making a fpac

there are lots of ways of making a fpac or flavor package this one for fruits, works well foe me and it's easy..................

we started with fresh blackberries, wash them and drain them, place them in non stick pan add some cabernet for moisture and simmered down the fruit ,you can see the berries turn from black to red and start to get soft, we mash them gently to help release the sugars and phenols' and let them cool, then added them to our mesh bag and immersed them into the primary along with the juice and oak, smells like wine heaven, started off at 1.10 -were now on the 7th day fermentation and the sg is at 1.03 and the color is like inky ..........notice the one time we used a lid, that was to start a stem juicing process all the berries essence in the lid was not allowed to evaporate in to the air we trap it and used the juices.

Great post, Joe. I am sure many folks have wondered what is meant by f-pac and you have cleared that up for them nicely. Thank you, Arne.

FPACS COME IN ALL STYLES AND TYPES,FOLLOW THE BLACKBERRY WE WILL SHOW YOU MORE WAYS VERY SOON...

CAN YOU SEE HOW WE STARTED OUT WITH A SLOW SIMMER AND THEN PLACED THE LID ON IT , TO TRAP STEAM JUICES THEN WE FINISHED OFF WITH THE SAUTÉ,ALWAYS BEING GENTLE WITH THE FRUIT..........THAT'S THE KEY TO MAKING A GOOD FPAC,WE ADDED THIS TO THE PINO NIOR ON 3/27 OF THIS YEAR WE STILL HAVE AWAYS TO GO ,THIS IS A EIGHT WEEK WINE TO FINISH....DID YOU ALSO SEE THE PLUMS,NEXT TIME OUT THAT WILL BE MY FPAC....................................there is another method of using a fpac and that is (a cold press)to enhance the base after fermentation,use the fruit of your choice as a infusion of flavor ,wash the fruit as normal and gently squeeze the fruit in a bowl this will trap the juices remember fermentation is now completed, you want some fruit still in tact, plus juice( this is not cooked) how ever you chose place the fruit into the carboy and let it settle out ,this then will lend itself to the mix in two weeks remove the fruit and rack the wine ,let it settle out, then taste. cold press method 2nd way

OK, I'm finally taking the plunge. I've got two pots on low. One has 6 small apricots and two mangos, the other 6 plumbs. The only other additives are a splash of viognier and merlot respectively. The plum is destin for a batch of inexpensive merlot (+raisins/tannins) and will get added in about 10 days. The apricot mix is for a future chard or viognier. should I add sugar? can I freeze the apricot mix for later use? I don't know why I'm so insecure about this. first time jitters I guess.

Joe, do you have a fruit type per wine type?
That Pinot Noir, you're adding blackberries and/or plums as an fpack in the primary.

What would you add to say a 12L GSM kit (grenache, syrah, mourdevre) that I just started yesterday?

..

Answers

cimbaliw: yes you can freeze in a air tight back no problem.
o sugar is required at this stage.

geek:look at your wines flavor profile and ask yourself what defines the taste?then ask what flavors do you want it to have>

Hi Joe
that is a very informative post, but I have a few questions. The flavor pack is added after primary fermentation, then at what point in secondary do you add it, and how do you get the bag into the top of the carboy and how do you get it back out?

Gozs into

FIRST,LETS SET THE TABLE.
ADDING A FPAC (FRUIT) IN THE PRIMARY ,IN A BUCKET...........AS PICTORIAL SHOWS.....
NOW THE BATCH IS BECOMING A BLENDED WINE IN PRIMARY.

IF YOUR GOING TO ADD IT IN THE SECONDARY IT THEN BECOMES A BACKGROUND ENTITY ..JUST BEFORE FINAL FERMENTATION HAS STOPPED.

UNDERSTAND?????

NOW LETS SAY I HAVE MADE THE WINE AND I THEN DECIDED (COMPLETELY DONE)THAT I WANTED TO ADD RASPBERRIES,I COULD BY HAND SQUEEZING THEM AND PLACING THEM IN THE CARBOY(USE A FUNNEL) SO THAT THEY WOULD BECOME ANOTHER FLAVOR COMPONENT ,IT'S A LITTLE WORK TO RACK AND GET THE BERRIES OUT BUT THAT'S WHAT MAKES THE DEFERENCE IN WINEMAKERS TAKING THE EXTRA STEPS AND MAKING THE DIFFERENT.

UNDERSTAND???? IN THE PRIMARY ( PART OF THE OVERALL BLEND),IN THE SECONDARY(AS A FLAVOR COMPONENT) AND THEN FINAL PHASE (AS A BACKGROUND COMPONENT),THERE IS NO LAW STATING YOU CAN'T ,YOU NEED TO BE WILLING TO TAKE A CHANCE AND DEVELOP THE OUTCOME.THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX.

FPACS COME IN ALL STYLES AND TYPES,FOLLOW THE BLACKBERRY WE WILL SHOW YOU MORE WAYS VERY SOON...

CAN YOU SEE HOW WE STARTED OUT WITH A SLOW SIMMER AND THEN PLACED THE LID ON IT , TO TRAP STEAM JUICES THEN WE FINISHED OFF WITH THE SAUTÉ,ALWAYS BEING GENTLE WITH THE FRUIT..........THAT'S THE KEY TO MAKING A GOOD FPAC,WE ADDED THIS TO THE PINO NIOR ON 3/27 OF THIS YEAR WE STILL HAVE AWAYS TO GO ,THIS IS A EIGHT WEEK WINE TO FINISH....DID YOU ALSO SEE THE PLUMS,NEXT TIME OUT THAT WILL BE MY FPAC....................................there is another method of using a fpac and that is (a cold press)to enhance the base after fermentation,use the fruit of your choice as a infusion of flavor ,wash the fruit as normal and gently squeeze the fruit in a bowl this will trap the juices remember fermentation is now completed, you want some fruit still in tact, plus juice( this is not cooked) how ever you chose place the fruit into the carboy and let it settle out ,this then will lend itself to the mix in two weeks remove the fruit and rack the wine ,let it settle out, then taste. cold press method 2nd way

Zesting in the beggining

ZESTING FOR FLAVOR AND FUN.....
Citrus Extract: Consists of The zest of 2 limes, the zest of 2 lemons, and the zest of 2 grapefruits, and the remainder is ever Kleer.
Coffee Extract: fill Ball jar up with roasted coffee beans (your choice), fill the balance of the Ball jar with Ever Kleer.
Cinnemon Extract- ~approx. 12 sticks per Ball jar, top up with Ever Kleer
Lemon extract- The Zest of 12 lemons per jar, top up with Ever Kleer
Orange extract: The zest of approx.. 8 oranges per jar. Valenzia oranges work best but any type will do.
Key Lime Extract: 1 bag of key limes with the limes cut in half.
Vanilla Extract: 6 Madagascar Vanilla Beans, sliced length wise. Put all 6 in a ball jar and top off with Ever Kleer.
At the end of one full year its best to pour the extract through some sort of filter (I strain mine through a coffee filter) and add some additional zest of the same type back to it and top it off with Ever Kleer.

​

Making Simple Syrup​

Basic mix consists of : 2 qt. ball jars of cane sugar to 1 qt. ball jar of water.
Process:
Place measured out sugar into a metal pot. Add the water to the mix (It’s a 2 to 1 ratio-mix). Bring the mixture to a boil, constantly stirring from the beginning of the process to the end until the liquid is clear. Have the ball jars already sanitized and ready for filling. Bring the simple syrup TO the jar and and funnel it into them (make sure your funnel is clean, too!) to fill them up. It will be hot so be very careful. Place the lids and metal rings onto the jars to seal them.
Note: we put the very hot liquid into the jars while it is hot so as it cools it creates a vacuum seal to keep the mixture good. Done this way, your simple syrup will have a very long shelf life.
Zesting is the process of the removal of the color of most citrus fruits and other entities that are oil extracted (for their essence). We use a micro plane zester to accomplish our end. See pictures. (If you do not have a micro plane zester you can use a fine cheese grater (Your goal is to get the color off the fruit, not the pitch, which is the "white stuff" underneath the very top layer of the fruit.)

Im a canner great idea making the syrups but since I doing canning im not comfortable not using the pressure cooker or water bath method. But youhavr me thinking, giving me more ideas for later use. Thanks spunk

Think of all the potential for flavor combinations you could have?

Order of Pictures for F-Pak:
Rinse Berries
Add to the pan
add juice
change color
add a lid for a few mins
change colors and smoosh
more cooked down
finished f-pak
add to bag

Thanks Joe. I'm starting an inexpensive pinot noir and just got some blackberries. Since I picked up a couple of these kits I'm going to do one batch with fpak in the primary and on the other kit add them in secondary. That way I can compare the outcome

starting a x kit

THINGS to remember???? raise the sg at the beginning, primary fruit will take longer and will have a acidic taste until it settles out takes a little longer to come around , have patients. CHECK PH. ..tannins addition..

SECONDARY ,addition results should be SUTTLE but none the less berries ,remember the chems very important and always keep on gong data it's easy to get confused as to where you are in the development . GOOD LUCK..

Anyone using this for mead recipes? I'm in the planning stages of an apricot mead right now.


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corithian grape fpac

HERES ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE A FPC ,THINK OF WHAT YOU CAN DO ON YOUR OWN.
A Grape that isn't a Grape but is a Grape
Lon Rombough
If you've ever had currant buns, or any other baked product with "currants" in them, you, like 99.9% of the public, thought the "currants" were the little red fruits that grow on bushes. Nope.
The dried "currants" used in baking are actually a true raisin, a dried grape. Called "currants" because one of the names of the grape they come FROM is "Zante Currant" also known as Black Corinth, and many other names, THIS is the variety dried INTO "currants" that are used in baking.
Black Corinth is the name you will usually find it under in America, though in recent years it has become known as "the Champagne grape" due to advertising by a produce dealer who specializes in it. Ironically, there is an old American grape called "Champagne" that is a very coarse, rough tasting labrusca grape of low quality, about as far FROM Champagne as you could get.
Black Corinth is a very odd grape in many ways. In it's natural state, the clusters have very few berries and they are hardly bigger than pinheads. In wild grapes, the sexes are in separate vines, male flowers on one, female flowers on another. This is true even in wild Vitis vinifera, the classic grape of commerce. Black Corinth is an "almost male" in that the flowers have well developed anthers, and very tiny ovaries, probably representing a first step towards evolution of a perfect flowered grape. Hence, when it does set fruit, there are only a few per cluster and the berries are tiny and seedless. However, the variety was doubtless kept as a source of pollen so that the female flowered varieties would set full crops.
How did Black Corinth come to be used at all, if the berries are so few and tiny?
It's a very old variety, probably Greek, and the story goes that a donkey was tied to a vine of it and the animal started going around the vine until the halter rope rubbed the bark off. Instead of dying, the vine healed the wound and the grapes, which were minuscule in other years, were large enough to eat after the vine was girdled. There is certainly a grain of truth in the fable as girdling was a standard practice in increasing the set and size of seedless grapes until the discovery of the plant hormone gibberellic acid and it's ability to do the same thing with less labor.
Girdling, or hormone treatment, causes the clusters to set full crops, though the berries are still tiny. Because the stems also remain tiny, the berries can be eaten with the stems on. This makes the variety seem very dainty and rather glamorous (thanks especially to articles showing frosted clusters of them with glasses of champagne - hence the "champagne" grape) and home growers who have seen this decide that Black Corinth would be fun to grow., which is too bad because it's NOT a home grower's grape.
WE TOOK THESE GRAPES PLACED THEM IN A VACUME SEALED BAG AND FROZE THEM THEN WHEN WE WANTED TO USE THEM IN OUR CABERNAY WE DEFROSTED THEM AND SQUEEZED THEM RIGHT IN THE BAG AND PLACED THEM INTO THE MIX,EASY.PLAN AHEAD ALWAYS.

Zesting in the beggining

Citrus Extract: Consists of The zest of 2 limes, the zest of 2 lemons, and the zest of 2 grapefruits, and the remainder is ever Kleer.
Coffee Extract: fill Ball jar up with roasted coffee beans (your choice), fill the balance of the Ball jar with Ever Kleer.
Cinnemon Extract- ~approx. 12 sticks per Ball jar, top up with Ever Kleer
Lemon extract- The Zest of 12 lemons per jar, top up with Ever Kleer
Orange extract: The zest of approx.. 8 oranges per jar. Valenzia oranges work best but any type will do.
Key Lime Extract: 1 bag of key limes with the limes cut in half.
Vanilla Extract: 6 Madagascar Vanilla Beans, sliced length wise. Put all 6 in a ball jar and top off with Ever Kleer.
At the end of one full year its best to pour the extract through some sort of filter (I strain mine through a coffee filter) and add some additional zest of the same type back to it and top it off with Ever Kleer.

Making Simple Syrup​

Basic mix consists of : 2 qt. ball jars of cane sugar to 1 qt. ball jar of water.
Process:
Place measured out sugar into a metal pot. Add the water to the mix (It’s a 2 to 1 ratio-mix). Bring the mixture to a boil, constantly stirring from the beginning of the process to the end until the liquid is clear. Have the ball jars already sanitized and ready for filling. Bring the simple syrup TO the jar and and funnel it into them (make sure your funnel is clean, too!) to fill them up. It will be hot so be very careful. Place the lids and metal rings onto the jars to seal them.
Note: we put the very hot liquid into the jars while it is hot so as it cools it creates a vacuum seal to keep the mixture good. Done this way, your simple syrup will have a very long shelf life.
Zesting is the process of the removal of the color of most citrus fruits and other entities that are oil extracted (for their essence). We use a micro plane zester to accomplish our end. See pictures. (If you do not have a micro plane zester you can use a fine cheese grater (Your goal is to get the color off the fruit, not the pitch, which is the "white stuff" underneath the very top layer of the fruit.)

FPACS COME IN ALL STYLES AND TYPES,FOLLOW THE BLACKBERRY WE WILL SHOW YOU MORE WAYS VERY SOON...

CAN YOU SEE HOW WE STARTED OUT WITH A SLOW SIMMER AND THEN PLACED THE LID ON IT , TO TRAP STEAM JUICES THEN WE FINISHED OFF WITH THE SAUTÉ,ALWAYS BEING GENTLE WITH THE FRUIT..........THAT'S THE KEY TO MAKING A GOOD FPAC,WE ADDED THIS TO THE PINO NIOR ON 3/27 OF THIS YEAR WE STILL HAVE AWAYS TO GO ,THIS IS A EIGHT WEEK WINE TO FINISH....DID YOU ALSO SEE THE PLUMS,NEXT TIME OUT THAT WILL BE MY FPAC....................................there is another method of using a fpac and that is (a cold press)to enhance the base after fermentation,use the fruit of your choice as a infusion of flavor ,wash the fruit as normal and gently squeeze the fruit in a bowl this will trap the juices remember fermentation is now completed, you want some fruit still in tact, plus juice( this is not cooked) how ever you chose place the fruit into the carboy and let it settle out ,this then will lend itself to the mix in two weeks remove the fruit and rack the wine ,let it settle out, then taste. cold press method 2nd way

Joe,

So you add the fruit fpack after fermentation....do you add sorbate to prevent any re-fermentation?


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Adding flavors

geek this all depends on how you want the wine to finish .........adding berries in the primary ..marries the berry to the base.
.........adding the berries to the secondary becomes a background flavoring.
(both are done before chemicals are added) ......................................

if you have a finished wine and want to add a flavor to it: make sure the wine is still and has be chemicalize but before fining is completed...once berries have been added wait to see if the wine has no re-fermentation started, ABOUT A WEEK,if not re-rack and prepare to bottle.................................