking ahead and my travel schedule was unfavorable to making wine. When you add the bacteria to the must a day or two after the yeast, I've experienced total ferments of 20-25 days. By breaking from protocol, I was hoping to have a shorter AF that would allow me to press before I was scheduled to be on the road. It didn't actually work that way and I had to task Mrs. Crushday to punching down twice daily.

In short, I'm a fan of adding the bacteria at the formation of the first cap.


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## winemaker81 (Oct 2, 2022)

@crushday, it only takes one brush with H2S to make a believer, eh? I'll NEVER skip nutrient protocol again, and I don't believe you will, either!


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## crushday (Oct 7, 2022)

Update:

Racked my CF Rose’ today! -2 Brix and about 5 gallons. Taste is savory…. Like a strawberry daiquiri. Fermented at 60 degrees ambient - yeast dropped on August 28th.


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## SCAndy (Oct 10, 2022)

crushday said:


> @SCAndy Thanks for the very kind words. Most of what I have learned about winemaking has been from this site, experience and a few other seasoned winemakers whom I've developed relationship with through this site - and, in that order. I suspect you're (or will be) the same.
> 
> Overall, I'm pleased with the Harmony yeast. The jury is still in chambers though as not enough time has elapsed to really appreciate all the yeast provides for the wine. I did learn something about how to step feed the yeast. Because I've used Avante so much, I assumed that Harmony (although a different company of manufacture) wouldn't produce ANY H2S. Boy was I wrong and the description is clear had I simply read and not jumped to some really poor conclusions. All is rectified now but if you use the yeast, just be aware. PM your address and I'll send you some...
> 
> Initial taste and sensory profile was favorable.


Thanks for the yeast offer Mr. Crush. I am heavily laden with D21 which is supposed to be a winner for Cab sauv????
My hope is that I can find time to ferment a batch of frozen CS this year. Work is conspiring to ruin my life lately.
But I the pics and stories here keep me motivated.......


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## crushday (Nov 13, 2022)

Update: Malic Acid Conversion

I performed a chromatography test overnight. On the test sheet:

*O* is the Orange Wine - this was co-inoculated and is clearly *complete*.
*CF2* is a 50 gallon FlexTank which is a 50/50 mix of the previously labeled free run CF1 and free run CF2. If you recall, I erroneously added KMeta instead of nutrient to previously labeled CF2. This was prior to adding MLB. It *appears to be complete*.
*CF1* is a six gallon carboy and is also a 50/50 mix of the previously labeled free run CF1 and free run CF2 and suffered the same KMeta error. Surprisingly, *not complete.
PS1 *is free run Petite Sirah and *does not appear complete*.
*PV1* is free run Petit Verdot and *appears complete*.
*PSP1* and *PSP2* are press run Petite Sirah and are *not complete*.
*PVP* is press run Petit Verdot and is *not complete*.

A discovery, and a couple observations and questions:

1. * Discovery: * I have been attempting to discover the best time *for me* to add MLB to wines I want the Malic converted to Lactic. On this test sheet, "O" is the Orange Wine started five weeks later annd the only wine I added the bacteria to after the first solid cap during AF. It's the clear winner and solidifies that co-inoculation is the way forward.
2. *Observation on CF2: *Looks like I dodged a pretty significant bullet by blending an otherwise good batch of Cab Franc with a tainted one and proved to be a good idea - although risky.
3. *Observation:* The only differences between CF2 and CF1 is the volume of wine and proximity of the volume to the floor. CF1 is a carboy and sitting on a wheeled platform six inches off the floor. *Question:* Why hasn't MLF completed?
4. *Observations:* All conditions of PS1 and PV1 are matched. Yet, one is complete and one is not. If you recall, the PS1 was the highly raisined must that came out of the must pump looking like cake batter. The resulting wine tasted great, smelled amazing and had an extremely stout mouthfeel (which I like). Also, the initial pH of the Sirah was 3.67 while the Verdot was 3.59. Post MLF Sirah 3.92 while the Verdot is 3.65. *Question: * Why hasn't the Sirah completed? The current pH and ABV hasn't exceeded the operating specs of the bacteria.
5. *Question: * Why haven't the press wines finished MLF?
6. *Question:* For the ones not complete, what do I do now? If I'm satisfied with the taste, I'll likely leave them alone. If not, satisfied I could re-inoculate or use as a blender. What would you do?

Here's the test medium:


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## BarrelMonkey (Nov 13, 2022)

Interesting. Maybe not as much in the way of ML nutrients in your press wine?

I just posted another thread on my recent MLF attempts with elderberry. I'm wondering if the middle bands of your chromatogram may be malic (upper) and citric (lower). I know citric acid isn't usually prominent in wine grapes, but it's there and is an important precursor for diacetyl production (if you're going for creamy/buttery notes from your MLF).

[Edit: diacety = diacetyl]


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## stickman (Nov 13, 2022)

The main differences between CF1 and CF2:
The layer of lees in the 50 gal tank is thicker and under greater pressure. This will increase the rate of yeast breaking down providing additional nutrients to the MLB.
The temperature may be a bit warmer in the larger tank.
The Flextank also allows micro oxygenation and the carboy does not.
Take a carboy out of the flextank and replace with the CF1 carboy.

The press wine being slower to complete ML may be related to the sugar content after pressing; press wine is often higher in sugar than the free run. Yeast fermentation will tend to dominate, and the press wine may continue to ferment sugar for several days or weeks before the ML really takes off. I would probably wait a while to see if the ML completes.


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