# Brewing with Chocolate



## Raptor99 (Nov 1, 2020)

I occasionally see chocolate mentioned on brewing forums and I would like to try a Cherry Chocolate Wine. Does anyone have a recipe to suggest?

I also have some general questions about brewing with chocolate. I have found only limited info on brewing with chocolate online, mostly about adding chocolate to beer. Here is a good article about that.
I am interested in adding chocolate to fruit wine, not beer.

Based on my research so far, I have been able to put together this list of the various forms of chocolate:

Raw cacao beans from the cacao tree
Raw cacao nibs (crushed cacao beans)
Roasted cacao nibs
Cacao powder
Cocoa powder (not the same!)
Chocolate candy bar
Hersey's syrup
This list moves from the least processed to the most processed options. One eye opener was that there is a difference between "cacao powder" and "cocoa powder. Cacao powder is made from beans that are fermented and cold pressed. Cocoa powder is made from beans that are roasted at high temperatures. (Here's a link). The less processed versions are more rich in anti-oxidants. Both kinds of powder have the cocoa butter removed, while the nibs include the fat from the cacao beans. The different forms will also have different flavor profiles.

Do you have experience brewing with chocolate? Which form(s) of chocolate do you use?


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## G259 (Nov 1, 2020)

I never have, but my quick take is to avoid the fats, someone else may have more knowledge though.


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## cmason1957 (Nov 1, 2020)

You probably want to use a product called Dutched Cocoa, most of the taste none of the oils.


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## Raptor99 (Nov 1, 2020)

I found this explanation of the process of making Dutched Cocoa. From the explanation, it sounds like the cocoa fat is removed from both types of cocoa powder. But the nibs would have more of the fats.


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## hounddawg (Nov 1, 2020)

ask @sour_grapes , i just read a post where he told someone about a chocolate cherry recipe, sadly i was surfing and don't remember where it was at,,,
Dawg


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## hounddawg (Nov 1, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> You probably want to use a product called Dutched Cocoa, most of the taste none of the oils.


so you got any interesting wines going, um non grape, @NorCal has talked me into doing my first grape wine ever, he was right grapes are fruits too, and beings he's as slick as a greased pig, the one he pointed out is one that can be done sweet, i fear he is like @Arne and @sour_grapes , they've got me figured out, but hey I'm like a single syllable word, Like unbelievable , and yes that's a single syllable word, if I'm buzzed enough and say it very fastly,,,,, lol
Dawg


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## Ty520 (Nov 1, 2020)

I just wrapped up a mead that sat on nibs. The oils need a couple years to break down and smooth out, but I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor during my last taste test.

Most commercial chocolate wines seem to use syrups and other (imho) nasty ingredients like corn starch; I know a lot of people seem to like using Hershey's, but I would avoid it because it is mostly corn syrup; if you're going to go the syrup route,at least go with something higher quality and more natural ingredients than Hershey's.


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## salcoco (Nov 2, 2020)

ASP Test Page this is a strawberry chocolate recipe from Jack Keller's archives his recommendation is the Dutch cocoa powder. I found it at Penzy's. it does not have the oils. use I believe 4oz per gallon see below for recipe the link doesn't work


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## salcoco (Nov 2, 2020)

this is a recipe from Jack Keller's archives note the sue of Dutch chocolate powder. modify for a cherry chocolate recipe I would remove the red grape concentrate and go with about 6 lbs of cherries.




Strawberries and chocolate go together like a hand and glove. The intense aroma and distinctive flavor of strawberries pairs wonderfully with chocolate. This wine is easy to make and one will want to scale the recipe up to at least 3 gallons or regret it when you taste it.

The strawberries should be ripe and sliced. For this reason, look in the frozen foods for a 32-ounce tub of frozen sliced strawberries (you need two per gallon). These will be processed at the height of ripeness and are perfect for this recipe. Other container shapes and sized can also be used.

*Strawberry-Chocolate Wine*


4 pounds sliced ripe strawberries (frozen sliced have best ripeness)
4 oz Dutched cocoa powder
11.5-oz can Welch's 100% Red Grape frozen concentrate
1 1/2 lb finely granulated sugar
2 tsp acid blend
1 1/4 tsp yeast nutrient
3/4 tsp pectic enzyme
1/8 tsp powdered grape tannin
1 finely crushed and dissolved Campden tablet
5 pts water
1 pkt Gervin Wine Yeast Varietal B, or Lalvin 71B-1122
If using frozen strawberries, thaw. In a primary, pour into a fine-meshed nylon straining bag and tie closed. Do not mash.

Measure the Dutched cocoa powder (see Dutched Cocoa Powder, my February 5th, 2012 WineBlog entry for background on Dutched cocoa powder) in dry ounces and add to one pint of warm water in a blender, pulsing until thoroughly mixed. Add tannin, pectic enzyme, acid blend and yeast nutrient and pulse again to ensure all are well mixed and then set aside.

Pour the sugar over the strawberries and pour the boiling water over the sugar. Stir very well to dissolve sugar. Add the thawed grape concentrate and stir again to integrate. Finally, add the cocoa water while stirring and continue stirring for a full minute. Cover the primary and set aside to cool to room temperature.

When cooled, add activated yeast in a starter solution and cover primary. Punch down the bag of strawberries several times a day, checking their condition after several days. When they start looking thoroughly ravaged by the yeast (about 4-5 days), remove the bag and hang to drip (do NOT squeeze) to extract readily available liquid (I hang the bag from a kitchen cabinet door handle with a bowl underneath for about 20-30 minutes). Add dripped liquid back to primary and cover primary. Discard the strawberry pulp.

When the vigorous fermentation slows, transfer to secondary and attach an airlock. Do not top up. Allow fermentation to finish and rack, adding the finely crushed and dissolved Campden tablet and then top up. Set aside in dark place for 60 days and rack again; top up with distilled water (this will not noticeably affect the flavor or alcohol level).If wine has not cleared, add another 3/4 tsp pectic enzyme. Return to darkness another 60 days and rack again, topping up as before. Set aside in darkness 4-6 months to bulk age. Rack if required, bottle and age an additional 6 months before tasting. Yes, it is a protracted process, but well worth it. [Jack Keller's own recipe]

The resulting wine is full-bodied and delicious, the marriage of strawberry and chocolate perfect. To retain color, this wine is best bottled in dark glass and cellared in darkness or very low light. It should be consumed within a year -- two years at most.


My thanks to Sandy LeBleu of Houma, Louisiana for this request.


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## cmason1957 (Nov 2, 2020)

Here is another Chocolate wine, I believe I modified this some from the original at Jack Kellers site. I last made this several years ago. I don't have my notes with me, but I remember you want a BIGGGG fermentation bucket (Like 10 gallons to end up with 6 gallons of wine), as it swells greatly. Buy the boxes of chocolate covered cherries after (or just before) Christmas, I think I paid $0.50/box at Wally World when I made it. Feel free to increase the number of boxes, as I seem to remember Jack had some words about that in his original write-up. Maybe go to 64 boxes. But it tasted wonderful at 48.


Chocolate Covered Cherry Wine

48 boxes of chocolate covered cherries
water to 6 gallons
3 lb finely granulated sugar
8 tbsp acid blend
¼ tsp K-Meta tablet
18 drops almond extract
1/2 tsp tannin
3 tbsp yeast nutrient
1 1/2 tsp yeast energizer
2 pkt Champaign wine yeast
Bring the water to a rolling boil and dissolve the sugar in it. While it is getting there,
dump the chocolate covered cherries into the primary. Pour the boiling water over the
chocolate covered cherries. The heat will melt the chocolate and expose the creamy
filling and cherries. Stir well to get everything dissolved that will dissolve. Cover the
primary and let it cool to room temperature.
Immediately make a yeast starter solution to get that yeast rehydrated and multiplying. If
you really don&#39;t know how to make and husband a starter solution, see the link following
this entry. You really should make a starter for every wine you make but few people do.
To the primary, add the acid blend, crushed Campden tablet, tannin, yeast nutrient and
yeast energizer. Stir well and recover the primary. Wait 12 hours and add the activated
yeast as a starter solution and 18 drops of almond extract (no more than 18 or you'll
regret it). After a vigorous fermentation builds and subsides, transfer the liquid to a
carboy, top up if necessary, and attach an airlock. Toss out the residue in the primary,
which will contain 99% of the chocolate. Don't think twice; there's nothing you can do
with it.. Ferment to completion, rack, wait a month and rack again, and stabilize.
Sweeten to taste (this wine should be moderately sweet, so don't overdo it), wait
another month, and bottle it. Set aside 3 months before tasting, and then thank Tommy
Wilson for sharing his original recipe. You can thank me (as in Jack Keller) for the tweaks.
Chocolate covered cherry wine is smooth, rich and delicious. After tasting this, you will
wish you had made more -- much more. If you can afford the ingredients, be my guest.


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## Darrell Hawley (Nov 3, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> Here is another Chocolate wine, I believe I modified this some from the original at Jack Kellers site. I last made this several years ago. I don't have my notes with me, but I remember you want a BIGGGG fermentation bucket (Like 10 gallons to end up with 6 gallons of wine), as it swells greatly. Buy the boxes of chocolate covered cherries after (or just before) Christmas, I think I paid $0.50/box at Wally World when I made it. Feel free to increase the number of boxes, as I seem to remember Jack had some words about that in his original write-up. Maybe go to 64 boxes. But it tasted wonderful at 48.
> 
> 
> Chocolate Covered Cherry Wine
> ...


Just to clarify things, as they keep putting less cherries in a box each year, how many chocolate covered cherries were in each box when you used this recipe ? Thanks


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## cmason1957 (Nov 3, 2020)

Darrell Hawley said:


> Just to clarify things, as they keep putting less cherries in a box each year, how many chocolate covered cherries were in each box when you used this recipe ? Thanks



Sorry, I don't remember. But I do remember there were two layers, maybe 6 per layer. But I'm not totally for sure about that. Hence the maybe you need to increase to 64 boxes.


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## VinesnBines (Nov 3, 2020)

I make a chocolate black raspberry port from a recipe of Jack Keller's and I use Dutched chocolate. I also am trying to improve a thin Merlot with canned plums and a chocolate liqueur I made by soaking the nibs in bourbon. I did a bench trial of the liqueur and the Merlot to see how much to add. I think I added a teaspoon of the liqueur to a gallon of wine. I added the liqueur to the stabilized wine and letting it age.


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## Raptor99 (Nov 3, 2020)

Thanks everyone for sharing your recipes! I look forward to experiment with this.


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## Raptor99 (Jan 13, 2021)

I combined things I liked from several recipes. Since I asked the question, I thought that I would share what I have learned. I will explain what I am trying, and at the end I will share the results of my latest taste test. I have benefited greatly from what others have shared on this forum, so I will report on my experiment.

Yeast pitch on 12/9/20

Raptor's Chocolate Cherry Wine
Recipe for 1 gallon
• 16 oz. tart cherry concentrate
• 1 lb. frozen dark sweet cherries
• 1 lb. sugar
• 1/8 tsp. grape tannin
• 1 Campden tablet
After 12 hours:
• 1/2 tsp. pectic enzyme
After 12-24 more hours:
• Check Brix, adjust sugar
• Check pH, adjust acid
• Add 3 oz. cocoa powder (Trader Joe's) in 1 pint warm water
• 1 tsp. yeast nutrient
• Yeast: Lalvin 71B-1122

In secondary:
• Add 1/4 of a vanilla bean (remove when the vanilla flavor is sufficient)

Target Brix: 19.5 (= 1.08 SG), 11% potential ABV. (I usually keep my fruit wines to no more than 12% ABV so that the alcohol does not cover up the fruit flavors.)

I decided on tart cherry concentrate because the consensus seems to be that tart cherries make better wine. I make another gallon from frozen cherries from Costco, and I have to agree that tart cherries make better wine. But several people suggested that adding some sweet cherries improves the flavor, so I got a bag of frozen cherries to add.

On day 2, I needed to add a little more sugar. I always start with a little less sugar than I think I will need, so that I can adjust it on day 2. The pH was 3.4, so I didn't need to adjust that.

After my research, I decided to add cocoa powder rather than bits of chocolate or chocolate syrup Chocolate syrup includes other ingredients that I don't want to add to my wine. Trader Joe's cocoa powder is probably better quality than Hershey's. Using better quality ingredients will produce better tasting wine. The label specifically says "it contains more cocoa butter than other commercially available cocoa powers." That helps to improve the flavor. I did not want to use "dutched cocoa" which goes through additional processing.

I thought that the cocoa powder would make the must cloudy and make it difficult to use my refractometer. So I adjusted the sugar first, and then added the cocoa powder. When I calculated how much sugar to add, I took account of the additional 1 pint of water that I planned to add with the cocoa. It is much easier to dissolve cocoa powder by whisking it in warm water.

There has been a lot of discussion about fats (cocoa butter) being a problem. I wasn't too concerned about this because:
1) Some of the fats will dissolve in the alcohol, which will help it to extract more flavor.
2) The fats that remain will mostly be stuck on the side of the primary, or in the carboy before the second racking.

I did find a film of some fats on the sides of my primary bucket. When I racked again from the secondary, there was very little remaining fat. So I didn't find this to be a problem. If you brew with cocoa nibs there will be more fat, because most of the cocoa butter is removed from the powder. But a small amount doesn't seem to be a problem, and it helps to improve the flavor. I don't know yet if this will make it more difficult to clear. My fruit wines usually clear on their own during bulk aging. So time will tell whether this will clear on its own or not.

This is still an experiment in progress, so I will report on the results to far. I racked this for a second time a few days ago. I thought there would be a lot of sediment, but I couldn't really tell because the color is so dark. It turns out that there wasn't much sediment. But I wanted to rack it because I plan to add part of a vanilla bean soon.

I took a taste today, and added a small amount of Stevia to sweeten it a bit. It has a pleasant chocolate aroma. On the front I can taste both chocolate and cherries, with the chocolate slightly predominate. On the back it is mostly chocolate, with a chocolate after taste. I like chocolate, so the flavor balance is good for me. I should probably call this "Chocolate Cherry Wine" rather than "Cherry Chocolate Wine." A little bit of sweetness really helps to bring out the flavors. I have heard that chocolate adds bitterness, but I could not detect any bitterness. I don't think that I will need to age this for a long time.

If I had this in a bottle, I would drink it today. I cannot say that for many of my fruit wines only 1 month after yeast pitch. I had planned to save this for a holiday wine at the end of this year, but I am afraid it won't last that long. I only made 1 gallon as an experiment, but I definitely will make more. I'll give it another month or two and see how it tastes with the vanilla. Then it might be time to start another batch.


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## Rembee (Jan 13, 2021)

@Raptor99 is there a reason that you used Trader Joe's cocoa powder as opposed to Hersey's cocoa powder?


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## Raptor99 (Jan 14, 2021)

We shop regularly at Trader Joe's and so I had some on hand. I think that it is better quality, and I like the idea that it has extra cocoa butter. But if I didn't have Trader Joe's nearby, I would try the Hershey's powder.


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## Rembee (Jan 14, 2021)

Raptor99 said:


> We shop regularly at Trader Joe's and so I had some on hand. I think that it is better quality, and I like the idea that it has extra cocoa butter. But if I didn't have Trader Joe's nearby, I would try the Hershey's powder.


Ok, was just wondering because I am very interested in trying a batch of this chocolate cherry. I'm going to start gathering ingredients for it.
Thanks Raptor


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## Raptor99 (Jan 14, 2021)

Here is the info from the side of the container of Trader Joe's Cocoa Powder


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## Ty520 (Jan 15, 2021)

Just as an fyi nerd fact:

Dutch process cocoa powder is washed in a alkaline solution to give it a neutral ph. As a result, it has a less acidic and less bitter flavor compared to natural cocoa.it also dissolves more easily in liquid ( that being said, expect plenty of sediment regardless). So if you use yeast nutrients and stabilizers in your mead, i would not be concerned about the further addition of potassium carbonate used in Dutch processing as being some sort of unnatural additive.

Also, cocoa butter is not really what imparts "chocolate" flavor. It's actually the solids - think white chocolate, which is just cocoa butter, versus dark chocolate, which has a high solids content (hence the reason chocolate intensity is measured in % - representing cocoa solids).

That being said, I believe most cocoa powder regardless of brand will have nearly the same solid/fat ratio, and trader Joes is maybe a couple percentage points higher in fat. Otherwise,I imagine if they mess with the ratio too much it could negatively impact recipes.

What's your FG?

One thing I'm concerned about in my own chocolate mead is bitterness, and think I'd be even more so with wine. So I think sweetness is probably a necessity when using chocolate to provide balance.


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## Raptor99 (Jan 15, 2021)

I have not measured the SG again, but I'm sure that the fermentation is finished. Since I do bulk aging I am not in a hurry to measure FG. 

I have no way to determine the percentage of cocoa butter in different brands of cocoa power. A small amount of cocoa butter is probably a good thing. I think that most dark chocolate contains both cocoa powder and cocoa butter.

I have seen many posts warning about bitterness with chocolate. That's why I was surprised that my 1-month old chocolate cherry wine did not taste bitter. The amount of bitterness probably depends on the exact type and brand of chocolate, type of yeast, etc. I do agree that chocolate needs a bit of sweetness to bring out the flavor, regardless of whether or not it is bitter.


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## Ty520 (Jan 15, 2021)

Cocoa powder, dutched or regular, is about 75% solids, 25% butter fat. I am not a chemist, but I hypothesize that since cocoa butter's melting point is around 100F, and not water soluble (neither are the solids for that matter - both are naturally hydrophobic), most, if not all, of both the fat and solids will eventually fall out of suspension and get dumped with the rest of the trub.

Now that I think about it, if/when I use chocolate again, I would probably actually heat up the water and add the cocoa as the very first ingredient in order to break down the fat and solids as much as possible.

I know that some cocoa mixes add lecithin to help emulsify - I wonder if it could be used in a chocolate wine or mead

One concern about adding up front would be if yeast would metabolize the fat, and what they would offput as a result that might be unpleasant


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## Rembee (Jan 15, 2021)

@Raptor99 just to be clear for my pea noggin lol. You added the 3 oz. of cocoa powder per gal. mixed in a pint of warm water per gal. into the primary before pitching the yeast right?
And if so, it fermented on the chocolate, juice and skins for how long?


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## Raptor99 (Jan 15, 2021)

Rembee said:


> @Raptor99 just to be clear for my pea noggin lol. You added the 3 oz. of cocoa powder per gal. mixed in a pint of warm water per gal. into the primary before pitching the yeast right?
> And if so, it fermented on the chocolate, juice and skins for how long?



Yes, that is correct. I used 3 oz. (by weight) of cocoa powder for 1 gallon, added to the primary (I use a bucket) before pitching the yeast. It stayed in my primary with the fruit and concentrate until the fermentation seemed about complete, which was 5 days. After that I removed the brew bag with the cherries and racked into the secondary.



Ty520 said:


> I know that some cocoa mixes add lecithin to help emulsify - I wonder if it could be used in a chocolate wine or mead



I used pure cocoa powder, without anything else added. I think that I saw a discussion about lecithin in another post.



Ty520 said:


> One concern about adding up front would be if yeast would metabolize the fat, and what they would offput as a result that might be unpleasant



I don't know if the yeast can metabolize the fat. But as the alcohol level rises, some of the fat will probably bond to some of the oils to keep them in solution.


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## Rembee (Jan 15, 2021)

Thank you for clarifying that up for me @Raptor99


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## Raptor99 (Jan 15, 2021)

Ty520 said:


> Dutch process cocoa powder is washed in a alkaline solution to give it a neutral ph. As a result, it has a less acidic and less bitter flavor compared to natural cocoa.it also dissolves more easily in liquid ( that being said, expect plenty of sediment regardless). So if you use yeast nutrients and stabilizers in your mead, i would not be concerned about the further addition of potassium carbonate used in Dutch processing as being some sort of unnatural additive.
> 
> Also, cocoa butter is not really what imparts "chocolate" flavor. It's actually the solids - think white chocolate, which is just cocoa butter, versus dark chocolate, which has a high solids content (hence the reason chocolate intensity is measured in % - representing cocoa solids).
> 
> ...



Your comments caused me to do a little research. I studied some cocoa powder labels on Amazon.

1. I realized that I could get a rough estimate of the amount of fat in cocoa powder from the nutrition label. It turns out that Trader Joe's cocoa powder is 10% fat. So is almost every other cocoa powder that I found, including Hershey's. When I have time I might ask Trader Joe's about their claim to have more cocoa butter. I did find a few gourmet cocoa powders that are about 17% fat.

2. Surprisingly (at least to me) the Dutched chocolate powder is usually about 25% fat.

3. The Dutched chocolate has pH 7 vs. pH 5 or 6 for regular cocoa powder. My target pH for wine is around 3.5. Since pH is a logarithmic scale, if regular cocoa powder is around pH 5.5 then my must is 100 times as acidic. I don't think that regular cocoa powder is going to make a measurable difference in the pH.
Here is a reference: What's the Difference Between Dutch Process and Natural Cocoa Powder?

4. My package of roasted cocoa nibs is 50% fat.

5. It turns out that chocolate is not always bitter. Good quality cacao beans roasted properly are not bitter. But poor quality beans that are over-roasted are bitter. See this article by a chocolate sommelier: What makes chocolate bitter? . Like everything else, better quality ingredients made better quality wine (or mead).


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## Rembee (Jan 15, 2021)

So when did you last taste your chocolate cherry wine and what under tones can you describe @Raptor99?


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## Raptor99 (Jan 15, 2021)

@Rembee I pitched yeast on 12/9 and tasted it at the first racking on 12/14. At that time there was a good blend of cherry and chocolate flavors and a slight bitterness. 

I tasted it again at the second racking on 1/10. Here are my comments on that tasting:
Good tart cherry and chocolate aroma
Up front tart cherry, on the back chocolate
Lingering chocolate flavor
Acidity tastes okay
No off flavors or odors

I put the leftovers along with most of the lees in a wine bottle in the fridge to let the sediment settle. On 1/12 I used that to top off my carboy. I let the rest of the leftovers in the wine bottle settle for another day in the fridge. On 1/13 I tasted a few ounces with 1 drop of Stevia to sweeten it. The taste was even better with a little bit of sweetness. The chocolate flavor lingered on my tongue for quite a while. I did not detect any bitterness.

I plan to add part of a vanilla bean to the secondary. I am looking for subtle vanilla notes in the background, but I want the chocolate and cherry to predominate.


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## Raptor99 (Jan 15, 2021)

I found another article on why cheap chocolate is bitter: 





Why is cheap chocolate bitter?


Most American's that have only had milk chocolate will find that their palates cannot adjust to the bitter taste of dark chocolate. The bars found in supermarkets are commercially processed and are bitter. There are several reasons for this.



exoticchocolatetasting.com





I also discovered that different people have different levels of sensitivity to bitter flavors: 








Sensitivity to bitter tastes may be why some people eat fewer vegetables


Research Highlights: A gene that makes some compounds taste bitter may make it harder for some people to add heart-healthy vegetables to their diet. Researchers hope to learn more from this type of genetic research to help people with aversions to ...




newsroom.heart.org












Danish and Chinese tongues taste broccoli and chocolate differently


Two studies show that Danes aren't quite as good as Chinese at discerning bitter tastes. The research suggests that this is related to anatomical differences upon the tongues of Danish and Chinese people.



www.sciencedaily.com





For our purposes, the conclusion is to brew what tastes good to you.


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## Rembee (Jan 15, 2021)

Raptor99 said:


> @Rembee I pitched yeast on 12/9 and tasted it at the first racking on 12/14. At that time there was a good blend of cherry and chocolate flavors and a slight bitterness.
> 
> I tasted it again at the second racking on 1/10. Here are my comments on that tasting:
> Good tart cherry and chocolate aroma
> ...


Very detailed tasting. It's good to write each tested taste down throughout the aging process. To me it's part of the process of what we do and helps one learn the different complexities that a wine can bring. I applaud you for your efforts, very well done!
Do you plan on letting the vanilla bean reside in the finishing of the fermentation for a certain length of time or simply by taste?


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## Raptor99 (Jan 15, 2021)

Thanks! For my earlier batches my notes are not so detailed. But I have learned the value of detailed notes.

There are too many factors to predict exactly how long the vanilla should remain in the secondary. I will taste is once in a while to determine when the vanilla flavor is strong enough. In the end, taste is the most important factor.


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## hounddawg (Jan 15, 2021)

Raptor99 said:


> I found another article on why cheap chocolate is bitter:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Agreed, we all suit ourselves,, 
Dawg


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## hounddawg (Jan 15, 2021)

I've never thought that chocolate sounded good in a wine, but after reading this thread, a tart cherry with chocolate sounds awesome to me now, I'll have to give that tart cherry chocolate a try, but maybe with a touch of cinnamon, this thread is most motivating,,,,
Dawg


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## Rembee (Feb 14, 2021)

@Raptor99, I wanted to let you know that yesterday 2/13/21, I started a 3 gallon batch of chocolate cherry wine. I pitched the yeast today. I modified the recipe a little as follows;

3 gallon batch.
Day 1
1/2 gallon (4-32 oz bottles) Knudsen just black cherry juice
1/2 gallon (4-32 oz bottles) Kcudsen just tart cherry juice
4 lbs frozen sweet cherries, simmered for 30 mins and skins broken open with a potato smasher.
48 oz sugar / 24 oz water simply syrup
3/4 tsp grape tannin
1/8 tsp Potassium Metabisulfite
16 oz steeped Earl Grey Tea (2 bags)
Zest of 1 orange
Let sit for 12 hours
1 1/2 tsp pectic enzyme
Let sit for 12 hours
_________________________________________

Day 2
Dissolve 9oz Trader Joe's cocoa powder in 1 pint warm cherry juice then add to must
Adjusted SG to 1.100 and ph to 3.50
Add 3 tsp of yeast nutrient
Pitched Lalvin 71B


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## Raptor99 (Feb 14, 2021)

@Rembee That sounds great! Let us know how it turns out.


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## bade50 (Feb 19, 2021)

Rembee said:


> @Raptor99,


wondering how fermentation is going on your batch? I am wanting to start a cherry chocolate batch asap. I have a case of choc. covered cherries that I'm working on a recipe for 5 gallons on and am taking notes from what everyone else has tried/experienced. I like your batch in that you added cherry juices. But I'm wondering why you added the Earl Grey tea when you also added tannin? I typically dont add both so I'm curious if there is a flavor difference or other reason.


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## Raptor99 (Feb 19, 2021)

bade50 said:


> But I'm wondering why you added the Earl Grey tea when you also added tannin? I typically dont add both so I'm curious if there is a flavor difference or other reason.



@Rembee I was curious about that too. I like drinking Earl Grey tea, but I have never tried adding it to a wine.


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## bade50 (Feb 20, 2021)

Raptor99 said:


> @Rembee I was curious about that too. I like drinking Earl Grey tea, but I have never tried adding it to a wine.


I've actually got a couple of small batches of "tea wine" working using some flavored tea mixes that I bought at a bargain price. They have interesting flavor profiles in between primary and secondary. One had dried dates and all kinds of other goodies in the mix, it tastes very nice so far. The other one.....not so much.....lol. But I have read many times about adding tea for the tannins instead of grape tannins. I was just wondering about the addition of both. If either of the tea batches that I have going works out, I'll post the recipes and notes.


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## bade50 (Feb 20, 2021)

Raptor99 said:


> @Rembee I was curious about that too. I like drinking Earl Grey tea, but I have never tried adding it to a wine.


Raptor99 how did your cherry chocolate wine turn out so far? I really want to get this batch started but I sure as heck do want to use the best and most up to date experiences/knowledge/recipes available. This will be close to my most expensive batch at a dollar a box for 6.5 oz of choc covered cherries ( I was waiting for the "after Valentines sale" and it was the best deal I could get for a case of 36....


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## Rembee (Feb 20, 2021)

@bade50, my fermentation went well. It fermented faster then I was expecting. It went from an OG of 1.100 to 1.004 in 4 days. I racked it into a 3 gallon carboy yesterday and had enough left for top off to fill a 1 gallon carboy 3/4 full. Both are under an airlock. 
I am experimenting with the earl grey for more of a mouth feel. So my wife and I decided to add the tea along with the grape tannin. I'm also hoping it will add some different complexity to the finished wine.


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## bade50 (Feb 20, 2021)

Rembee said:


> @bade50, my fermentation went well. It fermented faster then I was expecting. It went from an OG of 1.100 to 1.004 in 4 days. I racked it into a 3 gallon carboy yesterday and had enough left for top off to fill a 1 gallon carboy 3/4 full. Both are under an airlock.
> I am experimenting with the earl grey for more of a mouth feel. So my wife and I decided to add the tea along with the grape tannin. I'm also hoping it will add some different complexity to the finished wine.


thank you for your reply!! Please keep the post updated on your progress, taste, etc.. I'm very interested in your recipe and results. I can't stand finding a post here on a recipe or mixture that I want to try and discover that it is older and has no posts about results.


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## Rembee (Feb 20, 2021)

I have used earl grey black tea in other wine batches before by itself and we have liked it. So this time after I had already added the grape tannin my wife asked, "are you using the tea this time?" Which I had not lol. So after some discussion we decided what the hell, lets try the tea also.


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## bade50 (Feb 20, 2021)

Rembee said:


> I have used earl grey black tea in other wine batches before by itself and we have liked it. So this time after I had already added the grape tannin my wife asked, "are you using the tea this time?" Which I had not lol. So after some discussion we decided what the hell, lets try the tea also.


well it is definitely a good idea to follow the wife's directions (!) and.....if it turns out bad, take the blame on something that you did.....


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## Rembee (Feb 20, 2021)

bade50 said:


> thank you for your reply!! Please keep the post updated on your progress, taste, etc.. I'm very interested in your recipe and results. I can't stand finding a post here on a recipe or mixture that I want to try and discover that it is older and has no posts about results.



@bade50, your welcome. I will update in about a month when I'm ready to rack again. I consider this first rack I did yesterday as a dirty rack and still the primary. Once fermentation has stopped, which I normally wait a month, I will rack again for the stabilization stage which some call the secondary fermentation. I don't like calling it a secondary fermentation because there is no fermentation taking place. This is where the wine stabilizes and naturally de-gases.


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## Rembee (Feb 20, 2021)

bade50 said:


> well it is definitely a good idea to follow the wife's directions (!) and.....if it turns out bad, take the blame on something that you did.....


Oh trust me, it will not turn out bad lol. If we do not think it turned out well I will just blend it with a solo cherry wine.


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## glennwing (Feb 20, 2021)

I have 5 gallons of black cherry wine made from vintners best black cherry concentrate. Not sure how this wine will turn out but I got it cheap ($23) so I figured I would give it a try. My question is there any way to add the chocolate after fermentation? It is at .995 SG and I am letting it age a while before back sweetening and bottling.


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## Raptor99 (Feb 20, 2021)

bade50 said:


> Raptor99 how did your cherry chocolate wine turn out so far? I really want to get this batch started but I sure as heck do want to use the best and most up to date experiences/knowledge/recipes available. This will be close to my most expensive batch at a dollar a box for 6.5 oz of choc covered cherries ( I was waiting for the "after Valentines sale" and it was the best deal I could get for a case of 36....



My earlier tasting was what I had after I let the lees settle out in the fridge. So there was a nice strong chocolate flavor. Then I added 1/4 of a vanilla bean. After a few weeks I tasted again. The chocolate flavor was a little light, so I added 15 g cocoa nib for my 1 gallon batch. After 10 days I tasted it again. The flavor was very nice, with more chocolate flavor and vanilla in the background. I racked it off the vanilla and cocoa nibs. I ate one of the nibs and it had very little chocolate flavor, so I think that it was depleted after 10 days. Now I will bulk age for a few months, and the taste it again to see if it is ready for bottling. 

My question about using chocolate covered cherries is what ingredients do they have besides cherries and chocolate? I think that those cherries are preserved, so that could be a problem. I don't have exact figures, but with my recipe my cost is around $4-5 per bottle of wine. This will be way better than any $5 bottle of wine I could get in the grocery store.


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## my wine (Feb 20, 2021)

glennwing said:


> I have 5 gallons of black cherry wine made from vintners best black cherry concentrate. Not sure how this wine will turn out but I got it cheap ($23) so I figured I would give it a try. My question is there any way to add the chocolate after fermentation? It is at .995 SG and I am letting it age a while before back sweetening and bottling.


I did and it flavored my wine very well. I had some wine that turned out too sweet for my taste so I used it for blending. I had several containers including a 4 liter carboy. This wine is months old. I added brandy, cacao powder and some vanilla extract and now we love it.


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## Rembee (Jul 6, 2021)

@bade50 & @Raptor99 Just wanted to give an update on my cherry/chocolate wine. It's been 3 months since I last racked this wine. As soon as the bung and airlock are removed, there is a delightful aroma of chocolate. I also degased it today after racking and then checked the SG which is right at 1.000. My wife and I both tasted it and we both agree that the flavor is definitely improving. Although it does have a strong alcohol taste, 13.8% ABV, the wine itself is not as harsh as it was 3 months ago. You can definitely taste the cherry on the back of the tongue. It has a very nice mouth feel also. We both agreed that although you can only taste a hint of chocolate that there is a very strong aroma of it. We decided to add 12 grams of America Med. Toasted Oak and allow it to sit for another month before tasting it again to see if it is oaked enough. This is a 3 gallon batch.
I will allow this wine to age a full year. I started it on February 14th of this year. Hopefully it will be ready for Valentines Day.


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## Raptor99 (Jul 6, 2021)

@Rembee It sound like your cherry/chocolate wine is going well. I bottled mine two weeks ago, about 6 months after starting it, because I wanted to free up a carboy. There is a strong chocolate aroma, and the chocolate flavor predominates with cherry at the back. I stabilized and added some glycerin and simple syrup to back sweeten. The chocolate flavor is still bit sharp (some might call it bitter), so I look forward to see how this comes together after some bottle aging. I plan on bringing this out for the holidays. I only made a one gallon batch since this was an experiment. I will definitely be doing this again!


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## Khristyjeff (Jul 7, 2021)

Kind of related but I did a coffee desert wine (RJS), added instant coffee and it tastes like chocolate. Heavy chocolate flavor, and very tasty.


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## Raptor99 (Jul 18, 2022)

Time for an update. Yesterday I opened a bottle of my cherry chocolate wine, about 1.5 years after starting fermentation. The flavors were well blended and mature. There was a little bitterness, about the same as in a red grape wine with a medium level of tannins. I backsweetened when I bottled, but I found that if I add a little more sugar in the glass it helped to bring out the chocolate flavor. With that addition, it is very good. I'm holding on to a bottle or two to taste at the 2 year mark. But I already know that I definitely want to do this again, so later this year I plan to start another batch.


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