# ‘20 Spring wines (w/ crush pics)



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

2020 Chilean wine season has commenced!

I’m always exhausted after the work from a crush wknd Despite having extra help on Friday for once I was still left with all the prep and the cleanup. You frozen must guys don’t know what you’re missin! Lol
I may have been slightly overzealous with my order, but I was antsy since it’s been a while—fall ‘18 I did 2 big batches (1 at a time). A Paso Robles cab sauv clone#8. And recreated the ol’ family blend Went au natural with muscat Alicante & OVZ. Those wines are bottled and in rotation.
All in all was a fantastic weekend with the family. And all agreed to grow this spring crush day into a bigger annual family event ‘@JohnT style’ w/ more fam & friends and some proper food—though the burgers & dogs on the grill did hit the spot. And so did my ‘18 Chilean malbec we enjoyed while working. (Btw John the C/D still goin strong. She’s old and needs some convincing but she’s a workhorse!)


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

The good

Crush went amazing!
-Cold & rainy but the NJ weather cooperated enough to work outside. Plus I had some help from my dad and brother who came by for the day.
-The Chilean fruit was in impeccable shape (as always). VERY impressed. I had some scrambling early to set up, but otherwise a fantastic day, a successful Chilean crush, and quality time with the fam







The bad
-Grapes arrived much earlier then I was told and I was not fully prepared. 
-Yeast & so2 reagent order wouldn’t arrive in time. Had some leftovers but was light, unrefrigerated and expired. 
-day before crush, crusher/destemmer was not starting. Took it all apart. Then took the motor apart. Not something ya wanna do the night before.
-totally forgot that I had split my press block it’s last use. The rosè called for pressing day 1 so had to build a new one night before too.
-double checked my ph’s w/ my 2nd meter. Consistently off >.10 Which to trust? No clue. Need fresh buffers to be sure. (Adjusted off higher #)
-chest freezer could not fit the PV grapes & CS/CF juice like I wanted. I don’t know what the hell I was thinking. Wasn’t even close. Lol. More work but gotta roll with the punches.
-Had a full weekend! Friday crush. Saturday was my birthday and Heather made plans all day (Was a great time). And obviously Mothers day Sunday left less than ideal time to dedicate to the wine.
-making rosè is new for me. Should have researched more. Juice was dark coming out of the crusher already w/ zero time on skins. Pressed right away but still looked super dark. Disappointed that it might just not be meant to be.


----------



## ceeaton (May 11, 2020)

AJ, you know that those earwigs add a flavor note that the most sophisticated palete won't be able to pinpoint!

Joking aside it looks by your images that it was a very successful crush! Looks like fun for sure.


----------



## NorCal (May 11, 2020)

Great post and pics.


----------



## Bubba1 (May 11, 2020)

Looks great ....I have family named Massa but there all from Brooklyn who knows could be related


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

Some hiccups are to be expected. Especially when not fully prepared. But in the end these were all just minor pains in the ass. We picked up grapes around 9am. Home around noon. Crushing by 2pm. 

The rosè was the main thing taking me out of my comfort zone. Still tho, I kept the dark juice separate before taking action. Next day added opti-white & ft blanc soft & transferred to glass from the 10gal brute. Looks like I rushed to judgement. I cold crashed the 2nd carboy that had the bottom murky gunk and it separated well. It was looking lighter like it may work out as planned just as I was advised by the wmt boys.  The extra skins were split up between the Malbec, CS/PV & CF/PV. Sunday night I racked again and pitched d47 sprinkled on top. Ended with x2 5gal carboys 80% filled. 

I hit everything with 30ppm so2 at crush to be safe since I knew my time would be limited this weekend. But was cool out and the must stayed nice and cold anyway. I added enzymes, & made my adjustments late friday night. 3.6 or bust!

Saturday morning I tossed in some opti-red & ft rouge. My Malbec’s Avante yeast was expired, unrefrigerated & light (called for 30g had 23g) So Sat night I rehydrated & did 2 rounds of a starter before pitching. CS & CV got RC-212. All 3 around 60°. In hindsight I could have waited another day. But didn’t wanna take a chance with only 30ppm so2 added. Going to try to stretch time with some frozen jugs. 

Malbec was already looking like ink by lag phase. Really excited for this one. High hopes for the juice/PV too. Full disclosure: I mainly just wanted another wine to run through the new 50L barrel (~4mos) so the Malbec would get more barrel time as a 2nd run (~8mos.) 

Sunday night saw caps beginning to form. I let em be. Full caps this morning. Then 1st punchdown, nutrients and lactic bacteria! And also seeing a hint of activity on the rosè which is 24hrs behind the reds. LFG!

The #’s (with both ph meters)

Malbec
-30gal of must (3gal from saigneè, ~18%)
-3.83/3.7ph 4.05TA (ta test using lower meter) adjusted to 3.66/3.5ph using 1.25g/L tartaric addition
-Brix 22° bumped to 24° (No snitche
-Lallzyme exv, opti-red, 1/2 dose FT rouge
-Avante yeast
-VP41 malo

CabSauv w PV & Malbec skins
CabFranc w PV & Malbec skins 
-11gal of must each
-Each with 6 gal of juice, 36lbs PV, 2ish gal of pressed malbec skins and identical #’s
-3.6/3.71 ph adjusted to 3.5/3.61 ph with .75g/L tartaric addition
-22% Brix° to 24%
-Lallzyme exv. Opti-red. Ft rouge
-RC-212 yeast
-VP41 malo

Rosè
Pressed 8lugs for 10+ gal. Kept 9ish. 
Down to 8 gal after cleaning 
-3.5/3.61ph Brix 21. No adjustments 
-Opti white. Ft blanc soft. 
D47 yeast


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

ceeaton said:


> AJ, you know that those earwigs add a flavor note that the most sophisticated palete won't be able to pinpoint!
> 
> Joking aside it looks by your images that it was a very successful crush! Looks like fun for sure.


 Earwigs! That’s it. We weren’t sure what those buggers were called. 
It definitely was fun. But when Heather eventually finds out how much $ I spent might be a little less fun. Shoot 1st ask questions later!


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

Bubba1 said:


> Looks great ....I have family named Massa but there all from Brooklyn who knows could be related


Interesting. I’ll send ya a PM soon


----------



## ceeaton (May 11, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Earwigs!
> ...
> But when Heather eventually finds out how much $ I spent might be a little less fun. Shoot 1st ask questions later!


Yeah, earwigs, I think they should be made the State pest, or I mean bug. We gottem everywhere. I set sticky traps in the Fall in the basement, they get under the vinyl siding and into the basement. Find them in every nook and cranny.

Yes, I've learned over the years to get pre-approved before I spend more than $100, it has made my life much easier, LOL.


----------



## stickman (May 11, 2020)

Looks good!, but @ceeaton beat me to it, I always thought the earwigs provided some additional mouth feel.


----------



## mainshipfred (May 11, 2020)

Looking good AJ, I bet that Rose will turn out just fine.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

mainshipfred said:


> Looking good AJ, I bet that Rose will turn out just fine.


Supposed to be an afterthought ‘extra’ wine, yet all my attention been spent on it. I guess that’s a good thing tho, means everything is going nice and smooth.

and the house smells amazing


----------



## ibglowin (May 11, 2020)

Fruit looks really good. I have seen many a post on crappy unripe Chilean fruit in years past. Hard to believe you got this done during a global pandemic.

You may want to add some tartaric to the rose' It should be really crisp so may need to drop that pH way down to get that required zing.

Perfect day for a crush weather wise!


----------



## mainshipfred (May 11, 2020)

ibglowin said:


> Fruit looks really good. I have seen many a post on crappy unripe Chilean fruit in years past. Hard to believe you got this done during a global pandemic.
> 
> You may want to add some tartaric to the rose' It should be really crisp so may need to drop that pH way down to get that required zing.
> 
> Perfect day for a crush weather wise!



I didn't get any Chilean this year but years past they have always been really nice, better than some of the Cali grapes I get.


----------



## cmason1957 (May 11, 2020)

@Ajmassa just my opinion, I would not worry about that rose. It looks just wonderful to me. Almost the same as what I got this year. It looks dark in the carboy, even now, but in the glass it looks wonderful.


----------



## Johnd (May 11, 2020)

@Ajmassa , did you toss your press skins back into the red wine fermenters?


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

ibglowin said:


> Fruit looks really good. I have seen many a post on crappy unripe Chilean fruit in years past. Hard to believe you got this done during a global pandemic.
> 
> Perfect day for a crush weather wise!


Exactly! The must kept nice and cool and even got a little help rinsing down the driveway afterwards as the rain picked up.
I do feel fortunate to have all positive experiences with Chilean grapes. I did ‘17, ‘18 and now ‘20. All stellar quality. I’ve read about many frustrations but I have consistently been impressed. Knock on wood.

The pandemic certainly was felt to a degree.
-Grape ETA window given was off leaving me to scramble
-I was on the horn for 2 days trying to wheel & deal to speed up my deliveries. Had to make due with old yeast
-The pickup times were restricted and scheduling was a pain. But it also was the reason I had some willing and able bodies to spend the day with too. 
not bad for not even being sure this woulda been possible 5 weeks ago


----------



## ceeaton (May 11, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> @Ajmassa just my opinion, I would not worry about that rose. It looks just wonderful to me. Almost the same as what I got this year. It looks dark in the carboy, even now, but in the glass it looks wonderful.


Hmmmm. sounds like another Craig is doing some carboy tipping...maybe Craig means "thoust who thrivests tipping thee carboy"?

Sorry, got too much idle time on my hands.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> @Ajmassa just my opinion, I would not worry about that rose. It looks just wonderful to me. Almost the same as what I got this year. It looks dark in the carboy, even now, but in the glass it looks wonderful.


Yes. And thanks again for the insight in the saignee thread. When I transferred it I really got a better sense of the color. Being almost exclusively red wine this rosè is new territory for me. My gut reaction was wrong, just seemed dark. And remember that’s with absolutely zero skins time 




ibglowin said:


> You may want to add some tartaric to the rose' It should be really crisp so may need to drop that pH way down to get that required zing.


good catch. I overlooked the ph factor. Was comfortable with low brix. But didn’t think to adjust ph down. I pitched yeast last night. Very slight activity on the surfaces. 
I’m not against tossing in maybe .5-1.0g/L tartaric right now to hone in better. Not ideal but still prefer to do it now rather than later. Yeast is resilient. I bet I could add some now and not disturb or stress it too much. 
what do you think?


----------



## CDrew (May 11, 2020)

Great pictures! Just a couple of comments:

You are lucky your dad is young enough to help you. Mine is in his 80s and I'm sure would pitch in but not the stamina you need for all day wine making.

Your Rosè looks perfect. I think you hit the color perfectly. You may have to protect the color with a bit of sulfite right after fermentation. And Keep any mixing tools that might have MLB from your other wine away from it. I think that's why my rosè went through MLB. I compensated by adding a bit of Tartaric at the end. And, I think the spousal approval thing will be pretty assured once she tries the rosè. You got that.

Earwigs: They are everywhere in California grapes. Those and spiders, other bugs, small lizards, garter snakes etc. That is the Terrior! They are unidentifiable after fermentation so, if you've ever had wine from California anyway, you've been drinking Earwig and spider juice. 

Volume: That's a lot of wine! Excellent work.

Avante: That the same stock I sent to you and Fred? If so, it's well traveled!


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

Johnd said:


> @Ajmassa , did you toss your press skins back into the red wine fermenters?


Damn right I did! Because ‘Saigneè’ is a nice fancy word for the label. Lol.
I ended up with a substantial amount pressing 8 lugs for the rosè to be sure I had enough. Kept 9gal of ~11gal of juice. But would have been a large % of skins to add back so I split it up to not overload the Malbec. 
50% skins to the Malbec. (Bumped it from 27gal to 30gal). Can definitely feel the difference in juice/skins ratio when punching too. 
Other 50% split between the other 2 cans will definitely help those wines a lot too I’m hoping.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

CDrew said:


> Great pictures! Just a couple of comments:
> 
> You are lucky your dad is young enough to help you. Mine is in his 80s and I'm sure would pitch in but not the stamina you need for all day wine making.
> 
> ...



It is! Plus I had some of my own leftover too. My 80g order showed up today. So close! Lodi labs stuck a 2 year expiration on it so will be used. 
My dad’s interest has picked up since I’ve been diving deeper in recent years and he started making his own juice again last year (with my direction of course!). Luckily timing worked out Friday. It went well enough for calls to make an annual event. And my other 2 brothers breaking my balls for not inviting them! (To my credit this wasn’t exactly planned in advance. Plus corona & stuff.)
Btw that’s exactly what I told my workers. That the bugs are just part of the terroir! And that Yellowtail is probably 60% bug. Get over it. Lol.
The rosè I’m really curious how the color ends up. I may crowbar in a tartaric addition right now actually and hope for the best.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

The trio of reds are now chugging away on full blast. Cap reforming in just a minute or 2. Color looking excellent. The Malbec in ‘18 was a super inky deep purple and this looks to be no different. My last ferment ended up lighter than I preferred so this is nice to see.




Question on the rosè. I’ve been treating it as if it were a white wine with the additives, the yeast, o2 exposure etc. But I’m still basically winging it and don’t know for sure of anything.
I want to knock down the ph as @ibglowin pointed out. Adjusting acid during the yeasts lag phase isn’t something I’d ever do normally, but is it bad? Aside from disturbing the yeast, i don’t see any reason to NOT do it. It’s just tartaric. It’s in the 3.5-3.6 range. I’m gonna toss in maybe .75-.1g/L real quick— Unless it’s a bad idea. What do you think?
Currently the surfaces have a small amount of fizz forming VERY VERY gradually.


----------



## ceeaton (May 11, 2020)

You could always add 1/4 of what you think you need then check post ferment. Baby steps won't make the pH change too much and possibly shock the yeast. That's the conservative approach. If it were me I'd do the 1/4 and check the pH the next day, realizing the the fermenting wine might give you a faulty reading, but check it anyway. If it didn't go low enough, add the another 1/4 the next day. Check, if it needs to go lower another 1/4. I've found that I usually need 1/2 total of what I initially thought I would. Don't ask why because I don't know, always seems to work out that way.

Sort of like with fresh water tropical fish, if I was at 7.2 and the fish preferred a lower pH I'd make the change over several days, never had a fish die that way. I have made a big change and found them all belly up the next morning.

The earlier you make the change, the better. As the alcohol level rises, much like with MLB, it is harder for the yeast to adjust. They are already getting stressed out by the rising alcohol levels.


----------



## CDrew (May 11, 2020)

So I'm winging this answer too, but I would add the acid no problem. You're looking to make a crisp wine and a little extra acid should be beneficial. If I'm thinking about this right, you're at TA 5.3 now, so getting close to TA 6 is likely a win.


----------



## cmason1957 (May 11, 2020)

CDrew said:


> So I'm winging this answer too, but I would add the acid no problem. You're looking to make a crisp wine and a little extra acid should be beneficial. If I'm thinking about this right, you're at TA 5.3 now, so getting close to pH 6 is likely a win.



Looks like we all have been tipping the carboy today. pH 6 would be a horrible thing. Increasing the Ta is a good thing.


----------



## CDrew (May 11, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> Looks like we all have been tipping the carboy today. pH 6 would be a horrible thing. Increasing the Ta is a good thing.



No carboy tipping yet, but thanks for the correction. Edited for clarity.


----------



## porkchopmessiah (May 11, 2020)

Looking good, I was down on Saturday...its 2 hrs down and 2 back, had to do 15 lugs on my own....was a long day...


----------



## Boatboy24 (May 11, 2020)

Looks like all went well, despite the challenges. And Dad (or who I assume is Dad) looks to be super happy with the crush festivities. Thinking your wines will be just fine. And the color on that Rose looks great so far.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 11, 2020)

Thanks or the insight. 

The rosè was sitting at 3.58ph
with a TA of 4.05. 
All readings double checked. 

So if minimum I want the TA is at least 6 then that’s a 2g/L addition And would bring the ph to 3.38....theoretically*

Full theoretical dose is 2g/L
So I added .75g/L just now. 
Will check it again tomorrow.


----------



## Johnd (May 11, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Damn right I did! Because ‘Saigneè’ is a nice fancy word for the label. Lol.
> I ended up with a substantial amount pressing 8 lugs for the rosè to be sure I had enough. Kept 9gal of ~11gal of juice. But would have been a large % of skins to add back so I split it up to not overload the Malbec.
> 50% skins to the Malbec. (Bumped it from 27gal to 30gal). Can definitely feel the difference in juice/skins ratio when punching too.
> Other 50% split between the other 2 cans will definitely help those wines a lot too I’m hoping.


I suspect you’ll be very pleased with the results!


----------



## sour_grapes (May 12, 2020)

Awright! That was a fine effort. Congrats on a great crush.


----------



## joemercurio (May 12, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> 2020 Chilean wine season has commenced!
> 
> I’m always exhausted after the work from a crush wknd Despite having extra help on Friday for once I was still left with all the prep and the cleanup. You frozen must guys don’t know what you’re missin! Lol
> I may have been slightly overzealous with my order, but I was antsy since it’s been a while—fall ‘18 I did 2 big batches (1 at a time). A Paso Robles cab sauv clone#8. And recreated the ol’ family blend Went au natural with muscat Alicante & OVZ. Those wines are bottled and in rotation.
> ...


Where are you buying your grapes from?
What about the bugs?


----------



## JohnT (May 12, 2020)

Real nice AJ! Looks like you got a fine crusher there.......


----------



## PSlattery (May 12, 2020)

Looks great. My numbers for the Chilean Cabernet were similar to yours. Initial ph was 3.71 on two separate batches and my TA was at 3 g/l. I made two separate additions to my must and had them cold soaking for 3 days. After my second addiction on the third day I could only get my TA up to 4 g/l and my ph was at 3.37. This is my first go at grapes but those were the numbers I ended with on two 11 gallon batches. I kept bringing it down because it didn’t taste very acidic at all. We will see it’s my first batch so it’s a learning experience for me. I always love reading your threads.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 12, 2020)

PSlattery said:


> Looks great. My numbers for the Chilean Cabernet were similar to yours. Initial ph was 3.71 on two separate batches and my TA was at 3 g/l. I made two separate additions to my must and had them cold soaking for 3 days. After my second addiction on the third day I could only get my TA up to 4 g/l and my ph was at 3.37. This is my first go at grapes but those were the numbers I ended with on two 11 gallon batches. I kept bringing it down because it didn’t taste very acidic at all. We will see it’s my first batch so it’s a learning experience for me. I always love reading your threads.



I never even rechecked the TA on the Malbec after my addition. pre fermentation I don’t wanna sacrifice a good ph for a better TA anyway. Also don’t wanna end up playing chemist and getting in over my head. 

True TAs were kinda low, but call me an optimist. Dialing in the ph, along with fermentation and then MLF things tend to fall into place. 
For example My ‘18 cab was a 4.0Ph with a high TA at crush limiting the adjusting but still ended up a decent wine. Just with a higher ph. 

Still weird your TA is being so stubborn though. Based on your additions Was the ph moving more than it ought to be or the TA moving less? 
Because on the rosè they moved in unison for me. 
Ph from 3.61 to 3.4
TA from 4.05 to 6.00 
Moved ~2g/L with a .75g/L addition. 

The Malbec moved from 3.83ph to 3.66 with a 1.25g/L addition. Initial TA was also 4.05. Wherever it ends up is up to the wine gods now. I’m hopeful. 
3.37ph and 4.0ta seems fishy to me though. 
Crazy thought, when testing TA did you use .1n NaOH and possibly forget to multiply by 1.5x for the final #? So instead of 4.0 is actually 6.0TA?


----------



## Ajmassa (May 12, 2020)

joemercurio said:


> Where are you buying your grapes from?
> What about the bugs?


Not too many places around that sell spring grapes. I feel lucky to be close to one. It’s in south jersey called Gino Pintos. 
I know there’s another joint near Pittsburgh that sells spring. Another big hub Harford Winery in Md used to but closed up the homewinemaking end of their business a few years back. 
And what about the bugs? Unavoidable in the produce business I bet. We have the luxury of sorting by hand and keeping them out of the wine. The big boys mechanical process probably not so much. 
“Incidental tannin”


----------



## Ajmassa (May 12, 2020)

JohnT said:


> Real nice AJ! Looks like you got a fine crusher there.......


It really is a work horse. But I got the damn thing gypsy-rigged to the max and then I coat the whole thing in silicon spray. It’s time. Long overdue. 
She’s getting a makeover. Full refurbish and a proper stand/hopper.


----------



## ceeaton (May 12, 2020)

AJ, I think you should have kept those bugs in for mouthfeel like @stickman suggested.

BTW, thanks for posting all those pictures, I have really enjoyed them. With my partial employment state I'm not so sure I'll even get to make a Fall batch. I love living vicariously through others fun!


----------



## PSlattery (May 12, 2020)

Looking back at my notes I had the numbers a little off. 

my first addition was 1.3g/l

Batch A 
PH 3.72-3.55
TA 3.0-3.6

Batch B
PH 3.72-3.51
TA 3.0 - 3.8

I tasted and better

My second addition was about .8g/l

Batch A
PH 3.55- 3.37
TA 3.6 - 4.4

Batch B
PH 3.51- 3.32
TA 3.8 - 4.4

I followed the instructions using a new vinmetrica 300 with all brand new chemicals.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 12, 2020)

PSlattery said:


> I followed the instructions using a new vinmetrica 300 with all brand new chemicals.


All the TA’s seem low
Before canceling out this possibility just thrill me. Which chems and which instructions matter too
There are different types of chemicals they sell for the TA tests and they call for different instructions. 
The .2n NaOH requires a 15ml sample. ml used = TA
But The .1n NaOH requires a 5ml sample. And amount of ml’s used is then multiplied by 1.5.


----------



## PSlattery (May 12, 2020)

For my titrate it was .13n and I multiplied the used titrate by 2. I also used a 5 ml sample of must that was lightly blended and filtered through a coffee filter. All and all I’ll cross my fingers and hope all works out. Seeing that you started MLF I may do the same I just pitched the yeast last night around 5 and I don’t have a full cap yet but is on its way everything is moving along well. I have to look back and see if you added on first punch down.


----------



## PSlattery (May 12, 2020)

Also I add 50ppm SO2 and had a free SO2 of 19 in one batch and 21 in the second


----------



## Boatboy24 (May 12, 2020)

PSlattery said:


> Looking back at my notes I had the numbers a little off.
> 
> my first addition was 1.3g/l
> 
> ...



Based on those pH numbers, I'd ignore TA and move forward.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 12, 2020)

PSlattery said:


> Also I add 50ppm SO2 and had a free SO2 of 19 in one batch and 21 in the second


Good to know about existing grape so2. I’m assuming our grapes are from the same source (great profile picture btw). And should be fine with a strong malo.
By the time I added the malo it was about 36hrs after pitching yeast. No real hard fast rules here. I like the coinnoculation tho because it finishes fast when starting in that low alcohol environment. And I’m just sure to feed nutrients to both the yeast and the malo.


Everyone probably differs a little. I did the 1st punchdown. Then hit it with a fermaidK dose. About 2 hours later I did the malo and some malo nutrient.
Will do the 2nd nutrient dose whenever I catch it somewhere between 1.070-1.040. And another shot of opti-malo after pressing and racking off the gross lees.

For what it’s worth I refer to this like ALL the time. Have it printed out too. I know @Boatboy24 Jim does as well because I stole the idea from him lol. My Winemaking Bible
Between that and the priceless info I get from the forum are basically all I’ll ever need


----------



## bluecrab (May 12, 2020)

PSlattery said:


> Looking back at my notes I had the numbers a little off.
> 
> my first addition was 1.3g/l
> 
> ...



I have had suspect TA numbers in the past. I suspect my problem was that my wine sample and/or chemicals were not at room temperature. I have seen TA testing directions that state that they should be room temperature. While I cannot confirm this, I suspect a cold sample will provide a false low TA reading.

Now, I skip TA testing and adjust my acid to get a pH of 3.4 for red wines.


----------



## CDrew (May 12, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> All the TA’s seem low
> Before canceling out this possibility just thrill me. Which chems and which instructions matter too
> There are different types of chemicals they sell for the TA tests and they call for different instructions.
> The .2n NaOH requires a 15ml sample. ml used = TA
> But The .1n NaOH requires a 5ml sample. And amount of ml’s used is then multiplied by 1.5.



As long as you can accurately measure, the amount of wine doesn't really matter. Neither does the concentration of NaOH as long as you know it. If you use 10ml for instance, all the 1's are pretty easy to multiply and divide

^^^^^^^^ 75x {(ml NaOH) x (concentration NaOH)}
TA= ___________________________________
^^^^^^^^^^^^ (ml of wine)

And incase the format gets messed up from Chrome to the server:

TA = {75 x(ml NaOH) x (concentration NaOH)} / (ml of wine)


This assumes you titrate up to the standard pH 8.2

edit: Tried to correct format


----------



## PSlattery (May 12, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Good to know about existing grape so2. I’m assuming our grapes are from the same source (great profile picture btw). And should be fine with a strong malo.
> By the time I added the malo it was about 36hrs after pitching yeast. No real hard fast rules here. I like the coinnoculation tho because it finishes fast when starting in that low alcohol environment. And I’m just sure to feed nutrients to both the yeast and the malo.
> 
> 
> ...



I will definitely do coinoculation this time around. I will be using CH16.I was a bit nervous with the SO2 levels. I read that 18 was about the limit for it. Looking at your pictures my grapes look to be the same.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 12, 2020)

Surprised how high up this sucker has gotten. The extra skins are definitely noticed. 30gal of must is now flirting with the 40gal mark. the fermentation is chugging along with temps rising and SG dropping.
Now at 72°-74° and 1/3 complete.



If someone was going to try and stretch some days by dropping temps with frozen jugs then now would be the time I guess. I remember reading ‘Muscles @Mac60 ’ did this a couple years ago in his large tubs with success.
Never did this before but it’s worth a shot since Avante yeast moves quick.
I’ll shoot for maybe 70°ish. idk I’d just like 5-6 days instead of 3-4. 
anyone else using frozen jugs in their must with success?


----------



## PSlattery (May 12, 2020)

CDrew said:


> As long as you can accurately measure, the amount of wine doesn't really matter. Neither does the concentration of NaOH as long as you know it. If you use 10ml for instance, all the 1's are pretty easy to multiply and divide
> 
> ^^^^^^^^ 75x {(ml NaOH) x (concentration NaOH)}
> TA= ___________________________________
> ...



Using The second formula my final TA would be 4.29 g/l but I didn’t check the temp of the must when I tested it. I did blend it and filtered it through a coffee filter so it was sitting out for a while when it was filtering. I used 2.2 ml of .13n Titraite with a 5 ml sample. I have been know to mess a few things up so we will see.


----------



## CDrew (May 12, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Surprised how high up this sucker has gotten. The extra skins are definitely noticed. 30gal of must is now flirting with the 40gal mark. the fermentation is chugging along with temps rising and SG dropping.
> Now at 72°-74° and 1/3 complete.
> 
> If someone was going to try and stretch some days by dropping temps with frozen jugs then now would be the time I guess. I remember reading ‘Muscles @Mac60 ’ did this a couple years ago in his large tubs with success.
> ...



I don't think you're slowing down that freight train now. And I wouldn't risk it since you don't want a stall. Your enzyme treatment will provide plenty of body. Beautiful fermentation by the way. You'll be close to 5 days and as long as it still forms a cap, I think you're fine. My Avante ferments went fast too and honestly your temps look IDEAL.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 12, 2020)

CDrew said:


> I don't think you're slowing down that freight train now. And I wouldn't risk it since you don't want a stall. Your enzyme treatment will provide plenty of body. Beautiful fermentation by the way. You'll be close to 5 days and as long as it still forms a cap, I think you're fine. My Avante ferments went fast too and honestly your temps look IDEAL.


Is that a challenge?


----------



## Ajmassa (May 12, 2020)

PSlattery said:


> I have been know to mess a few things up so we will see.


Yea that’s why I try to keep the lab stuff as simple as possible. It can become overwhelming when ya add on all the extra testing and extra adjustments to the process for someone with zero chemistry background aside from high school. 
And to be honest I’m still intimidated by the Vinmetrica. 1st few times I used it for so2 the # just kept moving. I got frustrated after a couple attempts and haven’t revisited it since.


----------



## CDrew (May 12, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Is that a challenge?



Not at all. I'm just saying what I would do! In fact, all my ferments are done at garage temperature and that's about where you are now.

One of the advantages of the Avante yeast is it's heat tolerance. So I think you're good without complicating things.

But I'm stoked for your awesome winemaking at a time when our grapes are still being pollinated.


----------



## ibglowin (May 12, 2020)

Just make sure the jugs don't leak as they thaw (check the tops and volume) or you could possibly ruin your batch by diluting it with (unacidulated) water. 



Ajmassa said:


> If someone was going to try and stretch some days by dropping temps with frozen jugs then now would be the time I guess. I’d just like 5-6 days instead of 3-4. anyone else using frozen jugs in their must with success?


----------



## Ajmassa (May 15, 2020)

Malbec & Malbec Blanc


----------



## zadvocate (May 15, 2020)

I am having he same issue with my Pinot. First run Ph was 3.85 and TA 2.8. I added total of 30 grams and it came down to 3.5 and TA of 4. I'm making this a rose and may consider adding some more.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 15, 2020)

zadvocate said:


> I am having he same issue with my Pinot. First run Ph was 3.85 and TA 2.8. I added total of 30 grams and it came down to 3.5 and TA of 4. I'm making this a rose and may consider adding some more.


I’d probably be thinking the same thing. My numbers were a little less severe then yours though. 3.6 & 4. Adjusted to 3.4 & 6. So I was able to dial in pretty close beforehand and can make a minor adjustment by taste down the road if need be. Right now it’s a nice slow and steady ferment. I pitched Sunday night. As of last night was at 1.063.

It’s a tough spot. You definitely want those numbers more ideal but how much added acid is too much ya know?
I would wanna get the TA up as much as I could while keeping ph in low 3’s. And 100% would cold stabilize down the road.


----------



## PSlattery (May 16, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> I’d probably be thinking the same thing. My numbers were a little less severe then yours though. 3.6 & 4. Adjusted to 3.4 & 6. So I was able to dial in pretty close beforehand and can make a minor adjustment by taste down the road if need be. Right now it’s a nice slow and steady ferment. I pitched Sunday night. As of last night was at 1.063.
> 
> It’s a tough spot. You definitely want those numbers more ideal but how much added acid is too much ya know?
> I would wanna get the TA up as much as I could while keeping ph in low 3’s. And 100% would cold stabilize down the road.



I’m going to probably be pressing tomorrow as I’m down to about 2 Brix with my must and I have to say these batches are the best tasting I have ever made. I do get a little tartaric acid feeling in the back of my throat when I tast it tho, it’s not terribly strong but is still noticeable. I still have 2 18lbs lugs of Petit Verdot that will be coming in next week that I was going to be adding into this blend. My question is should I do an acid adjustments to the Petit Verdot must prior to fermentation or should I make no adjustments as it’s going to be added to the Cabernet? I know I’m jumping the gun as I don’t know the ph of the Petit Verdot I am just presuming they may be similar. I will have a total of 12 (18lbs) lugs of Cabernet and 2 (18lbs) of Petite Verdot in this blend. I will check my current ph and ta after I press the Cabernet tomorrow.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 16, 2020)

PSlattery said:


> I’m going to probably be pressing tomorrow as I’m down to about 2 Brix with my must and I have to say these batches are the best tasting I have ever made. I do get a little tartaric acid feeling in the back of my throat when I tast it tho, it’s not terribly strong but is still noticeable. I still have 2 18lbs lugs of Petit Verdot that will be coming in next week that I was going to be adding into this blend. My question is should I do an acid adjustments to the Petit Verdot must prior to fermentation or should I make no adjustments as it’s going to be added to the Cabernet? I know I’m jumping the gun as I don’t know the ph of the Petit Verdot I am just presuming they may be similar. I will have a total of 12 (18lbs) lugs of Cabernet and 2 (18lbs) of Petite Verdot in this blend. I will check my current ph and ta after I press the Cabernet tomorrow.


I got some petite Verdot too. I bought 4 lugs total so I could ferment each juice bucket with 36lbs of PV.

I’m pretty sure I took some solo measurements on it before mixing. I’ll have a look at my notes and post what it was later on tonight. I should have Brix° and ph logged. 
And yeah regardless of blending I’d still probably adjust it beforehand if needed. And could even overcompensate in the PV if the Cabs acid needs a boost.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 18, 2020)

@PSlattery my notes for the Chilean Petite Verdot grapes, crushed 72lbs and tested a couple hours later. 

ph meter #1- 3.93
Ph meter #2- 3.7
21 Brix
(did not test TA. And made pre-AF adjustments after blending with the other juice)


----------



## Ajmassa (May 18, 2020)

All 3 fermentations went fantastic! Malbec, CS w/ PV & CF w/ PV—Healthy and complete with amazing color extraction. (I wussed out with the frozen water jugs btw)
Rosé still going at a nice slow & steady pace and is creamy pink. Its currently 1.014 finishing day 9 since pitching yeast.

I still gotta go thru all the pics from the week but in the meantime here’s the final haul after pressing and now awaiting the gross lees to drop out:

400lbs of Malbec yielded
26gal Malbec (got ~20gal free run)
7.5gal Malbec Rosé
[33.5gal from 400lbs is crazy I thought. Did not anticipate to yield that much]

Separately fermented Cab Sauv & Cab Franc buckets- w/ 72lbs Petite Verdot & 3gal worth of pressed Malbec skins from the rosé- all split between the 2
20gal total (~8gal free run each)

*Still separate apart from ~2gal of mixed press. I’ll likely blend them when adding to the 50L barrel. I’d like to keep as much unblended as I can just to have more variety of wines.


----------



## PSlattery (May 18, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> @PSlattery my notes for the Chilean Petite Verdot grapes, crushed 72lbs and tested a couple hours later.
> 
> ph meter #1- 3.93
> Ph meter #2- 3.7
> ...



Thank you so much I’m looking forward to it coming in next week. My Cabernet had a great primary fermentation. The temps maintained a constant 71 deg with it getting up to 73 deg for the last two days. I rechecked my ph on one of the batches and the ph was 3.3 and the TA came up to 7.6. I did the same procedure as before but I microwave the sample and put it under vacuum prior to the test. I doubt the malo took because the ph didn’t change. I also had a high SO2 reading and will only add 35ppm SO2 going forward after crush.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 18, 2020)

PSlattery said:


> I doubt the malo took because the ph didn’t change. I also had a high SO2 reading and will only add 35ppm SO2 going forward after crush.



theres some crazy chemistry goin on during AF & MLF. I really don’t even check acid again until after MLf. I wouldn’t be surprised if your malo did take despite the so2, but only one way to know for sure.
Our spring lugs ship with those So2 pads and possibly even kept in a so2 gas filled unit on the way. Between that and the healthy condition ya probably could get away with adding none they say. Normally I don’t add but started to last couple batches to halt the native yeast. The more $ I spend the less risk I wanna take!


----------



## Ajmassa (May 19, 2020)

Some pics


----------



## Ajmassa (May 19, 2020)




----------



## Chuck E (May 19, 2020)

Outstanding!


----------



## Boatboy24 (May 19, 2020)

Good stuff! And you're right - 33+ gallons is a great yield. I'd have expected 28-30.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 19, 2020)

Those nylon bags in the press were the result of trying to cut corners unsuccessfully. After pressing the Malbec and then cleaning I was trying to avoid a whole other press cycle. I have to admit I kinda hate pressing. It’s a lot of work & cleaning for one guy with little payoff—especially when using that racking cane filter and getting max free run pumped out.
Figured since there wasn’t tons from the CS and CF primaries maybe I could avoid filling the press again. But those bags filled more than I anticipated and squeezing by hand or bucket-inside-bucket style was not gonna get it done. Ended up loading them both into the press together and got another few gallons of wine. Live and learn.


----------



## Mario Dinis (May 19, 2020)

Great pictures, thanks for posting.


----------



## Mario Dinis (May 19, 2020)

Do you make grappa with that pommace?


----------



## Ajmassa (May 19, 2020)

Mario Dinis said:


> Do you make grappa with that pommace?


I saw some guys posting about using it to boost their soil in their backyard gardens. (I assume from the nitrogen). I tried that once. Smelled so bad and it was right up near the house. I just toss em now.

why, you want them?


----------



## Mario Dinis (May 19, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> I saw some guys posting about using it to boost their soil in their backyard gardens. (I assume from the nitrogen). I tried that once. Smelled so bad and it was right up near the house. I just toss em now.
> 
> why, you want them?


No thanks, I was only curious.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 19, 2020)

Mario Dinis said:


> No thanks, I was only curious.


I don’t even know what grappa is tbh. I mean, I heard of it. I know it’s within the home fermenting world. But that’s it


----------



## Mario Dinis (May 19, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> I don’t even know what grappa is tbh. I mean, I heard of it. I know it’s within the home fermenting world. But that’s it


In Italy it's called Grappa, in Portugal Aguardente. It's distilled from the pommace. Pretty strong, but tastes and smells beautifully. Everything is used during winemaking. LOL


----------



## Mario Dinis (May 19, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> I saw some guys posting about using it to boost their soil in their backyard gardens. (I assume from the nitrogen). I tried that once. Smelled so bad and it was right up near the house. I just toss em now.
> 
> why, you want them?


If I had the equipment to distill it, i'd gladly would take it off your hands.


----------



## mainshipfred (May 19, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> View attachment 61360
> View attachment 61361
> View attachment 61362
> View attachment 61363
> ...



A lot of work I'm sure. I inherited two 54 liter demijohns but as light as they are I'm afraid to use them. I'm sure people have been using them for years and they are fine it just scares me a little. BTW, nice job on the pressing blocks.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 19, 2020)

mainshipfred said:


> A lot of work I'm sure. I inherited two 54 liter demijohns but as light as they are I'm afraid to use them. I'm sure people have been using them for years and they are fine it just scares me a little. BTW, nice job on the pressing blocks.


Thanks though I never did get to doubling them up like I wanted. And I pressed the hell out of those grapes too. More than I have before. Also fluffed up the Malbec and went for another crank getting another 1.5gal I think it was.

I know they say your not supposed to go hard... but I did anyway. I don’t think my press is crushing seeds even if I was the Incredible Hulk. And you know what? That heavy press tasted better. Tasted quite good.
It was late when I initially finished so I just covered and would clean in the am. But obviously overnight a lot of pressure released and I was able to pick back up pressing more wine out. So the extra o2 I’m sure played a big part (all?) in the taste. But still was reassuring to see the wine improve like that.

*and I think the round shape of the demijohns in strong by design. My family has been using them since before I was born. No issues. But I inherited 2 to start and became comfortable with them. Plus I think it’s cool to use the same vessels my grandfather used.


----------



## cmason1957 (May 19, 2020)

@Ajmassa Perhaps this will give you some hope about your rose. I kept forgetting to take a picture. Firs is of the for carboys of rose. On the right St. Vincent on the left Chambourcin. And the two glasses. They look really dark in the carboys, but in the glass, such a pretty pale redish pink.


----------



## CDrew (May 19, 2020)

I am super jealous how nice your Rose is coming along. It looks absolutely perfect. Mine ended up more orange than pink. Tastes good tho....


----------



## Mario Dinis (May 19, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> @Ajmassa Perhaps this will give you some hope about your rose. I kept forgetting to take a picture. Firs is of the for carboys of rose. On the right St. Vincent on the left Chambourcin. And the two glasses. They look really dark in the carboys, but in the glass, such a pretty pale redish pink.View attachment 61390
> View attachment 61391


That looks beautiful.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 19, 2020)

@cmason1957 @CDrew yeah you can get a nice idea of the color in the hydrometer pic. Now mind you this was with absolutely zero skins time. Literally was just the time it took to run thru the crusher and then to load and press. So I’m glad I made that accidental decision lol. 
I did one rosé kit before and that also looked more orange. This Malbec one I’ve definitely done a 180°. Thought I had to scrap plans to now feeling quite lucky w/ how it’s looking. Really curious to see how it ends up clearing.

couple questions - Craig- They are much darker than I realized. were yours still light enough in a clear bottle on par with some darker rose’s?
And did you guys have any extra steps done to the wine after AF? I just planned to rack and sulphite, nothing special.


----------



## cmason1957 (May 19, 2020)

Can't tell you about in the bottles. I hope to convince the SWMBO that we should bottle them. They are crystal clear, been backsweetened every so slightly. We added about half a pound of sugar to the St. Vincent and a bit less to the Chambourcin. Just enough to balance it out nicely. I haven't measured, but I believe both would still be considered dry. Nothing special done after AF. Rack, sulphite, filter. Don't think I added any clearing agents, even.


----------



## CDrew (May 19, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> And did you guys have any extra steps done to the wine after AF? I just planned to rack and sulphite, nothing special.



No. That's what I did. Sulfited early. 

Good luck.


----------



## Chuck E (May 20, 2020)

@Ajmassa 
AJ, what is the steel U-bolt in the pressing block for?


----------



## Ajmassa (May 20, 2020)

Chuck E said:


> @Ajmassa
> AJ, what is the steel U-bolt in the pressing block for?


I bought my press used from a local listing online. The surface blocks that came with it had heavy duty metal handles lagged into it. Otherwise it’s a bear to remove. So when I had to replace the blocks I used some metal cabinet handles I had saved from a job to mimic it. (I’m a total packrat. Actually packratting as I write this). And they’re placed in a way for the first set of square blocks to go in parallel without hitting the handles.
Can see it more clearly in these couple pics 


* packratting a few sections of rock solid butcher block here up for grabs. One is a solid 2-1/4” x 24”deep and another 1-3/4” x 30”depth. No clue what I’ll use em for but I know I’ll use them.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 22, 2020)

Update on this fun Chilean season

Rosé was down to about 1.000SG after 11days since pitching D47. I stirred the lees daily and added one shot of fermaid-O early on. Racked into my ‘6.5gal’ carboy (actual vol 6.9gal) and a 1/2gal jug. Now w/ 7.5gal of some very nice looking rosé. Still in AF so no plans for kmeta any time soon.



The Malbec finished at .993 and CF & CS both at .994. All now off the gross lees.
Malbec- 24gal
CS/CF blend - 14.26gal (x1 demi)
unblended- 3gal ea. 
Before racking I was seeing visible ML activity on everything, press wine carboys being the most vigorous of them. I like to do a baseline chroma test right away to compare progress later. With co-innoc my baseline test sometimes already looks close to complete. 



Sadly all the fun of a new wine season is almost over for a while. ———But there IS one more thing left once mlf is done....breaking in the new 50L Hungarian barrel!

Gonna be like removing a woman’s pantyhose (or yoga pants). You can _kinda_ see what’s goin on underneath. But then again....ya kinda can’t. And I’m anxious to remove it so I can offer some TLC to what lies underneath


----------



## Boatboy24 (May 23, 2020)

Tighten those hoops. Since that barrel's been sitting a bit, you may have some shrinkage.


----------



## Johnd (May 23, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Gonna be like removing a woman’s pantyhose (or yoga pants). You can _kinda_ see what’s goin on underneath. But then again....ya kinda can’t. And I’m anxious to remove it so I can offer some TLC to what lies underneath



Yeah. Well. So. I’ve started typing too many things that were just not appropriate, but you have fun my friend!!!


----------



## Ajmassa (May 23, 2020)

MLF looking good. The way I was instructed was using VP-41 bacteria (or another proven winner) hydrated with 50g ActiML added at 1st punchdown w/ some opti-malo nutrient. 100% success rate. And if it ain’t broke.... 
The knowledge I’ve gained from wmt members has been invaluable. 
I tested the rosè to have a non-mlf sample for comparison. The malic spots aren’t all definitive but the rosé’s faint lactic spot I think shows the others have made great progress so far. Going to let all the reds go another month before testing again 

In the meantime will prep the barrel & build a stand. The CF/CS blend is 1st in line so the Malbec can get a nice lengthy barrel run.


----------



## Boatboy24 (May 23, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> View attachment 61520
> 
> MLF looking good. The way I was instructed was using VP-41 bacteria (or another proven winner) hydrated with 50g ActiML added at 1st punchdown w/ some opti-malo nutrient. 100% success rate. And if it ain’t broke....
> The knowledge I’ve gained from wmt members has been invaluable.
> ...



Don't forget Lysozyme for that Rose. You don't want a spontaneous MLF.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 23, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> Don't forget Lysozyme for that Rose. You don't want a spontaneous MLF.


Didn’t forget. Wasn’t aware at all. I planned to wait until SG was completely finished dropping and hit with sulphite. Figured that would offer protection. Will need to do some reading and familiarize myself. 
Do you use lysosome on all your whites & rosé’s?


----------



## Boatboy24 (May 23, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Do you use lysosome on all your whites & rosé’s?



Any grape wine where you don't want MLF to occur.


----------



## cmason1957 (May 25, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> couple questions - Craig- They are much darker than I realized. were yours still light enough in a clear bottle on par with some darker rose’s?
> And did you guys have any extra steps done to the wine after AF? I just planned to rack and sulphite, nothing special.


I can now answer your question about in the bottle. These are the last two left over bottles from the rose I did. I can't tell you for certain which is which.


----------



## Ajmassa (May 29, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> I can now answer your question about in the bottle. These are the last two left over bottles from the rose I did. I can't tell you for certain which is which.
> 
> View attachment 61613



they look fantastic. I think after my rosé clears it will have a very similar color to what I’m seeing in your picture here. And I would consider that a ‘win’.
Now I’m just keeping fingers crossed the taste falls into place for a crisp summer wine. (2021)


----------



## Ajmassa (Jul 8, 2020)

Summer is flying by! July certainly snuck up on me & got here quick! Which means it’s just about that time to get back to work on these spring wines. Been about 5 weeks now. I wanted to make sure I gave em all another good month for the malo to fully do its thing. Just performed the final chroma test yesterday. Looks good across the board. Time to rack, sulphite, test levels for the 1st time since before AF and give em a little taste.

Also finally got around to building a stand for the new 50L barrel. Not exactly fancy. I just repurposed some old shelving I had laying around collecting dust. Had to make due without a jigsaw which I forgot to bring home from work. Mimic’ed the 8gal stand @mainshipfred built, slapped on some new casters and fiń. Made myself a better barrel-ring chisel too. Thicker flat end and bent to an offset. Worked great and now I’m all ready to swell it up and fill.
1st run with the Cab Franc/Cab Sauv/Petit Verdot blend. (Saved 3gal ea. Franc & Sauv for single varietals). Then Malbec to follow for a lengthy stay. I also have a neutral 8gal barrel I could use for the Malbec while waiting. (I will have 10gal Malbec leftover anyway once in the barrel)
The 8gal is currently filled with a Tuscan from ‘17 that needs some TLC. Still no clue what I’m gonna do to it tho. Been meaning to get some tasters bottled for second opinions. Same with a ‘18 Sauv Blanc. But these are discussions for another day. In the meantime they remain at the bottom of the priority list.
Rosé color looks great imo. I was also happy to see the lactic/malic spots remain unchanged from previous chroma 5/29 since I haven’t stabilized at all yet and it’s still bubbling away. Even now 2 months post AF it’s still consistently showing co2 bubbles rising and sitting at surface. Glad to confirm its not caused from mlf. 

Fingers crossed my acid levels fell into place!  been super busy lately but hoping to make some time over the next few days to get all these wines safely tucked in till fall.


----------



## Mario Dinis (Jul 8, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Summer is flying by! July certainly snuck up on me & got here quick! Which means it’s just about that time to get back to work on these spring wines. Been about 5 weeks now. I wanted to make sure I gave em all another good month for the malo to fully do its thing. Just performed the final chroma test yesterday. Looks good across the board. Time to rack, sulphite, test levels for the 1st time since before AF and give em a little taste.
> 
> Also finally got around to building a stand for the new 50L barrel. Not exactly fancy. I just repurposed some old shelving I had laying around collecting dust. Had to make due without a jigsaw which I forgot to bring home from work. Mimic’ed the 8gal stand @mainshipfred built, slapped on some new casters and fiń. Made myself a better barrel-ring chisel too. Thicker flat end and bent to an offset. Worked great and now I’m all ready to swell it up and fill.
> 1st run with the Cab Franc/Cab Sauv/Petit Verdot blend. (Saved 3gal ea. Franc & Sauv for single varietals). Then Malbec to follow for a lengthy stay. I also have a neutral 8gal barrel I could use for the Malbec while waiting. (I will have 10gal Malbec leftover anyway once in the barrel)
> ...


Nice barrels


----------



## Mario Dinis (Jul 8, 2020)

Ajmassa said:


> Summer is flying by! July certainly snuck up on me & got here quick! Which means it’s just about that time to get back to work on these spring wines. Been about 5 weeks now. I wanted to make sure I gave em all another good month for the malo to fully do its thing. Just performed the final chroma test yesterday. Looks good across the board. Time to rack, sulphite, test levels for the 1st time since before AF and give em a little taste.
> 
> Also finally got around to building a stand for the new 50L barrel. Not exactly fancy. I just repurposed some old shelving I had laying around collecting dust. Had to make due without a jigsaw which I forgot to bring home from work. Mimic’ed the 8gal stand @mainshipfred built, slapped on some new casters and fiń. Made myself a better barrel-ring chisel too. Thicker flat end and bent to an offset. Worked great and now I’m all ready to swell it up and fill.
> 1st run with the Cab Franc/Cab Sauv/Petit Verdot blend. (Saved 3gal ea. Franc & Sauv for single varietals). Then Malbec to follow for a lengthy stay. I also have a neutral 8gal barrel I could use for the Malbec while waiting. (I will have 10gal Malbec leftover anyway once in the barrel)
> ...


My Chilean Malbec successfuly finished MLF with VP41. Under oak now until September.


----------



## Ajmassa (Jul 8, 2020)

Mario Dinis said:


> My Chilean Malbec successfuly finished MLF with VP41. Under oak now until September.


Must be the suit


----------

