# Black Currant Wine



## Wade E

*6 Gallon recipe*
18 lbs – Previously Frozen and Thawed Black Currants
11 lbs – White Table Sugar
1/4 tsp – Liquid Pectic Enzyme
1 tsp – Acid Blend
6 tsp – Yeast Nutrient
1/4 tsp – K-Meta
3 tsp – Yeast Energizer
5 Gallons – Water
1 Sachet – Red Star Cotes Des Blanc Yeast
Pour 1 gallon of warm water in a 7.9 gallon primary bucket or bigger.
Add K-meta, Yeast Nutrient, and Yeast Energizer and stir well. Put all fruit in fermenting bag and squeeze over primary to extract most of juices and then put bag in primary. Pour the 1 gallon of boiling water with all dissolved sugar over fruit. Fill the rest of the way with remainder of room temp water and check SG, it should have a SG of around 1.090 give or take a little, if more then add a little more water, if less then add a little more dissolved sugar in small amount of water as sugars from fruit can vary a little. Let sit for 12 hours with lid loose or with a cloth covering bucket with elastic band or string tied around so as that not to sag in must. After those 12 hours add your Pectic Enzyme and wait another 12 hours while also adjusting your must temp to around 75 degrees. After those twelve hours, pitch your yeast either by sprinkling yeast, dehydrating yeast per instructions on back of yeast Sachet, or by making a yeast starter a few hours prior to the 12 hour mark. At this point either leave primary lid off with the cloth again, place lid on loose or snap the lid shut with airlock. Punch down cap twice daily to get all fruit under the liquid level. When SG reaches 1.015, rack to 6 gallon carboy and let finish fermenting with bung and airlock attached. When wine is done fermenting, (check a few days in a row to make sure SG does not change and SG should be around .998 or less) you can stabilize by adding another ¼ tsp of k-meta and 3 tsps of Potassium Sorbate and degas your wine thoroughly. You can now sweeten your wine if you like by using simple syrup which consists of 2 cups of sugar and 1 cup of boiling water or by using a juice or frozen concentrate. I typically take 2 quarts of an alike juice and simmer on stove at medium heat with lid off until its 1/3 its original size and let it cool to room temp and then add slowly to taste. Be careful not to over sweeten. At this point you can use a fining agent or let it clear naturally. Once clear, rack into clean vessel and bulk age more adding another ¼ tsp of k-meta at 3 month intervals or add ¼ tsp k-meta and bottle age for at least 3 months and enjoy. Longer aging will give you a better wine so save a few bottles till at least 1 year mark so you can truly see what this wine can aspire to.


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## Poobah58

Wade, ever done a black currant mead?


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## Wade E

No not yet. Once my bushes start to produce some good amounts Ill surely do this though amongst a port also.


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## Poobah58

Why the acid blend? What does it do for you?


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## Wade E

Brings the acid up into the desired range. You could use a more specific acid but in most part most winemakers dont have specific acids on hand and Ill get a 1,000 posts here asking if the acid blend is ok instead so thats why almost all recipes say acid blend instead of citric or tartaric or malic.


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## Poobah58

Then I assume the currants are low acid fruit...


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## Sparky

From the info I have seen on currants, 2x the vitamin C. Can I assume that they are high in citric acid?


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## Savana123

*Hi..*

Hi.. I studied your recipe and note down the ingredients and I will definitely try it at my home. I loves making wine at home and also drinking.

Some of my friends told me that wine making is a very hectic process and it requires attention. Black Currant is one of my favorite flavor and I always eats Ice Cream, shakes, and drinks with this flavor. 

Thanks Wade for the recipe...


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## ptdreamcoast

I'm gonna try it, thanks!


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## jackendonald

Black, red or white Flows - three pounds (1.5 kg) sugar 3 1/2lb (1.75kg) Water 1 gallon (4.5 liters) and yeast nutrients (Pectic Enzyme) Put the flows in a large clay Law and mash. Bring to boiling water and sugar until light and at the same time pour the boiling current. When cooled to the temperature of blood add pectic enzyme (nutrients), and a few days later, add yeast loosley then leave covered for 5 days in a warm place, where is a random mix. Strain pattern of fermentation bottle (carboy) and an air pocket in the form. Let stand until fermentation ceases and wine clears (usually about 3 months) then hijack steralised in bottles.


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## pharmgurl

Can this wine be sweetened with Monin Black Currant Syrup? I have some Black Currant wine aging in a carboy right now and it tastes very alcohol-y. Can't really taste the fruit flavor. I made it with the Vitners Harvest juice & some red grape juice. Any advice is welcome.

Thanks,
Jen


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## Winemaker2013

So did anyone else tried this recipe?? I would like to get some feedback on this guys!


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## Downwards

I've done a one gallon batch of black currant with juice from Trader Joe. I was actually doing it as an experiment to see just how high ABV I could get it, so it really wasn't very well balanced. (I got it to about 19% if memory serves). Ended up blending it with 5 gallons of Apple wine that was kind of boring tasting, tastes great together! I'll bet it would be fabulous combo with mead.
pharmgurl, Why not mix a little in a glass and taste it? If the wine is stabilized and you think that the combo tastes good, I can't imagine why not. Take notes of how much you blended and to how many oz of wine so that you can do the same ratio with your whole batch.


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## almargita

I used 2 large cans of Vinters Harvest Black Currant juice to make a 5 gal batch. Just followed the directions on the can, plus added about 1 pound of raisens. It was back-sweetened with 1 liter of Marco Polo Black Currant Syrup to medium sweet & turned out fantastic!! Left in glass for about 1 year. Won a Silver medal in the Pittsburgh Wine Conference that was held recently. Wade had mentioned using the Marco Polo Syrups in the past.

Al


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## Winemaker2013

almargita said:


> I used 2 large cans of Vinters Harvest Black Currant juice to make a 5 gal batch. Just followed the directions on the can, plus added about 1 pound of raisens. It was back-sweetened with 1 liter of Marco Polo Black Currant Syrup to medium sweet & turned out fantastic!! Left in glass for about 1 year. Won a Silver medal in the Pittsburgh Wine Conference that was held recently. Wade had mentioned using the Marco Polo Syrups in the past.
> 
> Al



Well sir, i have to congratulate you on impressive everyone with your wine in that conference but i was asking about who tried making this exact recipe that Wade posted here..


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## Downwards

Congrats on the win Al!


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## brewski09

Wade E said:


> Brings the acid up into the desired range. You could use a more specific acid but in most part most winemakers dont have specific acids on hand and Ill get a 1,000 posts here asking if the acid blend is ok instead so thats why almost all recipes say acid blend instead of citric or tartaric or malic.



Okay, so I have an acid question that's general here. If I have citric acid blend, is it the same amount as the generic acid blend? Thx


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## Wade E

I would lower the dosage by about 1/2 to 1/2 tsp per batch if its only citric acid as the generic is a blend of all three acids.


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## Downwards

My wife is allowing my one big fruit buy a month, haha. I thought I'd share this with folks since it's likely to be my next months purchase so I can try this recipe. Going for the 6 gallon pail. Pricy, but I really don't think that the finished wine will have come out to much.  How else to rationalize it? hmmmm.. http://www.currantc.mybigcommerce.com/categories/Currants/


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## Wade E

Looks like another paycheck goes to wine making! LOL


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## Norske

What initial, (pre-ferment) pH would you recommend?


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## alvachristeen

ingredients:
3 lb / 1,350 grams blackcurrants
3 lb / 1,350 grams sugar
1 teaspoon citric acid
Water up to 1 gallon
Yeast nutrient
Wine yeast

METHOD:
Crush the blackcurrants and place in a fermentation bucket. Boil the sugar and pour all the liquid over the blackcurrants. When cool add the citric acid, yeast nutrient and wine yeast. Cover and leave to ferment for five days, stirring daily. Using a fine sieve strain the liquid into a demijohn and fit an airlock to seal the jar.

Store in a warm place and allow the fermentation to work. When fermentation has ceased, rack the wine into a clean jar and place in a cooler environment and leave for a further few months. When the wine is clear and stable siphon into bottles.


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## brewski09

alvachristeen said:


> ingredients: 3 lb / 1,350 grams blackcurrants 3 lb / 1,350 grams sugar 1 teaspoon citric acid Water up to 1 gallon Yeast nutrient Wine yeast METHOD: Crush the blackcurrants and place in a fermentation bucket. Boil the sugar and pour all the liquid over the blackcurrants. When cool add the citric acid, yeast nutrient and wine yeast. Cover and leave to ferment for five days, stirring daily. Using a fine sieve strain the liquid into a demijohn and fit an airlock to seal the jar. Store in a warm place and allow the fermentation to work. When fermentation has ceased, rack the wine into a clean jar and place in a cooler environment and leave for a further few months. When the wine is clear and stable siphon into bottles.



Why not add the yeast nutrient and acid to the boiling sugar water ??? Then you would add a layer of sanitation to it all


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## seth8530

alvachristeen said:


> ingredients:
> 3 lb / 1,350 grams blackcurrants
> 3 lb / 1,350 grams sugar
> 1 teaspoon citric acid
> Water up to 1 gallon
> Yeast nutrient
> Wine yeast
> 
> METHOD:
> Crush the blackcurrants and place in a fermentation bucket. Boil the sugar and pour all the liquid over the blackcurrants. When cool add the citric acid, yeast nutrient and wine yeast. Cover and leave to ferment for five days, stirring daily. Using a fine sieve strain the liquid into a demijohn and fit an airlock to seal the jar.
> 
> Store in a warm place and allow the fermentation to work. When fermentation has ceased, rack the wine into a clean jar and place in a cooler environment and leave for a further few months. When the wine is clear and stable siphon into bottles.



I think this procedure could be better. Mainly the part where it recommends using a fine seive to strain the liquid. I can not comment on the proportions but generally I like to avoid adding water to my fermentation whenever possible so I would make as much wine as the currants gave me. If the acid was too high then I would adjust later by either adding water or by neutralizing some of the acid.

Instead of using a seive I would put the currants in a fermentation bag that way you can rack straight from primary fermentation (bucket) into secondary (carboy with airlock).


BTW, thanks for sharing!


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## gaboy

*Type of Yeast?*

What is the best yeast to use with Vinters Harvest Black Currant conc.?


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## Breakinbonesben

Ok. First post. This recipe brought me to this forum. Off of my currant bushes this year i have enough to do this recipe. I am a noob but now i have the wine making bug.

Notes so far.
primary is vitners best 6.5 gallon fermenter.

Could only fit 4 1/4 gallons of water.

Added acid blend in the begining. the amount specified.

Took 16 pounds of sugar to reach s.g. of 1.09. 5 pounds of which is pure cane surgar the rest granulated table sugar.

Broke up currants in fermenting bag by hand. Had to just put my hands in the liquid and squeeze. Some where broken on the bottom of the bucket in the bag by hand.

First yeast pitch failed i think because of too hot water to start yeast. Second yeast packet placed directly in bucket and saw bubbles the next day.

Because fermenter is so full any cloth i put on top would touch the liquid. Used big cutting board instead.

Liquid kept spilling over the edge from the fermenting bag rising to the top. Placed blanket under primary to catch spill over.

Had a fruit fly issue. I never saw them in the bucket but they where plentiful around feeding off of the over flow. Poured bleach around bucket and put a box fan on it to keep the fruit flies away.

Today i siphoned in to 6 gallon glass carboy. S.g. 1.015.(9 days from the start.)

Took a taste. It tastes great. Tart with fruit in the forward and not hot at all.

Im following the recipe and plan to bulk age once cleared and at the right s.g. I dont want to use a clearing agent and want it to clear on its own.

Im debating on back sweetening or just leaving dry.

Ill send updates. 


View media item 4588


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## Venatorscribe

Poobah58 said:


> Why the acid blend? What does it do for you?


You need acid in order to bring down the pH of the 5 gallons of water that is added. In fact with that amount of water a lot more acid may will be required. The desired pH goal is in the range 3.4 to 3.6 / 3,7. The impact and wholistic effect from adequate acid is best read https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aging_of_wine

FYI, I mainly make fruit and botanical wines which certainly require the addition of water. So I am always acidulating water with tartaric and a lesser amount of malic, way beyond some of the usual levels in recipes you'll find on the web. Let your pH meter be your guide.


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## Venatorscribe

Breakinbonesben said:


> Ok. First post. This recipe brought me to this forum. Off of my currant bushes this year i have enough to do this recipe. I am a noob but now i have the wine making bug.
> 
> Notes so far.
> primary is vitners best 6.5 gallon fermenter.
> 
> Could only fit 4 1/4 gallons of water.
> 
> Added acid blend in the begining. the amount specified.
> 
> Took 16 pounds of sugar to reach s.g. of 1.09. 5 pounds of which is pure cane surgar the rest granulated table sugar.
> 
> Broke up currants in fermenting bag by hand. Had to just put my hands in the liquid and squeeze. Some where broken on the bottom of the bucket in the bag by hand.
> 
> First yeast pitch failed i think because of too hot water to start yeast. Second yeast packet placed directly in bucket and saw bubbles the next day.
> 
> Because fermenter is so full any cloth i put on top would touch the liquid. Used big cutting board instead.
> 
> Liquid kept spilling over the edge from the fermenting bag rising to the top. Placed blanket under primary to catch spill over.
> 
> Had a fruit fly issue. I never saw them in the bucket but they where plentiful around feeding off of the over flow. Poured bleach around bucket and put a box fan on it to keep the fruit flies away.
> 
> Today i siphoned in to 6 gallon glass carboy. S.g. 1.015.(9 days from the start.)
> 
> Took a taste. It tastes great. Tart with fruit in the forward and not hot at all.
> 
> Im following the recipe and plan to bulk age once cleared and at the right s.g. I dont want to use a clearing agent and want it to clear on its own.
> 
> Im debating on back sweetening or just leaving dry.
> 
> Ill send updates.
> 
> 
> View media item 4588


In my early days of wine making i used to not back sweeten my fruit wines. I was always happy to drink them the way they were. But found that folk were always telling me they were too dry. Once I started to back sweeten with inverted sugar, I discovered it was more about mouthfeel and greater flavour than it was dryness. Taking a more measured approach to back sweetening, I have got rid of the tartness and created nice balanced still wines with smoother depth. So it is worth giving it a trial. Cheers


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## Breakinbonesben

Venatorscribe said:


> In my early days of wine making i used to not back sweeten my fruit wines. I was always happy to drink them the way they were. But found that folk were always telling me they were too dry. Once I started to back sweeten with inverted sugar, I discovered it was more about mouthfeel and greater flavour than it was dryness. Taking a more measured approach to back sweetening, I have got rid of the tartness and created nice balanced still wines with smoother depth. So it is worth giving it a trial. Cheers



Thanks for the insite. Since ill be taking tasting notes as it ages i might add sugar depending on taste as it ages.


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## David Taylor

I wanted to make a three gallon batch of wine. Does anyone know how I should adjust all ingredients?

Thanks, David


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## ASR

David Taylor said:


> I wanted to make a three gallon batch of wine. Does anyone know how I should adjust all ingredients?
> 
> Thanks, David


For the most part wine recipes are linear. If you have a 6-gallon recipe then cut everything in half for three gallons. If you have a 1-gallon recipe then triple everything. The one thing you may not need to adjust is yeast as many recipes will use a full packet for everything from 1-gallon to 5 gallons.


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## Rice_Guy

Venatorscribe said:


> You need acid in order to bring down the pH of the 5 gallons of water that is added. In fact with that amount of water a lot more acid may will be required. The desired pH goal is in the range 3.4 to 3.6 / 3,7. The impact and wholistic effect from adequate acid is best read https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aging_of_wine
> 
> FYI, I mainly make fruit and botanical wines which certainly require the addition of water. So I am always acidulating water with tartaric and a lesser amount of malic, way beyond some of the usual levels in recipes you'll find on the web. Let your pH meter be your guide.


Can you check your crop?
Mom’s red currant pH 3.09 / sp grav 1.048
My black currant pH 3.00/ too thick for gravity

My pH target for fruit and white grape is 3.2 to 3.4, this means that to balance flavors I would back sweeten.
The best currant I have had was “honey and red currant wine” with a pH of 2.72 and sweetened to 1.082. Intense currant flavor, acidic, balanced sweet, deep red color. , , , On the third taste of a glass it started to be unbearable, acidic, burning the mouth and throat, , and it was hard to finish a glass.
A guess, that winery had a high solids wine with low added water, , ie large depth of acid notes. It would have been interesting to run TA on the garden samples and guess what water to fruit acid (solids) on the commercial wine was.
I make a pie with all new fruits/ ingredients to guess how flavors will balance. I would rather have an idea what the finished wine will be like this week / today and not find out a year after I put it in the primary fermenter. I use currant as a blending ingredient with higher pH fruits like raspberry or peach or mango or late season apple.


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## Rice_Guy

David Taylor said:


> I wanted to make a three gallon batch of wine. Does anyone know how I should adjust all ingredients?
> 
> Thanks, David


What were the gravity / pH numbers on your starting ingredient?

An estimate on my part, at 1.042 gravity juice (from mom’s variety) a gallon of juice will have .88 pound (.4 kg) sugar. If I used half a gallon of filtered juice it would contain .44 pound of sugar / soluble solids.
If my finished target was 1.090 I would have about 1.98 pounds of sugar per gallon or 5.94 in 3 gallons. Subtract .44 pounds of fruit sugar, My finished batch would add about 5.5 pounds (2.5 kg) of sugar and then fill water to the 3 gallon mark.
Last year I played with two ferments and assumed I would toss a half gallon of lees then ingreased the sugar calculation to 3.5 gallons but only added the extra half gallon water in second racking , , , to top off the carboy. The finished / diluted wine should wind up with the target of 12% alcohol.


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## Chuck Rairdan

Just halted fermentation on an elderberry wine blend short of going full dry because, while I also typically like a good dry wine, the tartness and astringency (also added some tannins) were a bit toward. Adding some glycirin today with racking to back sweeten and increase mouth feel. Also used some gypsum to reduce the emergent tartness and provide some hardness and mineral structure to the originally added RO water. Along with oak aging, seeking that ideal 'balance' with that great elderberry fruit character.


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## David Taylor

ASR said:


> For the most part wine recipes are linear. If you have a 6-gallon recipe then cut everything in half for three gallons. If you have a 1-gallon recipe then triple everything. The one thing you may not need to adjust is yeast as many recipes will use a full packet for everything from 1-gallon to 5 gallons.


Thanks. That makes sense and what I thought but was not sure what to do on the yeast nutrients and enhancer if I am to use 1 packet of yeast.


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## David Taylor

Rice_Guy said:


> What were the gravity / pH numbers on your starting ingredient?
> 
> An estimate on my part, at 1.042 gravity juice (from mom’s variety) a gallon of juice will have .88 pound (.4 kg) sugar. If I used half a gallon of filtered juice it would contain .44 pound of sugar / soluble solids.
> If my finished target was 1.090 I would have about 1.98 pounds of sugar per gallon or 5.94 in 3 gallons. Subtract .44 pounds of fruit sugar, My finished batch would add about 5.5 pounds (2.5 kg) of sugar and then fill water to the 3 gallon mark.
> Last year I played with two ferments and assumed I would toss a half gallon of lees then ingreased the sugar calculation to 3.5 gallons but only added the extra half gallon water in second racking , , , to top off the carboy. The finished / diluted wine should wind up with the target of 12% alcohol.


Answering a different post?


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## Rice_Guy

David Taylor said:


> Thanks. That makes sense and what I thought but was not sure what to do on the yeast nutrients and enhancer if I am to use 1 packet of yeast.


* You were cutting a 6 gallon recipe and could cut suggested nutrients and yeast in half. The yeast should work even if it is at an extremely low dosage, the key is to have a friendly environment for them to rehydrate in and start to bud, some folks use warm sugar water. The times I have heard problems are when there is an inhibitor as honey (lots of poorly fermentable sugars) or low pH with high TA (ex non diluted cranberry juice). 
* On my part I have only used yeast energizer when I have something with "NO food value" like dandelion flowers. and there is no background as raisins or white grape juice. I would also put maximum yeast nutrient in with a "NO food value" like dandelion.
* Yeast need nitrogen so I will always have some DAP. Yeast nutrient (diammonium phosphate) suggests 1 tsp (5 gm) per gallon. Black currant should have vitamins and minerals in it that are available to yeast, therefore 15 grams of DAP is probably over kill and you will ferment to dryness but at a slower rate if you cut it way low as 1t per carboy,, On my part I try to run DAP on the low side if I am trying have weak yeast and maintain some residual sweetness.


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## David Taylor

Rice_Guy said:


> * You were cutting a 6 gallon recipe and could cut suggested nutrients and yeast in half. The yeast should work even if it is at an extremely low dosage, the key is to have a friendly environment for them to rehydrate in and start to bud, some folks use warm sugar water. The times I have heard problems are when there is an inhibitor as honey (lots of poorly fermentable sugars) or low pH with high TA (ex non diluted cranberry juice).
> * On my part I have only used yeast energizer when I have something with "NO food value" like dandelion flowers. and there is no background as raisins or white grape juice. I would also put maximum yeast nutrient in with a "NO food value" like dandelion.
> * Yeast need nitrogen so I will always have some DAP. Yeast nutrient (diammonium phosphate) suggests 1 tsp (5 gm) per gallon. Black currant should have vitamins and minerals in it that are available to yeast, therefore 15 grams of DAP is probably over kill and you will ferment to dryness but at a slower rate if you cut it way low as 1t per carboy,, On my part I try to run DAP on the low side if I am trying have weak yeast and maintain some residual sweetness.


Rice Guy, what is DAP?

Thanks


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## Rice_Guy

David Taylor said:


> Rice Guy, what is DAP?
> 
> Thanks


Diammonium phosphate
This is a source of available nitrogen and phosphorous. The nitrogen is used in building protein so a more important nutrient.


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## David Taylor

Got my batch started Sunday in the primary. Has anyone added oak or tannin to black currant wine?


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## Rice_Guy

No, , 
My start with a new ingredient is to try it in a pie, ie a model system where I can form an opinion about how well flavors blend.
Tannin - interesting bitter notes - put in last years dandelion and peach rhurbarb for the purpose of adding length into the flavor - low like 1/4 t in a gallon - can’t tell it was there at 1/4 t.
Oak - it is easy to create an extract by soaking chips in vodka or buy a commercial enhancer (Sinatin (oak) suggests 1 oz per 6 gal). Would try a bench trial at bottle time with an alcohol extract, , or try it in a black currant pie.


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