# RASPBERRY WINE



## Guest (Jan 22, 2008)

Well. After all that talk I've been reading about Raspberry Port, Raspberry Niagra, Raspberry this and Raspberry that, I finally started my first batch ever of Raspberry Wine.
Using the directions from the Vintners Harvest Raspberry can, and this time following them carefully, adding only what I figured was right for a 6 gallon batch rather than a 5 gallon batch (5 cans of water rather than 6 as I used two cans of berry concentrate rather than one) as the recipe calls for, I managed to create what my notes say below.


As I type, she's sittin comfortably stable in the closet at 76 degrees, with the bucket set loosely on top, venting SO2.


Tomarrow, I'll add the yeast.
Looking forward to this first, unadultrated, untainted, ungraped




, version. After wards, perhaps I'll try the RaspberryNiagra or Raspberry Merlo with a white grape?


Hope all of you are staying warm and dry.


*-----NOTES----<?amespace prefix = o ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" />*
22 January 2008 at 07:30pm:
I started the must tonight. Added all the ingredients as the instructions called for exactly and poured the two cans of fruit into the straining sock. Added the balance of the itemsand stired. It was 2” from the top of the 6gallonbucket.

<UL style="MARGIN-TOP: 0in" =disc>
<LI =Msonormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in">5.5 cans of warmwater,</LI>
<LI =Msonormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in">6 tsp. acid blend,</LI>
<LI =Msonormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in">13 lbs white, granulated, table sugar,</LI>
<LI =Msonormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in">6 tsp. yeast nutrient,</LI>
<LI =Msonormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in">3 tsp. pectic enzyme,</LI>
<LI =Msonormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in">6 Campden tablets crushed 6 Campden tablets crushed </LI>[/list]
*10.6 a.b.v*
*s.g. reads 1.078 - Brix 19.5*
*Finished Alco. 11.21%* The must has a pleasantly sweet, very discernable Raspberry taste. Delicious!


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## jobe05 (Jan 22, 2008)

Handyman, Congratulations on your first real raspberry wine.

That was my first also 3 years ago. It still downstairs aging because it sucks so bad........... it's still there because I just don't need the bottles yet.

I screwed up something in making it and didn't pay attention to the pectic haze that was pretty evenly distributed throughout the nice rose' colored wine. Since then, I have planted my own raspberry bushes and will start my batch soon.

I also planted some of the golden, or yellow raspberries thinking they would turn out to be a white wine with a nice raspberry Flavor........... we'll see, we have a couple of more years on them.


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## NorthernWinos (Jan 22, 2008)

Good going...We have never made a straight Raspberry Wine...always add something to it....Red Grape Concentrate, Apple juice, Merlot Grape juice and this last time Niagara juice....etc. We love them all.


I have wondered about the black and yellow raspberries....will be interesting to follow up on that.


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## jobe05 (Jan 22, 2008)

I planted 1 plant, about 1 gallon in size this past summer, and in late fall I had yellow raspberries........... and they kept coming, and coming and coming............ Over a 6 week period, I probably picked enough for a gallon batch to try. If I had known I was going to get that many I would have froze a few at a time till they were done. I did that with my red raspberries and got 12 pounds of them.


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## Waldo (Jan 23, 2008)

Should be a good batch handyman.


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## joeswine (Jan 23, 2008)

HANDYMAN 454///looks good but how about a rassberry shazar or a blackberry pino noir,rassberry porto sounds just lousious ,right now I have 12 gallons of blackberry going and 12 of rassberry as well,my intentions are to make the stated about styles plus straight sharaza and pino noir,all from california,which you'll have soon when I make the blends I 'll forward them also,



but that won't be for a few weeks yet



remember the most important element in wine making is the tasteing//OK



PS the sisters are a hand full of fun



*Edited by: joeswine *


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## Guest (Jan 23, 2008)

Joe:
Could you put the recipe for the Raspberry Sharaza on another "NEW TOPIC" and then send me the web address for it? Having no idea what it is, the name sounds really cool and I'd like to look at it.


Jobe:
If your Raspberry is not tainted (gone bad), whynot try blendingit with another wine? I did that with my White Zin that had gone flat due to thelength of wait to start iton my closet shelf.
My sweety likes liquers so I mixed it with a splash of Creme De Cossis and it turned out fine enough to drink again.


Northern:
Thanks as well. I'm really excited about this batch too. All the Raspberry winesthat I've ever tasted were morbidly sweet. I personallyhate sweet wines. I prefer them semi dry andslightly sweet.
I'm still considering mixing a small batch of this brew with a Peach Shine for a Raspberry Peach Port.


Waldo:
Thanks.


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## NorthernWinos (Jan 23, 2008)

Our wine are all dry...we like them that way.......No sweet wines here.


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## joeswine (Jan 23, 2008)

NW my fruit wines are made fruit forward very intense flavor and semi/dry I like to taste some sweetness with the fruit ,its the italian in me


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## NorthernWinos (Jan 24, 2008)

The Super Kleer K-C sure did a nice job on this wine...








Love the flavor of this combination.


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## Guest (Jan 27, 2008)

Well. This Pure, Fruit Forward Raspberryhas been one of the most vigorous fermentations I've experienced yet.
I expected it to be done today but as you can see from the CO2 bubbles on the top of the must and perhaps you can see the bubbles rising from the bottom of the carboy, it keepsgoing and going and going.


It smells wonderful and as of this morning, was still sweet at 1.028 and as you can see, has a wonderous ruby red color to her.
I'd read some place, that Raspberries have a tendency to go light and thin in the making but this one came out rich and full.
I'm pleased!


Temps are still running 76 and the fermentation's slowed considerably since yesterday but It's still at 1.010 +/- now and all I can do is wait it out.


I removed the fruit sock and racked the must from the primary bucket to the carboy you see here this morning.




I got nearly 6 full gallons from the bucket andtopped it off without thinking, with purified water to withing 1" of the bung.


I returnrd to the carboy 15 minutes later to discover the bubbles had slowlyrisen up to the bung, thenup the bung, filled the air lock and were starting to boil out the top of it, over the edge and down the bottle.
Clever trick.
Thinking quickly, I raised the carboy and inserted the primary bucket lid beneath to catch what I figured would be a short term of boil over.


Worked great. Must settled down and I think I might have lost all of 2 cups.


After she settles down completly, I'll rack her again and add the flavor enhancement pac and campden. Then back sweeten her to about a 1.5 Brix and let her sit a couple months.





Right now she's sittin on about 1" of loosly compacted lees but I expect thatto compact down to 1/2" by Feb 9th when I'll rack her again.


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## NorthernWinos (Jan 27, 2008)

Looks good to me.....as I sit sipping some Raspberry/Red GrapeWine....


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## joeswine (Jan 28, 2008)

WELL handyman454 it looks fruit forward to me also



keep on cooken


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## Wade E (Jan 28, 2008)

Thats lookin really good there handyman.


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2008)

03 February 2008 at 3:27pm:* Day 13*<?amespace prefix = o ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" />
Still some CO2 work going on. Stirred with ss paddle on low drill speed for several minutes. Went a bit too deep and stired up some of the settleing lees(that produced nearly overflow bubbles).Setting the paddle at mid way down produced some bubbles but not significantly more than the must is currently producing on it’s own.
Must has the appearance of pink grape fruit juice nowand is dry and slightly tart. Mild raspberry aroma though.
*s.g. reads 0.992*
*Brix 0.0*


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## Guest (Feb 5, 2008)

<?amespace prefix = o ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" />
05 February 2008 at 9:27pm:* Day 15*
Fermentation stopped today. No more CO2 bubbles at all. Expect to rack in a couple days and back sweeten, then stabilize and store in the carboy for a couple months to clearbefore bottling.






The neck is still full of the residue CO2 gas so I'm not terribly worried about topping right now. Being though, that the bubbles have subsided completely now I'll have to top off next time I open the air lock.






And there's a 1/2" layer of nicely compacted sediment on the bottom waiting to be siphond from the wine. I think perhaps this time I'll back sweeten to 1.010 (2.5 Brix)


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## Wade E (Feb 5, 2008)

I hope you plan on stabilizing then back sweetening instead of the order you described.


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## Guest (Feb 5, 2008)

[chuckles]
Uhh. Yup.
I'm sittin here writing and sippin on one of my first batch of Blackberry and I think it's my third water glass now because I can't see my fingers anymore.


Hmmm.


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## Waldo (Feb 6, 2008)

Looking mighty fine handyman


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## Guest (Feb 8, 2008)

08 February 2008 at 10:44pm:* Day 18*<?amespace prefix = o ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" />
Racked and topped off tonight.
It's amazing how much sediment materializes in just a week or two.
Now we get to stabilize then add the additional raspberries I've had frozen for this very occasion and back sweeten to about 1.015 I think.


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## Guest (Feb 22, 2008)

21 February 2008 at 10:44pm:* Day 31*<?amespace prefix = o ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" />
Racked and topped off tonight.





I had a total of about an eighth of an inch of sediment after 13 days since the last rack.
Bear in mind that I've added no clearing agents here.








This sludge has settled out naturally due in large to the physics of gravity over time.
I personally don't believe in adding clearing agents to accomplish what patience will accomplish.






I certainly can't complaign about a glass of wine like this and especially with at least 2 more rackings to go before bottling.


Right?








I then siphoned off about 3/4 of a gallon of the wine to a smaller carboy and then using the Oyster Steamer shown here,





I steamed down the three zip lock bags of Raspberries to 3 cups of pure raspberry juice.


The process, while a bit more dificult than with other steamers, was uneventful. 
However. If you're going to try this yourself, be very careful not to scald yourself while draining the juice basin.


Whileallowing the juice to cool I added my Potassium Sorbate stabilizer, then I addedthe juicedirectly to the larger carboy.After that, I mixed 6 cups of sugar, one cup at a time, with the wine in the smaller carboy and added that to the larger carboy till I reached my desired stopping point.


My end result, tasting each time I addeda cup ofsugar, was:


*s.g. reads 1.010*
*Brix 2.5
*
That’s my stopping point for this run. Bear in mind that my last Blackberry was a 1.005 and I felt a need to sweeten a bit more for my taste.


I've air lockedthe Raspberry nowand put it into storage for another month then a rack and maybe one more month and rack before going into bottles.


My next project will be an appricott wine. Look for it.


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## joeswine (Feb 22, 2008)

wellnow my fine wino friend may be in 6mos. you can send me a tasteing,looks very good and you know i like rass!!!!!


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## scubaman2151 (Feb 22, 2008)

Wow that looks very good. Where did you get that little steamer?


Scuba


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## Guest (Feb 22, 2008)

Hey Folks:
I don't recomend this steamer for this particular job. It's cumbersom, slow and down right dangerous as per its high probability ofscalding when used in this manner.
I do however, highly recomend and endorse the steaming method as a good way to extract fruit juices to enhance your fruitwines aroma and flavor. 
Just get a good one designed with this type application in mind.


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## pkcook (Feb 23, 2008)

Hey Handy,


Raspberry has always been a favorite wine for me. I've made 2 separate batches and both were excellent. My next batch will be strictly from concentrate. 


Check out this place. I've used their Raspberry, Cherry, and Concord concentrates and every batch was wonderful!


http://www.brownwoodacres.com/cherry.htm?gclid=CJSBptW425ECFQHhPAodlXXRfQ


Good luck!


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## grapeman (Feb 23, 2008)

Hey, where the heck you been pk. We haven't seen you around these parts in nigh on to a long spell! What's been up and what ya got a perkin there?


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## Guest (Feb 28, 2008)

Hey Folks:


Just a short follow up on the progress.


It's now been one week since my last rack, stabilizing, juice addition andbacksweetening. 
During this period, despite the fact that I forgot once again (dawgonit), to add the all important clearing agent, my wine, clear as a bell now,has settled out with a nice 1/8" of sediment on the bottom that in another week or two, I'll rack out again.


Happy Wining Folks!


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## Wade E (Feb 28, 2008)

If there is only 1/8" sediment why rack it in such a short time span, give it a little more time and it could possibly be your last racking. Each time you rack it you add more O2.
*Edited by: wade *


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## Waldo (Feb 29, 2008)

Wade is correct. With no more than that, I would leave it alone. Let whats there compact more, less chance of it being stirred back into suspension when you do rack again


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## Guest (Feb 29, 2008)

Thanks Guys.


The more bottles you put in the cellar the easier it becomes to be patient but I still get ancious about this with every carboy.


That was my original plan anyway. 4 weeks. Guess I'll just stick to it huh.


Gonna try to find time this weekend to start my Appricott. New house, new puppiesand work, not to mention my sweetie,wear a man out.






Happy wining all.


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## joeswine (Feb 29, 2008)

yes the trials that life brings to us all,kinnnd aaa getttstss tooo yooou,and then theres the wine

got to keep on handyman it will be over soon //////////until the next carboy///your jp


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## Guest (Mar 29, 2008)

29 March 2008 at 04:04pm:* Day 69*<?amespace prefix = o ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" />
I racked the carboy today and I’m glad I took the time. As I thought and expected, there was a small amount of sediment in the carboy but after the rack it was crystal clear.




I bottled 30, 750 ml bottles and 1 glass of the finest tasting Raspberry wine I’ve ever tasted (sorry Joe, modesty is not one of my strong traits).
The final sg on this batch is 1.010 and the sweetness, in my personal opinion,is just bordering on too much. 
My Acid test registered 2.7cc SO2
0.675% Tartaric Acid
4.32ppt Sulfuric
Now that it’s bottled, it’s 10 days on its bottom, corks up to let the cork settle into the bottle and then on it’s side for another 6 or 7 months cellaring.


Notes on acid test.
I use the Crosby Baker LTD WINE ACID TEST KIT that I bought for $19.00.
Following the directions, the beginning sample, after adding the prescribed amount ofwater, was just a bit paler than the wine and looked like this.




After adding the first couple drops of Sodium Hydroxide after shaking, thesample looked like this. Preaty much the same as it did originally.




After adding more sodium Hydroxid the sample took on a purple cloud like this...




... but cleard after shaking (I use a plastic bag over the tube to prevent the acid in my skin from contaminating the sample).
After adding2.7cc of solution and shaking, the sample changed color to a light, but decernable purple like this...




... but through-out the entire sample.
No confusion what so ever.


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## Waldo (Mar 29, 2008)

Looks might good handyman..great job !!!


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## Wade E (Mar 29, 2008)

Great job!


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## NorthernWinos (Mar 29, 2008)

Raspberry is one of our favorite wines..mix it with apple juice, red grape juice, white grape juice...it's all good!!!!!


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## Guest (Mar 30, 2008)

[Gasp with fright!]
Mix it!!!
Change the taste!!!
Alter that delightfully rassy, raspberry taste with anything else!!!


[Sound ofunconcious body hitting floor]


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## NorthernWinos (Mar 31, 2008)

We mix Raspberry with many different juices....apple, red grape, white grape, rhubarb...etc...etc...etc.....Gives the wine more body...and they all taste of delicious Raspberry.


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## SmokinDawg (Mar 31, 2008)

sounds to yummy to mix send me a couple of bottles and i'll give my expert opinion


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## joeswine (Apr 1, 2008)

i agree with you handy ,howeverrassberry and sharaz remember orearthy blackberry and pinot noir,nice combo's


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## s.arkvinomaker (Apr 1, 2008)

I use rasberry wine as a mixer also. Alittle can go a long way becaues it 
is a dominate fruit and can easily take over in flavor so I think the tip is add alittle at a time to get the balance you are looking for.


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