Welch (my experiment)

[Elmer]

I initially started this batch for 2 reasons
1) to use as a top up wine (minimally)
2) I have never made welches concord before


5 cans concord grape concentrate
Water to 1.5 gallon (1 gallon water)
2 cups sugar
.08 oz heavy American oak
SG brought it to 13% (which is why I bumped it up to 1.5 gallon batch since my initial ABV was 15%)

I also added some other nutrients, but don’t have my notes with me.

I was partially considering splitting the batch into a 1 gallon jug and a 1/2 gallon jug.
leaving 1 batch unoaked and Oaking the heck out of the other.
This would allow me to give a good tasting experience as a oak/non-oak palate lesson.

First impression at the end of fermentation is a bit tart. But it has yet to age.
What can I do to make it drinkable?
More oak?
More ageing?

 

[wineforfun]

Did you add acid or anything else?
What type of yeast did you use?

I make this all the time and it turns out awesome. I use 4 cans concentrate per gallon. RC-212 yeast, acid blend, nutrient, etc., sugar to push the initial SG to 1.140-1.150. It ends up stalling out around 1.030-1.035 which gives me 14+% ABV. No backsweetening needed. It is jswordy's super sugar recipe.

 

[Elmer]

Did you add acid or anything else?
What type of yeast did you use?

I make this all the time and it turns out awesome. I use 4 cans concentrate per gallon. RC-212 yeast, acid blend, nutrient, etc., sugar to push the initial SG to 1.140-1.150. It ends up stalling out around 1.030-1.035 which gives me 14+% ABV. No backsweetening needed. It is jswordy's super sugar recipe.

No acid
Lalvin 1118

My initial SG after 2 cups of sugar was 1.12 which was about 15% abv, so I added water to get down to 1.100 (13%)

Does Welches stand on its own dry?
or
Would you recommend back sweetening with 1/2 cup.

oak recommendations?

 

[wineforfun]

I would definitely backsweeten, at least for my liking. I have 2 - 1 gallon batches of something similar to this going. 1 with cinammon/clove in it, 1 with oak in it. I will backsweeten the oaked one probably up to 1.000'ish. The cinammon/clove somewhere around 1.005-1.010. During some "samplings" of it, it is ok dry, but not to my liking. The batch above I used 71-B yeast with.

I have made a Welchs concord dry batch in the past, but it was with 100% juice already reconstituted with water from the store. It is ok, but lacking on flavor. It took 6 months to get drinkable for me. The way you are doing it should add more flavor, I would think, as you are using concentrate.

As far as the oak, I can't help you as I am currently experimenting with that, as mentioned above. I used 1oz. of medium french oak chips. Left it in for 3 weeks. It is very oaky. Not sure that it goes with the sweet concord but I will give it time to mellow in bottles. I may have left it in too long. If I do it again, I will check it after 1 week, 2 weeks, etc.

 

[jswordy]

Oak in primary works good, and I see you have tried it. IMO oaking it does not add all that much to a Welch's recipe, but does extend the time it has to sit around before it mellows. This is a wine designed to be ready to drink quickly. For that reason, if I use it I like to use oak sparingly and in primary.

The chief purpose of a good Welch's is to be highly drinkable, so a bunch of work to make it a higher-class wine is not rewarded usually. If you hew to the chief purpose in your tweaks, you will be rewarded.

You used a super strong yeast. If you will use the RC212 or something weaker that dies out at around 14-15%, you will find that a high SG (1.100 or whatever) will work to your advantage. These are called residual sugar recipes, and they are the way wine was once made at home as a matter of course. I am highly interested in residual sugar recipes these days.

IMO, it is not a wine to be consumed dry.

If you take heed of wineforfun as a guide on this journey, you cannot go wrong. I've had his Welch's. Good stuff in every way.

 

[JohnT]

Let the record show that I have remained silent on this one!

 

[jswordy]

Let the record show that I have remained silent on this one!

HA John! You voice your opinion every time I post!

 

[Elmer]

Tried both the oak and unoaked versions,
I prefer the oaked, unsweetened.
Both both remind me of manischewitz.

It definitely does not taste like anything store bought or recognizable.
I may try 1/4 cup sugar and a little oak to see if I can make it more palatable!
Otherwise I might be jumping on the johnT "anti welch " bandwagon


Sent from my iPhone using Wine Making

 

[Enologo]

Just finished off the last bottle of my Welches experiment. While it's a little too sweet for my taste every one else loved and complimented it. I went to the market to get more concentrate and they were out. I was so bummed. I need to start another batch so I can keep the gang happy and away from the stuff I like.

 

[wineforfun]

Tried both the oak and unoaked versions,
I prefer the oaked, unsweetened.
Both both remind me of manischewitz.

It definitely does not taste like anything store bought or recognizable.
I may try 1/4 cup sugar and a little oak to see if I can make it more palatable!
Otherwise I might be jumping on the johnT "anti welch " bandwagon


Sent from my iPhone using Wine Making

Elmer,
Not sure exactly what type of wine you are shooting for but don't give up on Welchs just yet, until you at least give jswordy's Super Sugar method a try. I don't oak the version I make. It produces a very good wine. It will finish pretty sweet though. Like I mentioned earlier, it is probably my wife's favorite out of all of them I make. I always make sure and have some "in stock" down in the basement.

 

[jamesngalveston]

have made this quite a bit, as a dragon blood...I backsweeten it.
not to good dry.

 

[Elmer]

have made this quite a bit, as a dragon blood...I backsweeten it.
not to good dry.

How much would you recommend backsweetening for 1 gallon?
1/4 cup?
1/2 cup, sugar?