Norton and MLF
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Norton probably should always go through MLF, it is such an acidic red grape variety, I don't think it will do any harm to put it through MLF. That pretty much holds true for all dry red grape wines, but particularly for Norton.
I'm doing a Norton from grapes this year for the first time. Not knowing any better I would never have considered not going through MLF. But on the other hand how did the others turn out?
Boatboy24
No longer a newbie, but still clueless.
I can't imagine it without MLF.
I believe Norton is the same grape as what they call Cynthiana around here. We made wine from Cynthiana grapes in 2014, more or less following the procedure outlined by Gary Main in http://www.uark.edu/depts/ifse/grapeprog/articles/ahis05wg.pdf
We used RBS133 yeast which is supposed to reduce the sensation of acidity and astringency and also did MLF with VP41 malolactic bacteria. Our original must was around 26 Brix with a ph of 3.8. We cold soaked the must for 48 hours before pitching the yeast starter. Per the recommendations above, we added tartaric acid to get the ph below 3.6 before fermentation. Given how tart the grapes are, it seemed completely wrong to be adding tartaric acid -- a lot of tartaric acid -- but the ph was high, apparently because there is a lot of potassium in Cynthiana juice. Anyway, the wine did drop a ton of crystals during bulk aging, so a lot of the tartaric came back out that way. Even with that and the MLF, the finished wine is still quite tart. We don't usually backsweeten, and didn't backsweeten that Cynthiana, but must admit it is not very well balanced as is.
I've had Cynthiana from a commercial winery in Tennessee and they used a lot of oak, which we didn't think helped mask or offset the tartness at all. Our oak dose was much lighter and you can't really taste or smell it now. I think our Cynthiana is at least as good as the winery version we tried, but there is no question it is a difficult grape to handle. If we do this grape again, I would do smaller batches maybe experimenting with different yeasts, malo strains, etc. and try to figure out how to make a pleasant, dry wine out of it.
Good luck,
Cher
We used RBS133 yeast which is supposed to reduce the sensation of acidity and astringency and also did MLF with VP41 malolactic bacteria. Our original must was around 26 Brix with a ph of 3.8. We cold soaked the must for 48 hours before pitching the yeast starter. Per the recommendations above, we added tartaric acid to get the ph below 3.6 before fermentation. Given how tart the grapes are, it seemed completely wrong to be adding tartaric acid -- a lot of tartaric acid -- but the ph was high, apparently because there is a lot of potassium in Cynthiana juice. Anyway, the wine did drop a ton of crystals during bulk aging, so a lot of the tartaric came back out that way. Even with that and the MLF, the finished wine is still quite tart. We don't usually backsweeten, and didn't backsweeten that Cynthiana, but must admit it is not very well balanced as is.
I've had Cynthiana from a commercial winery in Tennessee and they used a lot of oak, which we didn't think helped mask or offset the tartness at all. Our oak dose was much lighter and you can't really taste or smell it now. I think our Cynthiana is at least as good as the winery version we tried, but there is no question it is a difficult grape to handle. If we do this grape again, I would do smaller batches maybe experimenting with different yeasts, malo strains, etc. and try to figure out how to make a pleasant, dry wine out of it.
Good luck,
Cher
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pete1325
Senior Member
When are you adding MLF?
Yes, Norton and Cynthiana are the same. I've experimented a bit for a few years and I also adjust the PH during fermentation. I've heard commercial wineries also adjust the acidity after fermentation also. I'm in Missouri and I've heard the taste varies a lot the further south it is grown. I've heard that one of the more prominent commercial winery also do MLF and leave,it on the skins for longer than most reds. It is very popular here, not much available for export!
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