# Welch's



## chevs15 (Jan 1, 2012)

Hi everyone! I found this recipe on another forum. It's for 1 gallon and I would be making 6 gallons. Thoughts on his recipe and how would alter it for 6 gallons?

Welch's Frozen Grape Juice Wine
2 cans (11.5 oz) Welch's 100% frozen grape concentrate 
1-1/4 lbs granulated sugar 
2 tsp acid blend 
1 tsp pectic enzyme 
1 tsp yeast nutrient 
water to make 1 gallon 
wine yeast 

Edit- note! You may want to skip the acid blend, at least at first, as some results say this wine is too "tart". 

Bring 1 quart water to boil and dissolve the sugar in the water. Remove from heat and add frozen concentrate. Add additional water to make one gallon and pour into secondary. Add remaining ingredients except yeast. Cover with napkin fastened with rubber band and set aside 12 hours. Add activated wine yeast and recover with napkin. When active fermentation slows down (about 5 days), fit airlock. When clear, rack, top up and refit airlock. After additional 30 days, stabilize, sweeten if desired and rack into bottles.

Thanks!


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## Redtrk (Jan 1, 2012)

I have 6 gallons of this going right now. In my beginning of the clearing stage I added oak then vanilla. The taste is great and I haven't even added an F-pack yet.


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## chevs15 (Jan 1, 2012)

Can you share your recipe? Is it super sweet? 

Thanks!


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## Redtrk (Jan 1, 2012)

chevs15 said:


> Can you share your recipe? Is it super sweet?
> 
> Thanks!



It's not super sweet but it is semi sweet. I am going to add an F-pack which will bring out more of the concord grape flavor. 
I added about a 1/3 cup of oak chips for about 6 weeks then added about 3 ounces of vanilla.


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## chevs15 (Jan 1, 2012)

Did you use the recipe I posted? Can you share the whole recipe?

How do you make an F-pack? When and how long do you add the oak?

Sorry for all the questions.... You're a big help! 

Thanks!!


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## Redtrk (Jan 1, 2012)

This is the one I used and basically the same although I used jugs of juice I found on sale at COSTCO. 
There are many folks on here that know far more about wine making than I do since I've only been at this for about a year and a half. 
I added the oak when I started my clearing and left it in the carboy for about 6 weeks. 
As for the F-pack you just use more juice after fermenting and stabilizing. 
There is a thread on making F-packs in here somewhere. 

WELCH'S GRAPE JUICE

The name most associated with grape juice in America is Welch's. Welch's grape juice is either Concord (red) or Niagara (white). This juice is sulfited to prevent fermentation in the bottle and may be difficult to start fermenting, but it can be done. It is much easier to use Welch's 100% Grape Juice Frozen Concentrate, as it does not contain sulfites. However, the recipe below contains instructions for building up a fermentation that should overcome the sulfite problem.

WELCH'S GRAPE JUICE WINE
•	1 gallon Welch's grape juice (red or white)
•	sugar to raise s.g. to 1.095
•	2 tsp acid blend
•	1 tsp pectic enzyme
•	1 tsp yeast nutrient
•	1 pkt Montrachet wine yeast

In a quart jar, activate yeast in ¼ cup of grape juice and ¼ cup of warm water with ¼ teaspoon of sugar and 2 pinches of yeast nutrient dissolved in it. Cover and set aside to develop a vigorous fermentation. Pour grape juice in primary and float a hydrometer in it to determine sugar content. Add sufficient sugar to raise specific gravity to 1.095 (see hydrometer table at http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/hydrom.asp) and stir well to dissolve sugar and assist sulfites (sulfur dioxide) in dissipating. Add remaining ingredients except yeast. Cover primary and set aside 12 hours. Every 2 hours add ¼ cup of grape juice to the jar of yeast starter. After 12 hours, add activated wine yeast and recover primary. When active fermentation slows down (about 5-7 days), transfer to secondary and fit airlock. When clear, rack, top up and refit airlock. After additional 30 days, stabilize, sweeten if desired and set aside 10-14 days to ensure refermentation does not ensue. Carefully rack into bottles and age at least 3 months.


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## arcticsid (Jan 2, 2012)

Chev, use 3 cans and add water to make 1 gallon, 4 is even better.

Alot of people think they can not make a decent wine using these frozen concentrates.

This is simply not true.

You want to look for 100% juice and look at the ingredients on the side. Alot of these frozen juices have already had sulfites added. Watch out also for Benzoate.

Both of these can delay or even prevent fermentation, but you CAN get them to go.

Myself, and many others have successfully made great wine from these concentrated juices.

If you look around the forum you will see many testomonies to this.

I like to use the DOLE brand of frozen concentrates myself, I have also had great success with Old Orchard brand also.

Be careful with the sulfites, we need them to sterilize everything, but it isn't always necessary to add n the begining.


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## comeauch (Apr 13, 2013)

I've just bottled and tasted my first Welch's Niagara wine... I used 3 cans/gallon and it tastes really fruity. A bit too much, even for me. It was aged for 4½ months, so maybe not all that long, but still! I would (and will) definitely try using 2 cans only. 

Also, I'm not sure about how useful it is to use pectic enzyme on juice, especially frozen concentrate... ?


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## Duster (Apr 13, 2013)

My two cents worth 
Definitely use with 3 cans per gallon.
Oak is a must for this in my opinion, I like med toast american oak at 2oz /gallon
Also add about 1/2 pound of chopped raisins per gallon to improve body.
backsweeten using an additional can of concentrate per gallon.

I have made quite a bit of this and contrary to what one may believe it's not a bad wine.


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## K5MOW (Apr 13, 2013)

Duster said:


> My two cents worth
> Definitely use with 3 cans per gallon.
> Oak is a must for this in my opinion, I like med toast american oak at 2oz /gallon
> Also add about 1/2 pound of chopped raisins per gallon to improve body.
> ...



Would you put the raisins and oak in primary. 
I just started a batch yesterday and could add them now. 

Roger

Roger


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## Duster (Apr 13, 2013)

Have you pitched the yeast? Add the chopped raisins to the primary however they will increase your sugars a bit thus for raising your starting SG.
I like to add the oak after the second racking. this is the stage where I also stabilize the wine. The oak will take up some of the head space that is lost in the racking and once the oak, K-meta and sorbate is added I put the carboy away for hibernation for about a month or two to clear.


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## K5MOW (Apr 13, 2013)

Yes I have added the yeast. It is going great. I will add the raisins tomorrow. Will wait for the oak.


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## Duster (Apr 14, 2013)

make sure you get all natural raisins. I believe wally world carries them. a lot of raisins out there are loaded with potassium metaphosphate to stop them from fermenting while they are drying. 
Make sure they are chopped so that the yeast can get to the sugars, This is a pain and if anybody has some ideas on how to do this please share, the best way I found is to pile a handful of them at a time on a cutting board and run a pizza cutter through them about a million times. 
lastly with the addition of them after the yeast has been pitched, you will never truly know your starting SG so ABV% calculation will be difficult. on the other hand if you're making it to drink then who cares as long as you like it!


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## K5MOW (Apr 14, 2013)

Thanks for this great info. I will be using this pizza cuter idea. 

Roger


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## dralarms (Apr 14, 2013)

How about one of those onion choppers? The ones that all you do is push on a plunger.


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## K5MOW (Apr 14, 2013)

dralarms said:


> How about one of those onion choppers? The ones that all you do is push on a plunger.



Yes that sounds good. I wish I had one. I will use the pizza cutter idea this time. 

Roger


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## dralarms (Apr 14, 2013)

Walmart has them for about 9 bucks.


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## saramc (Apr 14, 2013)

Just be prepared for raisins to stick to hand chopper blades. It really is easier if you rehydrate the raisins in 3x the amount of juice/must overnight, or warm some juice/must in microwave/stovetop and allow raisins to hydrate in warm liquid, and then plop them in a blender to 'pulse chop'. Just remember to add any leftover liquid to your primary, and put chopped raisins in nylon hose. (A large mouth funnel from canning section works well, if you need assistance)

Comeauch...Niagara is a super fruity juice. I would encourage you to add a bit of thawed limeade concentrate to a glass of your wine, see what you think. Normally I add two large sized cans of limeade frozen/thawed concentrate syrup per 5-6 gallon batch. Added after wine is clear, stabilized with k-meta + sorbate and ready to bottle. It would need residual sugar to balance the lime and it makes for a 'dirty wine' due to lime pulp, but so dang good. The lime version is one you want to consume within six months since it starts to lose that limey goodness beyond that. But, Niagara is a great blending wine if you are of the 'cannot drink it as-is' population.


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## JohnT (Apr 15, 2013)

< S i g h >


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## jswordy (Apr 15, 2013)

I've written so much on this, I now do shorthand:

4 cans/gallon for real flavor
Oak in primary - 4 oz. good.
Oak in secondary - just few days, Check often. Use spiroll.
AGE IT - 6 months, good stuff; 1 year really good.
Raisins - store brand usually not preserved. Kroger I use.
I just bag raisins, let expand in must, squeeze bag with hand. Easy.
Bananas good for body in this, too.


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## Duster (Apr 15, 2013)

JohnT said:


> < S i g h >



I knew this was coming, What took you so long


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## gird123 (Apr 15, 2013)

I have an old meet grinder I use for raisins that works great and is easy to clean after.


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## JohnT (Apr 16, 2013)

gird123 said:


> I have an old meet grinder I use for raisins that works great and is easy to clean after.


 
I would advise against it. You do not want to grind up the grape seeds. This can make your wine rather bitter.


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## JohnT (Apr 16, 2013)

Duster said:


> I knew this was coming, What took you so long


 

What???? All I did was to look up to the sky and let the air out of my lungs.


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## gird123 (Apr 16, 2013)

I have never used raisins with seeds. I thought most raisins were Thomson seedless?


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## Duster (Apr 16, 2013)

JohnT said:


> What???? All I did was to look up to the sky and let the air out of my lungs.



LOL. Welch will never make a cabernet sauvignon. However it is readily available, cheap, and easy to make. I see both sides, I for one enjoy a sweeter wine and this fits the bill nicely. The way I see it, if the one making it likes it then who are we to judge. Agreed


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## Elmer (Apr 17, 2013)

chevs15 said:


> Hi everyone! I found this recipe on another forum. It's for 1 gallon and I would be making 6 gallons. Thoughts on his recipe and how would alter it for 6 gallons?
> 
> Welch's Frozen Grape Juice Wine
> 2 cans (11.5 oz) Welch's 100% frozen grape concentrate
> ...



I just followed this receipe for my 1st welches "non kit" batch of wine.
I think I tweeked (IE: screwed up) the receipe a little, by addin a little too much sugar.
But will see how it works.


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## Loner (Apr 17, 2013)

Elmer said:


> I just followed this receipe for my 1st welches "non kit" batch of wine.
> I think I tweeked (IE: screwed up) the receipe a little, by addin a little too much sugar.
> But will see how it works.



I would make that at least 3 cans of concentrate per gallon. I will use four per gallon in my next batch.


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## Elmer (Apr 17, 2013)

Loner said:


> I would make that at least 3 cans of concentrate per gallon. I will use four per gallon in my next batch.



I should have noted I used 3 cans.
And added a 4th, since I also added sorreno peppers to give it a kick.
I gave it too much kick and added a 4th.

Of course my 1 gallon is actually 1.5 and I only have a one 1 gallon glass bottle for aging!


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## wineforfun (Apr 17, 2013)

Your 4 cans will be just fine, that is what I used per gallon and am only making a 2 gallon batch. You will have some residual sweetness left over. I split my 2 gallon batch into 2 - 1 gallon carboys so I could leave one alone and oak the other, to see if I liked it.


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## Elmer (Apr 18, 2013)

ok 48 hours into this and fermentation has not started.
Usually with any of my kit wines fermentation begins within 48 hours.

I had an aquarium heat pad on it, which I unplugged.
I also tried taking the top off the bucket. The top had been loosely on. I have not moved it 1/2 way off to get some O2 in there?

Is 48 hours normal or am I just being impatient.
It is only 1 gallon!


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## jswordy (Apr 18, 2013)

Are you saying it has not started by SG measurement or by visual appearance?

What yeast are you using? If it is something like RC212 that is not super-active, don't rely on visual for the first 3-4 days. Take measurements.

You could try stirring the heck out of it to oxygenate it. I'd take the dang lid off and put a towel over it to get max oxygen to it. 

Dunno what effect the peppers might have had. 

After all that, if it's really stuck, you can always resort to EC1118.


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## Elmer (Apr 18, 2013)

jswordy said:


> Are you saying it has not started by SG measurement or by visual appearance?
> 
> What yeast are you using? If it is something like RC212 that is not super-active, don't rely on visual for the first 3-4 days. Take measurements.
> 
> ...



Visually
I used lalvin ec 1118.
I have always used lalvin ec 1118. All the mosti mondale kits I have done come with lalvin ec 1118.
(thought I must say that MM ships thier yeast in the box, which leaves it room temp. When I bought the same yeast separately it was stored in the fridge)

Anyhow.
I took the lid off 1/2 way and stirred like crazy.

I should mention I have not taken a SG reading since my intial of 1.100. I only have 1.5 gallon of this wine and every time I take a reading I dump afterwards. I


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## Duster (Apr 18, 2013)

what's your temp? your gonna want low 70's*F to start if it's not place it in a warmer area (maybe on top of the fridge) and give it another day.


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## 4score (Apr 25, 2013)

Hello....can I rack my 1 gal primary into a pitcher, clean out the 1 gal container then immediately rack back into the original 1 gal container? Too much exposure??


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## K5MOW (Apr 25, 2013)

4score said:


> Hello....can I rack my 1 gal primary into a pitcher, clean out the 1 gal container then immediately rack back into the original 1 gal container? Too much exposure??



There are people here with a lot more experience then me but I will say yes you can. This sould not be a problem. 

Roger


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## jswordy (Apr 25, 2013)

K5MOW said:


> There are people here with a lot more experience then me but I will say yes you can. This sould not be a problem.
> 
> Roger



Yes. Not ideal, but no problem.


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## K5MOW (Sep 19, 2013)

Hi all

I am going to make some more of the Welches but this time I am going to use the 4 cans to one gallon. What yeast do you all use in this wine?

Roger


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## wineforfun (Sep 19, 2013)

I use RC-212, per the "King of Welchs"


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## Elmer (Sep 19, 2013)

I used Lavlin 1118


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