Other Anyone Adding Fruit to their Wine Kits?

[MrWine]

Hi there, I am very new to making wine. I am wanting to add a fruity flavour to my wine to enjoy during the summer months. I have been trying to do research to get some info on the matter. I have a Reflexion Pinot Grigio wine kit. I am wondering if I can simply clean the fruit and add it to the secondary?

Any info or help you can provide would be greatly appreciated

 

[LoneStarLori]

It is possible but can be tricky depending on the fruit. There are a couple of different threads on here that talk about adding raisins, fruit and tannins to kits.

This one is pretty interesting and lot of different ideas.

http://www.winemakingtalk.com/forum/f6/when-good-wines-g-ne-bad-29481/index41.html

 

[WVMountaineerJack]

Not so sure its tricky vs just doing it with a little common sense to not throw the kit out of balance. Strawberries are one of the best to add, just drop them in whole or sliced at the end of the primary to give a lot more bouquet when you open the bottle. A few elderberries, dried or fresh and boost the color and add a little flavor. You have to be careful when you add really acidic fruits like raspberries, you dont want to throw the acid balance out of whack. WVMJ

Hi there, I am very new to making wine. I am wanting to add a fruity flavour to my wine to enjoy during the summer months. I have been trying to do research to get some info on the matter. I have a Reflexion Pinot Grigio wine kit. I am wondering if I can simply clean the fruit and add it to the secondary?

Any info or help you can provide would be greatly appreciated

 

[bkisel]

Welcome to the forum!

The last kit I did, an RJS VdV Italy Valpola, I reused, in primary, a grape skin pack from a previous high end kit and added 1 pound of raisins for 7 days in "secondary". Tried a sample just before going into bulk aging and liked what I tasted.

 

[wildvines]

My eclipse Pinot noir I added a pound of blackberries and 10g of tannins into my secondary. Ph was good and Came out awesome.


Sent from my iPhone using Wine Making

 

[kevinlfifer]

I have added 3 lb frozen blackberries to a cheap (paklab) Barolo, quite nice.
Mixed frozen berries to kits on a whim,
8oz Dried cherries to red zin,
Zante currants (tiny raisins) to nearly all low end kits,
3-4 bananas for body on occasion.

Experiment and take notes. Thats half the fun.

 

[MrWine]

So when you guy have been adding this fruit you don't have to sanitize it or do any "cleaning" of the fruit? I am guessing the alcohol level is high enough to keep the nasties away? I am informed more on this issue with beer then with wine.

 

[dangerdave]

If it's fresh fruit, you definately want to dose it with k-meta to kill the nasties. Commercially purchased frozen fruit (or raisins or bananas) is ok without. Do you understand how to do this?

 

[MrWine]

If it's fresh fruit, you definately want to dose it with k-meta to kill the nasties. Commercially purchased frozen fruit (or raisins or bananas) is ok without. Do you understand how to do this?

No i am not familiar with k-meta

 

[dangerdave]

Normally, I try to answer questions presented to me directly. However, the explanation for the applications and uses of potassium metabisulfite (k-meta) are lengthy. I would humbly suggest you do a search, either on WMT forum, or Google to read about it's proper usage.

Good luck, Mr.Wine!

 

[brianajacobs]

Would you advise using canned cherries/ strawberries in a Chardonnay kit ?

 

[Johnd]

Would you advise using canned cherries/ strawberries in a Chardonnay kit ?

Cherry / strawberry are not typically flavors associated with Chardonnay, so it wouldn’t be a “traditional” style.

That said, there are no rules, try it and see how you like the outcome.

 

[Rice_Guy]

Would you advise using canned cherries/ strawberries in a Chardonnay kit ?

Frozen fruit works better than canned. The canning process does a lot of flavor change.
Cherry has a high percentage of acid so sweetening may be required when finished. It seems too dominate flavor more than strawberries.

 

[Rocky]

I have added blackberries to Cabernet Sauvignon and to other red wines. I have also added green apples to Riesling. Prior to adding, I cored the apples, chopped them coarsely and cooked them down in some sugar and water. I have always been pleased with the results.

 

[kevinlfifer]

I have added both frozen and dried fruit to kits. A most recent success was a $40 Amazon kit, Valpolicella, I added 3 - 4oz bags of Aldi's dried mixed fruit. My wife loved it. All gone.

Rocky, I have to try the green apple tweak.

 

[joeswine]

have you rad making an FPAC????

 

[Rocky]

I have added both frozen and dried fruit to kits. A most recent success was a $40 Amazon kit, Valpolicella, I added 3 - 4oz bags of Aldi's dried mixed fruit. My wife loved it. All gone.

Rocky, I have to try the green apple tweak.

Kevin, years ago when I was stationed in Germany, I had the opportunity to sample a lot of Riesling. I always got a hint of green apples (like a Granny Smith) in the wine. I have been able to approximate that taste with the green apple fruit pack. I think you will like it.

 

[Chuck E]

I don't make kits, but I do on occasion buy concentrated juice, along with juice buckets. I always add fruit to my ferments. Sometimes fresh/frozen and sometimes dried. I find that it adds "body" to my wine. Putting pears in my Viognier was the best tweak so far.

 

[opus345]

I don't make kits, but I do on occasion buy concentrated juice, along with juice buckets. I always add fruit to my ferments. Sometimes fresh/frozen and sometimes dried. I find that it adds "body" to my wine. Putting pears in my Viognier was the best tweak so far.

Tell me more about how you added the pears. I'm getting ready to start a Cellar Craft Viognier and was thinking about Golden Raisins.

 

[joeswine]

Viognier, is a profile unto itself , just a cup full of golden raisins ,if anything keep the ABV, to 12% this will allow the fruit and off dry taste to come through.
It's a really good tasting wine when done correctly.
Have you read how to make an fpac?