2023, What are your plans?

[Billdean]

I going to sit back and enjoy some of the 2021-2022 vintage !

 

[buzi]

The front yard vineyard is loaded with fruit, making me rethink my plans on doing a rose with the Zin. How do you think a Zin/Syrah blend would taste?

It would taste fantastic! Syrah, Cab Sauv would be a good second.

 

[Hazelemere]

On Friday my son in law who has an electric Italian apple grinder will help me grind ~300 lbs of King apples to make a cyser with unpasteurized blueberry blossom mead to get the apple juice (pressed grindings in a a bladder press) up to about SG 1.085 and then ferment with pectic enzyme, nutrient and Lalvin 71B yeast with bentonite 6 days into ferment with racking I should get 55-60 bottles and will blend it with a separate batch of russet/cox cyser to get the tannin and acid levels up.

I'll add a box of very fragrant early dead ripe Moon Glow (crisp) pears to improve the smell. These pears have a really intense smell e.g. 1 box of pears for 8 boxes of King (for the flavour and smell) and 1 box of Russet apples. (for the acid and tannin)

 

[Nebbiolo020]

I sometimes have has much as 35 cases on hand. You must have a large space to store hundreds of cases.

I do, I had to build a climate controlled building just to store my wines lol. It’s gotten a bit out of hand but I have to make wine yearly or I lose the grapes, plus the cases I get from work throughout the year. I’ve been meaning to literally invite everyone on my street over have a bbq and break out a few cases and use up some wine

 

[Hazelemere]

I'll add a box of very fragrant early dead ripe Moon Glow (crisp) pears to improve the smell. These pears have a really intense smell e.g. 1 box of pears for 8 boxes of King (for the flavour and smell) and 1 box of Russet apples. (for the acid and tannin)

My plan worked out fine. A bit of fine solids in the press juice at SG 1.047 raised to SG 1.089 with about 33 lbs of unpasteurized (rich caramel flavour) blueberry blosson honey then treated with nutrient, pectic enzyme and Lalvin 71B yeast. Must was split between 4 polyethylene carboys about 80% full i.e. about 16 Imperial gallons of Cyser Must in total.

My son in law didn't have my luck. He mixed Okanagan Sunrise apples with his mother's Spartan Apples. The Spartans were easy to grind and press but the Sunrise were too soft like ripe Bartlett pears and oozed through the press. We put all of the apple pulp in 2 large primary fermenters with about 4 tbsp pectic enzyme and 5/8 tsp each primary with potassium metabisulphite so we can soak the pectic enzyme on the apple pulp for 48 hour. Has anyone out there fermented the equivalent of applesauce in this condition? Any pointers please would be appreciated. I've never seen this problem before.

 

[ChuckD]

Has anyone out there fermented the equivalent of applesauce in this condition? Any pointers please would be appreciated. I've never seen this problem before.

I have.

Before I had a press I ground the apples, added enough apple juice so I could stir it, and fermented the pulp. When fermentation was almost complete I would scoop off the dry cap then scoop the apple sauce into a fine mesh bag and squeeze out the juice. The result will still settle a lot of lees (like 10% to 20% of the carboy volume). It’s messy but it works.

These compacted to about half that volume before I racked.

 

[Hazelemere]

I have.

Before I had a press I ground the apples, added enough apple juice so I could stir it, and fermented the pulp. When fermentation was almost complete I would scoop off the dry cap then scoop the apple sauce into a fine mesh bag and squeeze out the juice. The result will still settle a lot of lees (like 10% to 20% of the carboy volume). It’s messy but it works.
View attachment 105202
These compacted to about half that volume before I racked.

I have.

Before I had a press I ground the apples, added enough apple juice so I could stir it, and fermented the pulp. When fermentation was almost complete I would scoop off the dry cap then scoop the apple sauce into a fine mesh bag and squeeze out the juice. The result will still settle a lot of lees (like 10% to 20% of the carboy volume). It’s messy but it works.
View attachment 105202
These compacted to about half that volume before I racked.

thank you. very helpful

 

[BigDaveK]

Has anyone out there fermented the equivalent of applesauce in this condition? Any pointers please would be appreciated. I've never seen this problem before.

I have a few times with apple, pear, banana, and home canned applesauce. It thins out after a few days but daily SG measurements are impossible. I lined my buckets with brew bags and took my sample between the bag and bucket. When the time came I tied the bag from the rafters, kneading to help drain. Worked great for 1 and 3 gallon batches. Anything larger might be a problem.

 

[NorCal]

A minor change of plans.

- 60 gallon barrel of Amador Cabernet Sauvignon, with Petit Verdot
- 60 gallon barrel of Lodi Chardonnay Viognier
- 15 gallon estate Zin Rose
- 15 gallon estate Syrah

I have enough Chardonnay from this last year to last a few years. I‘m going to make another barrel fermented white, this time Viognier. I will make it in the same manner I did the Chardonna; barrel fermented, stirred, beta mlf.

Another change of plans.
- 60 gallon barrel of Amador Cabernet Sauvignon, with a splash of Petit Verdot
- 60 gallon barrel of Lodi Chardonnay (Viognier not available this year)
- 60 gallon estate Syrah 65%/Zin 35% field blend
- 20 gallon estate Zin

I got so much more fruit from the vineyard than I expected...completely blown away as the fruit came off the vines by the bucket load. Instead of the expected 30 gallons from my vineyard, I will be getting 80! If you look close at the fruit in the bucket, you can see a stem with powdery mildew that I have been fighting in the vineyard.

 

[mainshipfred]

Another change of plans.
- 60 gallon barrel of Amador Cabernet Sauvignon, with a splash of Petit Verdot
- 60 gallon barrel of Lodi Chardonnay (Viognier not available this year)
- 60 gallon estate Syrah 65%/Zin 35% field blend
- 20 gallon estate Zin

I got so much more fruit from the vineyard than I expected...completely blown away as the fruit came off the vines by the bucket load. Instead of the expected 30 gallons from my vineyard, I will be getting 80! If you look close at the fruit in the bucket, you can see a stem with powdery mildew that I have been fighting in the vineyard.

View attachment 105306View attachment 105304View attachment 105307

Did you already harvest? Our California grapes aren't supposed to come till mid October. It's kind of disturbing that they will be sitting in storage for a month and a half.

 

[winemaker81]

Did you already harvest? Our California grapes aren't supposed to come till mid October. It's kind of disturbing that they will be sitting in storage for a month and a half.

It's going to vary by varietal. In western VA Cayuga and Marquette may be ready, while Chambourcin and Vidal are no where near close.

But some grapes do spend time in storage -- last year a couple of my lugs of Tempranillo were full of moldy clusters

 

[NorCal]

Did you already harvest? Our California grapes aren't supposed to come till mid October. It's kind of disturbing that they will be sitting in storage for a month and a half.

It really depends on the region. I’m getting Cab Sauv from Amador, about an hour away and they are still a month out.

 

[distancerunner]

We placed our order today. We have a backup plan.

Main Project:

Twenty eight lugs of Pinot Noir. If they can get it. Personally, I view this with no small amount of trepidation. Pinot Noir's reputation is finnicky, fussy, and just plain hard to work with. The pressure is that there are partners who are trusting us with their money. They will be at the crush. They want drinkable wine from our efforts. We do not want to screw this up.

Back up plan:

If CFP (produce yard) cannot get the Pinot Noir we will do something else. Mario works the wine side and recommended a blend. It's eleven lugs of Cab Sauv, eight lugs each of Primativo and Malbec. Roughly 40/30/30. I have no idea how this will taste. He says that it's a powerful, bold red. That makes sense. If the Pinot Noir falls through, this what we will be working with. An exercise in faith for the year.

Brunello experiment, year two:

Six lugs of Sangiovese from Lanza Vineyards. Second year for the ongoing Brunello experiment. Twenty eight months to bottle and another year to release. It's a long time to wait to see how bad we messed it up. Or not. Last year's tastes good, so we are hopeful. But twenty eight months is a long time and many things can happen. Second experiment in faith.

Back to my roots:

Three lugs each of Central Valley Muscat and Alicante. We're making my grandfather's field blend from grapes. First time since 2002. Slam dunk. Sorta. Kinda. As long as nothing goes wrong.

 

[Nebbiolo020]

Did you already harvest? Our California grapes aren't supposed to come till mid October. It's kind of disturbing that they will be sitting in storage for a month and a half.

A lot of us pro winemakers are upset and concerned about it as well 2023 is the latest harvest in probably decades. The only good news is that yields are not awful like last year we are seeing a lot more grapes. I have a feeling that the overall fruit quality is going to be extremely good and that 2023 is going to be a very high quality vintage and is going to go down as one of the best vintages. Cool weather and good rainfall tends to lead to superior grapes.

 

[NorCal]

A lot of us pro winemakers are upset and concerned about it as well 2023 is the latest harvest in probably decades. The only good news is that yields are not awful like last year we are seeing a lot more grapes. I have a feeling that the overall fruit quality is going to be extremely good and that 2023 is going to be a very high quality vintage and is going to go down as one of the best vintages. Cool weather and good rainfall tends to lead to superior grapes.

I agree. Late, plenty of fruit. I know of a few vineyards that struggled with powdery mildew this year, so that is something to keep an eye out for. I suspect some vineyards will be forced to take their late ripening varieties off at lower brix, another thing to look out for.

 

[mainshipfred]

@Nebbiolo020 and @NorCal thanks for the heads up. If it makes any difference all of our grapes come from Lodi. We don't have the luxury of seeing the grapes prior to paying and receiving them though in years past the fruit was for the most part acceptable. Lately 50% of my fruit is local Virginia which I typically get the day or day after it is picked. Plus I get to see it and know the numbers before I pay for it.

 

[Nebbiolo020]

@Nebbiolo020 and @NorCal thanks for the heads up. If it makes any difference all of our grapes come from Lodi. We don't have the luxury of seeing the grapes prior to paying and receiving them though in years past the fruit was for the most part acceptable. Lately 50% of my fruit is local Virginia which I typically get the day or day after it is picked. Plus I get to see it and know the numbers before I pay for it.

It’s always tough when you can’t see the fruit, I am lucky in that I can drive to the vineyards we contract our fruit from and look at the grapes whenever I want which is good because I can monitor and pick the fruit exactly when i want it.

 

[Nebbiolo020]

I agree. Late, plenty of fruit. I know of a few vineyards that struggled with powdery mildew this year, so that is something to keep an eye out for. I suspect some vineyards will be forced to take their late ripening varieties off at lower brix, another thing to look out for.

So far we haven’t had any powdery mildew but I am a little concerned that the brix won’t be as high as I wanted usually in the case of Cabernet Sauvignon I’m a fan of higher abv wines 14-15.5 % probably going to hit on the lower end of that spectrum this year

 

[distancerunner]

A lot of us pro winemakers are upset and concerned about it as well 2023 is the latest harvest in probably decades. The only good news is that yields are not awful like last year we are seeing a lot more grapes. I have a feeling that the overall fruit quality is going to be extremely good and that 2023 is going to be a very high quality vintage and is going to go down as one of the best vintages. Cool weather and good rainfall tends to lead to superior grapes.

This is interesting. The reports seem to confirm what you're saying. Yet our vendor tells us the grapes will be on the dock during the last week of September.

Most of the grapes in our order is grown in the Suisun Valley.

Can you and NorCal weigh in?

 

[NorCal]

This is interesting. The reports seem to confirm what you're saying. Yet our vendor tells us the grapes will be on the dock during the last week of September.

Most of the grapes in our order is grown in the Suisun Valley.

Thoughts?

Suisun Valley is a cooler climate than my Sierra Foothills, so would make sense that they are trailing by a few weeks.