First "real" attempt at grape winemaking

[seth8530]

Sounds like a plan.

 

[acorn]

Having read a few articles on battonage and sur lie ageing, of which this one was pretty exhaustive I decided to give it a try, as I shouldn't be losing anything from it. Since it is my first time doing this, I will play "safe" and go with weekly stirring for the next 6 months. As the wine is going through MLF right now, I won't be degassing it now for extra protection, while I cannot add SO2.

 

[acorn]

Another update (Day 21 since crushing)

• S.G. (final??) = 0.995
• Residual sugar = 2.5 g/L
• pH (approximate) = 3.9
• TA = 5.75 g/L
• Temp. 72*F
• Chromatogram (below) -> MLF started (lactic acid is present but not in the same quantities as malic)
• A rim of CO2 bubbles can be observed stuck to the walls of the carboy on the surface of the wine

I stirred the fine lees and added medium toast oak chips in a nylon mesh bag that I made specifically to suggly hold the chips together as a stick for easier removal.

Potential issue that needs attention: I transferred the wine from the 6 gallon carboy to 5 gallon one, but there is still headspace left. At this point I see two options, I buy 2-3 bottles of Merlot from the store and top it up, OR I use my 3 gallon carboy that currently holds clarified raspberry wine (ready for bottling in a month) and fill it up. The problem is that commercial wine will probably contain a high ppm of SO2 which may inhibit the MLB if added at this point. I feel that the second option will be better once the 3 gallon carboy is emptied, so I won't degas or try to open this wine often until that happens. In fact, I injected some inert gas so as to minimize the oxygen content.

Any thoughts so far?

 

[seth8530]

I would add the wine from a bottle. Even if the SO2 is high on the bottle of wine you add it will be diluted down so I would not worry about it.

 

[WineQuest]

If it is still going through ml there should be enough co2 in solution to protect the wine from oxidation. I would purge the headspace as an added precaution and let it finish. Ml bugs can be very sensitive to so2 so I would wait on topping with the store bought wine.

 

[seth8530]

If it is still going through ml there should be enough co2 in solution to protect the wine from oxidation. I would purge the headspace as an added precaution and let it finish. Ml bugs can be very sensitive to so2 so I would wait on topping with the store bought wine.

I think it would be wiser to do the math and not risk oxidation. It is a simple matter to know the SO2 tolerance of your yeast and to come up with some base line predictions that you could expect the wine you will add to contribute to your overall SO2 profile.

Ie, if you have wine with 50 mg/l SO2 from comercial in it and you multiply The total volume of wine from 3 bottels to get 2.25 liters. Multiply that by 50 mg/l you get 112.5 mg of SO2. Divide that by the volume of 5 gallons (18.892 liters) you get an SO2 contribution of around 6 ppm ( mg/l). Or you could double it, if you were to make the bold assumption that wineries suck at so2 control and have 100 ppm so2 in their wine to get an increase of 12mg/l (ppm) in your wine.

So, yes I would top off with commercial wine.

 

[acorn]

I think it would be wiser to do the math and not risk oxidation. It is a simple matter to know the SO2 tolerance of your yeast and to come up with some base line predictions that you could expect the wine you will add to contribute to your overall SO2 profile.

Ie, if you have wine with 50 mg/l SO2 from comercial in it and you multiply The total volume of wine from 3 bottels to get 2.25 liters. Multiply that by 50 mg/l you get 112.5 mg of SO2. Divide that by the volume of 5 gallons (18.892 liters) you get an SO2 contribution of around 6 ppm ( mg/l). Or you could double it, if you were to make the bold assumption that wineries suck at so2 control and have 100 ppm so2 in their wine to get an increase of 12mg/l (ppm) in your wine.

So, yes I would top off with commercial wine.

Thanks for the tip. I was thinking about it, and it seems to be the best option at the time. My MLB has a tolerance <10 ppm free SO2, but I am unsure how much free SO2 is in commercial wine. I read it could be as high as 200 ppm. Since I have no way to know the SO2 content in red wine at the moment (due to lack of a more sophisticated equipment), I want to be prepared for the worst case scenario.

 

[seth8530]

I would be highly surprised if it was that high in SO2. Which MLB strain do you intend on using? Here is a question for you, why would a commercial winery with all its facny schamncy equipment and money waste money dumping extremely excessive amounts of SO2 into wine? These people who run these wineries know exactly what they are doing and I would venture to guess that they are certainly not winging it on the SO2. If the SO2 is at a certain level, I can almost guarantee you it is their for a good reason.

 

[acorn]

I already pitched MLB about two weeks ago. I used White Labs Malolcatic Culture (liquid)

I'll do the calculations and add maybe 2-3 bottles to top the carboy off.

 

[WineQuest]

It may not just be the amount of so2 but the shock of some suddenly showing up.

 

[acorn]

It may not just be the amount of so2 but the shock of some suddenly showing up.

Well, I'll try to be as careful and as dilligent as I can, but I don't see another way out at the moment. If I add the new wine 1 bottle at a time with 1-2 day breaks in between, it may just work.

 

[seth8530]

It looks like for the MLB strain you are using you should be able to tolerate the wine addition. If you are worried about it, you could aerate the wine you plan on topping off with to bind up some sulfites. All the same, that MLB strain seems picky.

 

[acorn]

UPDATE 12/28/2014:

It has been 54 days since the first chromatography test (it's now day 75 from crushing), and it seems like MLF has finished (see picture). I had a box of store Merlot on hand, so I decided to put it onto the paper alongside my homemade Merlot, both of which you can see on the right hand side. The results are very similar, not only to the test, but also to the palate. I am very pleased all goes well so far. Anyway, this week I switched to fortnightly lees stiring schedule after weekly stirring for the past 5 weeks. The next time I stir, I think I will add the wine's first dose of SO2, as the MLF is complete, lest the whole batch spoils on me. As always, I would welcome any thoughts or comments you have to offer, if any.

 

[acorn]

It has been well over 3 months since this batch finished fermenting and is currently ageing in a carboy. When I was adding a scheduled dose of SO2 last week I took a small sample for tasting and analysis. To me the wine tasted somewhat on a bland side. But it's of no surprise to me, since it doesn't have nearly enough acidity (pH at around 4.0 and TA of 4.3 g/L), even after my initial attempt to increase the acid content. However, I am thinking it would still deliver, if it had some more tannin in it. Hence the question, is it too late to add more tannin powder at this point?

 

[acorn]

I would like to bottle this 4.5 gallon batch by the end of June (which will make it 9 months bulk aged). Turns out, it will become more of a rose-style Merlot than a classic red. However, it is sort of clear at this point, but not clear enough for me to call it "ready". As I will be waiting another month or two, I hope it clears up, else I have a pack of Super Kleer that I have been curious to see in action.

Would you recommend using it for final clarification, or is there anything more gentle I could use?

The haze is not pectin-related, nor does it seem to be a protein haze. It looks more like the wine that needs more time, which I, unfortunately, do not have due to approaching summer heat and lack of cooling equipment at my disposal.

 

[heatherd]

If you want more red color, you could add elderberries.

Have you ruled out gas? May be worth racking and then giving a good stir.

Superkleer works within hours, so that will help you meet the deadline. It compacts the lees. The KC version is shellfish based, so is deadly to anyone with that type of allergy.

Heather

 

[acorn]

If you want more red color, you could add elderberries.

Have you ruled out gas? May be worth racking and then giving a good stir.

Superkleer works within hours, so that will help you meet the deadline. It compacts the lees. The KC version is shellfish based, so is deadly to anyone with that type of allergy.

Heather

Thanks for the info. No, I haven't completley ruled out gas, though I doubt there is any significant amopunt left after multiple rackings and time that's gone by, but I will try whipping it up to see if any comes out at all.

Color preservation is not a big concern here, as I know it won't resemble red Merlot one typically expects to buy from a store no matter how hard I try, but rather a darker shade of rose type wine. So, even if it becomes a tad lighter, that's fine with me too.

I'll use Super Kleer as the last resort one week before expected bottling time, if the wine is still not clear. One thing about allergies, I read that the allergy causing shellfish proteins are degraded during the derivation and processing of chitosan component of Super Kleer, and so no longer pose threat to shellfish-sensitive people. Any thoughts on this?

 

[heatherd]

Here's the WebMD information on Chitosan:
"Shellfish allergy: Chitosan is taken from the outer skeleton of shellfish. There is a concern that people with allergies to shellfish might also be allergic to chitosan. However, people who are allergic to shellfish are allergic to the meat, not the shell. So some experts believe that chitosan may not be a problem for people with shellfish allergy."

Better safe than sorry, and I'd rather tell folks and let them decide.

I use Superkleer KC on stubborn batches, so I just include than on my bottle labels as a warning when I am giving them to folks outside my household.

Heather

 

[acorn]

So, I think this batch is complete. Just bottled it.

I ended up using Super Kleer in the end, as the wine was just too turbid, and I certainly could not wait another few months with this heat that's coming up.

Anyway, although the color is not as deep as I had originally expected, the flavor is surprisingly good and certainly comparable to that of Merlot that I'd expect to buy in a store, though still with a bit of bite from the tannins. I think a few months in the bottle will make it very approachable. In the end, I have to say that this 7 months journey (my first serious-grape one) from grape to bottle has been very gratifying and enriching. Big word of thanks goes to all who helped me along the way!

Cheers!

 

[heatherd]

Congrats! Now on to the next one!