A little success

[Bodenski]

I made my first wine about 10 months ago, and made a bunch initially (probably 2-3 a month) as I was so excited to be into this hobby. I’ve since slowed way down on the frequency of starting new batches. But having a lot made early on means I have several that have now aged for 6+ months and I figured would be worth trying.

This last weekend I had several family members over, and I was able to crack open the following:
1. Blackberry Port
2. Cran-apple Wine
3. Bumble Bee Berry Blast (Melomel with blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and strawberries)
4. Several bottles of apple cider.
5. My 2017 Chilean Pinot Grigio (It’s young, but not too young.)

The overall consensus was that they all tasted pretty good, with at least one very enthusiastic review of the BBBB. The port wasn’t as thick as I had hopped but tasted OK. The cran-apple wine was crisp and good. The PG has a bit of an earthy taste to me (not sure if others would use that term for it, but I’m not sure what else to call it!) but was still liked.

It’s nice to finally break some of these bottles out and share with family, and have them go for a 2nd/3rd glass. It was also rewarding to see my brother-in-law, whose beer-making posts on Facebook got me started down this path, consider making a batch of wine going forward. Overall, my first real tasting is a success!

 

[Scooter68]

The first 12 - 18 months is the hardest. Like you I popped several of my first wines "Early" at 4-5 months. Fortunately they were almost all good. The only one I didn't care for I had already decided early on - was not going to be repeated.

Those same batches at 12 months and beyond have been fantastic. Blueberry and Blackberry especially.

Hang in there - once you get about 18 months in it's all good especially if you have enough batches in process to keep a little anticipation working.

 

[freqflyer]

I'm interested in the bumble bee berry blast. Can you post the recipe please?

 

[Bodenski]

I'm interested in the bumble bee berry blast. Can you post the recipe please?

This was for a three gallon batch.

Bumble Bee Berry Blast
12 lbs honey Trader Joe's wildflower and clover honey
water to 3 gallons
9 lbs frozen triple berry mix (raspberry, blackberry, blueberry)
1 lb frozen strawberries
Yeast: 71B-1122

I did staggered additions for the yeast nutrients, but not quite a traditional TONSA. Initial SG was 1.130. The 71B took it down to 1.012 (15.5%, higher than I expected.) I left the fruit in for only a week, and I might also leave it in longer next time. I had the fruit in a bag and squeezed the crap out of it. When it first settled it left a heck of a fruit slushy on the bottom!

I like this a lot, and expect it to improve for a while yet. It's only 6 months at this point, and for a 15.5% ABV it still needs to mellow. But already one of my more enjoyable recipes - one i'll make again!

 

[pip]

Good for you Bodenski. I've enjoyed your posts, learned some stuff from them. Keep it going. You know all that delicious drink you've now made will soon enough be gone. Back to the boiler for you, mate.