NEVER AGAIN ! This is "Black Raspberry" Flavored Concentrate? I don't think so!!!

[Scooter68]

This is my experience with HWSC product labeled "Black Raspberry" Purchased Mid-September this year 2020

Ok I've reserved judgement until I prepared the Batch for fermenting.
- First I tried a 1/2 gallon of the "Black Raspberry" concentrate labeled as enough for 5 gallons of wine.
- To that I added 2 1/4 gallons of tap water, intending to make a 3 gallon batch.
When I tasted it - the flavor was horribly weak - like a can of the cheapest grape soda gone flat, but without the sweetness and less flavor.
- I then added the second 1/2 gallon of the concentrated and then brought the water level up to 3 1/2 gallons. The flavor at that point was adequate but certainly did not taste like any Black Raspberry I've ever had.
- Then added 4 lbs of cane sugar and stirred. The flavor was improved but still nothing like any Black Raspberry I've ever had. (I have had Wild black Raspberries and grown some Red Raspberries and the flavor quality, if I stretch my imagination was like the domesticated Red Raspberry mixed with grape juice.
- SG at that point was 1.124+ So I added water until the SG was down to 1.108 - the resulting volume is now 4 1/4 gallons from the amount of concentrat advertised as enough for 10 gallons of wine.
-The pH at that point was 4.23 and it took 10 teaspoons of acid blend to get the pH down to 3.39.
- Also added 30 drops of liquid pectic enzyme.
- At the start I also added a little less than 1.4 tsp of K-Meta planning on knocking out any bad yeast or bacteria.

I'm now on hold until tomorrow afternoon when I will recheck the pH and SG and hopefully add yeast nutrient and yeast to start a ferment.

>>> Bottom Line <<<

This was without a doubt the most disappointing 'food' product I've ever purchased - I'd take a soy burger over this stuff for quality and taste any day. The flavor is only remotely like Raspberry and by no means is it ANYTHING like any black raspberry I've ever had. Maybe I'm spoiled by having had wild, natural Black Raspberries but this was actually clearly a concentrate based on Grape juice and NOT on any Black Raspberry Juice of any real quantity.

So This was the first and last purchase from this company I'll ever make. I'm not spelling out the name because I don't want somebody accusing me of libel/slander etc. Look at other posts in this forum and I suspect you will figure out which company I'm talking about.

 

[dralarms]

What is hwsc?

 

[franc1969]

I have been wondering about home winery products. Seems like they need an awful lot of sugar for what should be a simple concentrate, and their descriptions are sorely lacking. I guess you can't be faulted for a product not meeting expectations if you don't say what it actually is.

 

[reeflections]

Opinion can't be libel/slander, it's just free speech. Otherwise there would be a lot of law suits filed against Amazon customers.

Home Winery hasn't made me very happy yet either. Done with them. Although I have to say their apricot juice sure smells good while fermenting. We'll see how the final product tastes.

 

[Scooter68]

What is hwsc?

Home Winery Supply Company

 

[1d10t]

If their product ships as shown I'd have to think they run afoul of labeling laws. Do they even have a sticker with an ingredient list on the jug?

 

[Scooter68]

Well the label is sufficiently vague that it would be hard to tell what you are really buying. They got me once but never, never again.

If you told me it was just a different variety of grape juice I would believe you, but as it is the flavor of Black Raspberry is very faint to me. So this will be a wine I give away and may not even put any label on it. Lost enough the deal as it is. For the same $86 plus dollars I could have bought a Vintners Harvest juice and made a solid 5-6 gallon batch with much more accurate flavor and content. They don't have Black Raspberry but then again I really don't know what I got this time other than Grape Juice.

 

[Scooter68]

Well the batch of this stuff is winding down on fermentation. Since it's been cooler in my fermentation room (low 60's) things have gone slower than most of my wine batches. It's gone from 1.114 at start on the 11 of October now down to 1.024. Taste.... Yeah still get more grape taste than black raspberry so this is clearly not the quality folks all seemed to remember from this supplier in times past.

Again won't waste my time with fancy labels on this batch. Plainest black and white ones will do and I'll probably bottle it as soon as it really clear and let it age in bottle - something I don't like to do but I just want this mess to be over.
It this batch does ferment dry (.990), be a high ABV at 16.28 % but from the way it's going right now I am expecting to stop before it even gets to 1.000 Layer of bubbles are thinning out already. Today I tried something I have not tried before. I literally poured it from one 5 gallon bucket into another. I figure this will get some extra oxygen into it and help it finish out. The foam layer thickened up for the time being but I'm going to check on it in a few hours. Who knows maybe I'll turn the temp up in the room to get it closer to 70 and see if that gets fermentation over a little quicker.\

If I can get it to ferment all the way dry - at least the ABV may cover up the concord/welches grape taste a little more.... It may not taste like much but after a couple of glasses nobody will remember that.

 

[hounddawg]

If their product ships as shown I'd have to think they run afoul of labeling laws. Do they even have a sticker with an ingredient list on the jug?

that is their new label, for years it was a piece of paper with just the name of the fruit taped on with clear cellophane tape, these new owners have ruined a great thing, even this last January was still the good stuff, not no more, i hate that @Scooter68 , bought this because i always bragged on them, but like @Scooter68 said NEVER AGAIN FOR ME EITHER,
Dawg

 

[Scooter68]

Received word back after I filed a complaint with the state of Michigan over the sparse/missing information on both the web site and container labels of the Home Winery Supply wine concentrates.

Apparently after visiting the seller's place of business and my providing a copy of the labels I received, it appears that the seller was cited for one or more violations of the Michigan code.

Hopefully this will encourage them to be more open and forthright about what they are selling.

 

[hounddawg]

Dawg

 

[Scooter68]

Oh, And I racked this "Black Raspberry" wine today - Starting SG 1.114 - Final SG .993 = 15.88% ABV Yup gonna need some sweetening up. It finally has some black raspberry flavor but it's not even close to my triple berry or first Black Raspberry wine. It will do until I can get the real deal again but that's it. (I'll PM/DM to you what the Michigan Agri guy sent to me)

 

[silverbullet07]

I ran across this site that has a few 100% fruit concentrate. FruitFast Fruit Juice Concentrates: Cherry, Pomegranate, Blueberry From Brownwood Acres
Have you seen this before?

I was interested in their red raspberry But noticed a few other options that might be of interest. They also offer 5 gal pails if you call. Also offer free shipping. Might be worth a try.

 

[hounddawg]

Oh, And I racked this "Black Raspberry" wine today - Starting SG 1.114 - Final SG .993 = 15.88% ABV Yup gonna need some sweetening up. It finally has some black raspberry flavor but it's not even close to my triple berry or first Black Raspberry wine. It will do until I can get the real deal again but that's it. (I'll PM/DM to you what the Michigan Agri guy sent to me)

have you checked out the site @silverbullet07 came up with, each quart will make 2 gallon, so 5 quarts would make 10 gallon, taking 2 gallon for topping of would give 8 finished gallon minimum, , for $66, i'll chance that,
Dawg

 

[silverbullet07]

@hounddawg what juice was you looking at that you came up with $66 I was looking at their Red Raspberry and 3 qts for 6 gal ran $137. Which is high but I just paid $17 for 375 ml of Red raspberry wine.

 

[hounddawg]

the site you recommended above, but only with peach and one other, they said 1 quart makes two gallon, so 5 qtrs.. for 8 gallon, yes that is fruit heavy, but with the old home winery i always shot my water lite, you've worried me so , with that being said, I'm going to recheck,,, lol
Dawg

 

[hounddawg]

the site you recommended above, but only with peach and one other, they said 1 quart makes two gallon, so 5 qtrs.. for 8 gallon, yes that is fruit heavy, but with the old home winery i always shot my water lite, you've worried me so , with that being said, I'm going to recheck,,, lol
Dawg

opp's that was $96 for 5 quarts of tart cherry

 

[hounddawg]

@hounddawg what juice was you looking at that you came up with $66 I was looking at their Red Raspberry and 3 qts for 6 gal ran $137. Which is high but I just paid $17 for 375 ml of Red raspberry wine.

i was looking at tart cherry, but i just looked at red raspberry, my gawd they are high
Dawg

 

[hounddawg]

@hounddawg what juice was you looking at that you came up with $66 I was looking at their Red Raspberry and 3 qts for 6 gal ran $137. Which is high but I just paid $17 for 375 ml of Red raspberry wine.

ok, looks like i was deeper into my skeeter pee port than i thought, shoot they don't even have peach,
Dawg

 

[silverbullet07]

Here is peach At another place. Price not bad. It is 100% juice
https://colomafrozen.com/industrial-products/peach-industrial-product