Adding Chocolate to finished wine

[Julie]

I added two squares to one bottle of finished cherry wine topped with bung and airlock. It seems to be bubbling now. Is it fermenting again or co2? What to do?

Did you take a hydrometer reading? And was this a wine that had sorbate added to it?

 

[spunk]

I bottled this wine in may I just decided choc sounded good so I decided to open and add. Unfortunately this wine was made as one of my first I was still learning to understand the hydrometer and poor notes. It is a dry wine so it should have been done. I have never used the added sorbate to any wines I have made been keeping them on the dry side. I bet I do now. I want to do another bottle with the choc but I don't want to ruin it as it turned out and I like it as it is. A hint of choc sounds very good. I'm doing much better on my notes.

 

[Julie]

Chocolate has sugar in it, since you did not add sorbate your wine has started to ferment again.

 

[spunk]

Ok so should I leave it alone let it go then rack off. I think i'll wait till I do the other one. So it will increase alcohol and flavor. Maybe it will be good.

 

[spunk]

I now have two bottles of cherry wine that I broke some choc up in been about 6 weeks. I re-corked them as too I didn't have any thing else to use. The choc grew so I believe the choc absorbed some of the wine. So Im not so sure I want to take out of the bottles as to I think it will make the bottle wine level too low for storage. Giving one to my brother. Will it be harsh? Will I need to let it age a while too settle. Also I hope the choc is yummy too. Any advice. I guess I need to decide too take the choc out or not. What will happen if I dont. I don't want the choc to be overpowering.

 

[spunk]

Waiting for everyone to get up for christmas kinda nice and quiet. I racked and filtered with coffee filter the two bottles of wine the choc soaked a bit of the wine. So before I did this I soaked some of my dried cherries in vodka for a week or so so I could use this to top off I re corked. Keeping one giving one away. Not sure how long to keep it t I ll I drink was good a little choc taste. I try ed the choc on bottom of bottle did not like it. Merry Christmas everyone

 

[EelfinnTy]

I just pulled my cherry off the chocolate yesterday. It sat for over 5 weeks on a 6oz, 100% dark chocolate bar. I also added some brandy to make a chocolate cherry "port". Between the sorbate, brandy to make it 20% abv, and 100% cocoa it didn't restart.

The leftover chocolate solids don't have much/any flavor left. After sampling it yesterday the hard part will be letting it age!

 

[petey_c]

I still have a long way to go before I start breaking out of the kits. My main obstacle is time. With brewing, a few months and you can kinda feel what the results will be. With wine, it seems that time span is looonger. I don't want to start adding things before I have an idea of how they'll turn out.
I'm a red drinker by the way.

 

[spunk]

Opened my choc cherry wine it is very nice and clear I am pleased sorry I only have one bottle.

 

[bsassy2]

EelfinnTy, how many gallons of wine did you put the 6 oz of chocolate in?

 

[spunk]

I added only an ounce to a bottle of good dark choc. Just for a hint of choc flavor into finished cherry wine for mine.or two squares from a bar.

 

[EelfinnTy]

I put my 6 oz to 1gal. Last time I tasted it the chocolate had overwhelmed the cherry flavor. I'm hoping the cherry will come back as it ages.

 

[EelfinnTy]

I tasted it the other day while back sweetening a couple other batches. It smells like chocolate and honey. The only cherry I taste is a little bit at the very end. Next time I may start with a smaller amount of chocolate and add more later if it needs it.

 

[vinnieINtheVinyard]

Choco curious

I'm very new to the world of home wine making. I just did the final cleaning of the carboys. Now I want to add a back note of chocolate during the last couple months of the wine sitting in the carboys. After reading through this thread I'm wondering if can only use a special chocolate in a bar or coin form. I see the mention of using only chocolate that is at least 71% cocoa and low in butter fat, but how would one see such information as that simply is not posted on chocolate packages in the baking section or anywhere else that I've seen. So I assume I can't just add a piece of Hershey's dark chocolate to my carboys right?

 

[dralarms]

I'm also needing to find out if I can just add cocoa to a wine, and if so how much would you recommend for a 5 gallon batch?

 

[EelfinnTy]

Cocoa powder might be difficult to clear. I used a baking chocolate that was 100% cocoa unsweetened. Just adding a bar of Hersey dark chocolate would probably do it but it would also add some fat, and other things. I spent a little more $ on a quality chocolate.

Having only attempted it once I am not sure about amounts. On my next attempt I'm going to start with 2-3 Oz per gallon. My previous attempt also needed to be sweeter.

 

[robert81650]

The correct spelling is, scuppernong and not scupperdine. I know all of us here in the South call it scupperdine but the is not correct. But you are right, scuppernong wine is one of the greatest wines of all. Don't take offense to the correction of spelling but just enjoy the wine.

 

[spunk]

I have a gal cherry mead bulk,aging I may take half of it and add choc I bought my bars at a pharmacy in candy isle. There are a lot of different types of expensive dark choc.