DangerDave's Dragon Blood Wine

[Keith5]

Thanks for the replies. I think both are very valid. I understand the thoughts. Thanks

 

[Okie Parrish]

Do you not add potassium metabisulfite in Step 1? How are the wild yeasts in the fruit killed off so they do not overtake primary fermentation? I see why adding kmeta in Step 4. Am I missing something? Thanks

talk about deja vu.....when I found this recipe last month it was the only recipe I had ever seen that didnt use Camden tabs a day b4 yeast.
I'm still vary new at this so I could be completely wrong but don't Kmeta and sodium meta do the same thing at least at this point? If so then you probably already added sodium metabisulfate since most bottled lemon juices use it as a preservative.

 

[Johnd]

talk about deja vu.....when I found this recipe last month it was the only recipe I had ever seen that didnt use Camden tabs a day b4 yeast.
I'm still vary new at this so I could be completely wrong but don't Kmeta and sodium meta do the same thing at least at this point? If so then you probably already added sodium metabisulfate since most bottled lemon juices use it as a preservative.

They do the same thing, just taste differently, you don’t want Na Meta in your wine.

 

[Johnd]

Thanks for the replies. I think both are very valid. I understand the thoughts. Thanks

Are you making the Dragons Blood wine?

 

[Keith5]

Not yet. As we discussed I’m going to start the Wild Grapes California Cab this week and I ordered the WE Eclipse Lodi Cab2. Kit you recommended. That’ll satisfy me for a bit lol

 

[Johnd]

Not yet. As we discussed I’m going to start the Wild Grapes California Cab this week and I ordered the WE Eclipse Lodi Cab2. Kit you recommended. That’ll satisfy me for a bit lol

Sounds like a promising start! Good luck with them, you'll really like the Lodi Cab kit. If you have any questions as you go along, there are always lots of capable folks available here to offer sound advice.

 

[almargita]

For some reason Aldis have currently has on sale at half price 3 lb frozen bags of Triple Berry Blend for $4.50 per bag! Started a 6 gal batch last week & currently progressing nicely. Went back yesterday & still had some left so bought 4 more bags....... Using 9 lb in the 6 gal batch that in the primary now. Can't wait till its ready.........
Al

 

[Okie Parrish]

Iv been on several sites searching an answer but only get more confused I may have already asked here if so I'm sorry for being a bother iv got some DB clearing right now I added bentonite and pectic enzyme at primary and after I deggaessed I used sparkloid it settled about an inch over night then just stopped I waited 2 weeks racked it and hit it with sparkloid again its been another 2 weeks and its just not clearing its still vary cloudy and dark can barely see light thru it and vary little settled at the bottoms...the room temp has been kept between 69-72......should I try pectic enzyme again another shot of bentonite or is there something else......I just wana try and be able to bottle in a month so its has time to rest in the bottle b4 I give it as Christmas presents

 

[jumby]

I gave up on sparkloid long ago. Hit it with a dose of Dualfine. It should clear in a matter of days.

 

[Hotel Guy]

Just bottled my first batch yesterday and chilled a couple glasses last night before dinner. It’s very good! Sweet and tart at the same time, with a nice berry flavor. It was about 30 days from start to finish, and probably $25 in material (I scraped old bottles).

Excited to see how it changes as it ages a few months. I’ve heard it smoothies out and more berry comes out. Sound about right? Definitely going to make a late winter batch to be ready for spring as these 30 bottles will not make it until then. Thanks for the recipe/help!

 

[dangerdave]

One of the first lessons I learned in wine making is that nearly every case of cloudy wine is due to pectin haze. Rack it again, make sure it is properly degassed, and dose it again with pectic enzyme. Let it sit for a week. It should be much clearer.

I have also given up on sparkoloid long ago. I’m a kieselsol and chitosan guy now. The original DB recipe was designed to be as inexpensive as possible, and sparkoloid is pennies per dose.

 

[G259]

Freezing doesn't kill most yeasts, it might stun them for a bit, but doesn't kill.

Perhaps the wine yeast takes over, and doesn't allow the stunned yeast to develop further? . . . or is this Russian Roulette?

 

[rca]

I started my winemaking journey yesterday with a batch of DB. Here’s a picture from today after pitching yeast (and stirring). I did add some oak chips and I used about 8lbs of triple berry.

Thanks for the recipe and great thread Dave.

 

[Countrygent]

While committed to some frozen pinot noir buckets, and knowing how impatient I can be, I thought it would be easy to fire up a test run of DB at the same time. A little extra fruit in an extra bag of raspberries, a little less lemon juice but added a small amount of acid blend. The other variation I made was to put the fruit and enzyme in just enough water to cover as the very first step to let the fruit warm up and soften for a few hours ... in a six gallon fermenting bucket it was easy to then lift the bag up to the edge, pour in the lemon, sugar, other ingredients and stir it up below the bag, then top with water to the right mark and drop the bag back in - one less container to clean. Also added a little oak - some cubes taken out of a prior red wine ferment I had plopped in a jar to marinate in a little bourbon for a few days went into the bag for easy later disposal. My bourbon barrel variation. I'm curious never having made fruit wine is how good it can be finished pretty dry without having to back sweeten too much. The price is most definitely a big plus for experimenting. What a bargain and not a lot of trouble if you love it?

 

[dangerdave]

I know some who like DB dry. Not my thing. I like my red wines dry and my fruit wines sweet/semi-sweet.
I use oak powder in my DB nowadays. I just love oak in all my wines.
Your Bourbon Barrel variation sounds interesting. Please let us know how it turns out.

 

[Countrygent]

Will do, Dave.

My views won’t have any baseline comparison though. First DB rodeo!

 

[abrewkat]

A quick question about the taste of DB-- I haven't made classic DB myself yet- I did a tropical blend from freezer fallout, and it was great! Used pineapple juice and some banana instead of the lemon juice, then a bunch (4-6 lbs of each) of mango and strawberry- I'd add some lemon juice next time as this was a little soft for my liking. Some friends made classic DB (though less lemon juice as they don't like tartness) and it was very light on fruit flavour, and tasted almost perfume-y or floral... like it was run through dryer sheets or something. Is this normal? I'd like to make a batch of triple berry, but not if it generally turns out like that. Thoughts?

 

[Countrygent]

A quick question about the taste of DB-- I haven't made classic DB myself yet- I did a tropical blend from freezer fallout, and it was great! Used pineapple juice and some banana instead of the lemon juice, then a bunch (4-6 lbs of each) of mango and strawberry- I'd add some lemon juice next time as this was a little soft for my liking. Some friends made classic DB (though less lemon juice as they don't like tartness) and it was very light on fruit flavour, and tasted almost perfume-y or floral... like it was run through dryer sheets or something. Is this normal? I'd like to make a batch of triple berry, but not if it generally turns out like that. Thoughts?

You have the option of adding an acid blend or straight tartaric acid to get acid balance without so much lemon. I don’t have enough experience to suggest how much, but if you search the internet looking at fruit wine recipes you might get some idea. I don’t trust the generic instructions on bottles of additives - as well the usual advice is go in fractions and taste to try and find your preferred balance. Testing for ph and TA might also be helpful?

 

[Bleedaggie]

A quick question about the taste of DB-- I haven't made classic DB myself yet- I did a tropical blend from freezer fallout, and it was great! Used pineapple juice and some banana instead of the lemon juice, then a bunch (4-6 lbs of each) of mango and strawberry- I'd add some lemon juice next time as this was a little soft for my liking. Some friends made classic DB (though less lemon juice as they don't like tartness) and it was very light on fruit flavour, and tasted almost perfume-y or floral... like it was run through dryer sheets or something. Is this normal? I'd like to make a batch of triple berry, but not if it generally turns out like that. Thoughts?

Not normal. We are still drinking my first batch which I did exactly like Dave’s recipe called for. It’s excellent, and has only improved over the 3 months since I bottled it. No floral dryer sheet anything. I wonder if your friends used some kind of soap to wash their equipment at some point?

 

[dangerdave]

A quick question about the taste of DB-- I haven't made classic DB myself yet- I did a tropical blend from freezer fallout, and it was great! Used pineapple juice and some banana instead of the lemon juice, then a bunch (4-6 lbs of each) of mango and strawberry- I'd add some lemon juice next time as this was a little soft for my liking. Some friends made classic DB (though less lemon juice as they don't like tartness) and it was very light on fruit flavour, and tasted almost perfume-y or floral... like it was run through dryer sheets or something. Is this normal? I'd like to make a batch of triple berry, but not if it generally turns out like that. Thoughts?

Those floral tastes/smells usually come from too much sorbate. I’ve done that before. My thoughts have always been that the acid from the lemon juice plays a significant part in extracting flavor from the fruit, particularly the skins. Experimentation early on with the DB recipe showed two other factors in flavor depth. Fermentation temp: primary temps at the upper end of yeast tolerance also contribute to flavor extraction. Quality of the fruit: I have tried many sources. The best results for me have come from using Wyman’s Triple Berry blend, available at Walmart. Accept no substitute.