Welches Farmers Pick

[Medic8106]

Decided to do some experimenting with the Welches Farmers pick unfiltered juice. Anyone have any experience with using this? I am doing 2 one gallon batches. One will be the Concord juice (never used Concord before) and the other is the blackberry juice they make. Just interested to see how it turns out. The SG of the juice alone was 1.070. I added about 3/4 cup sugar which raised the SG to about 1.085. Needed to start experimenting with some one gallon batches, haven't done any in a while.

 

[dralarms]

I used their black cherry concord once. It was surprisingly good. I use the frozen concentrate on a regular basis.

 

[Rodnboro]

I have a gallon of the Mango aging. It's already pretty good.

 

[ceeaton]

I made a blackberry wine using a concentrate, some frozen fruit and then topped it up with their Farmers Pick Blackberry. Very good (still a little young). If I remember to bring a bottle in to work I could drop one off for you to sample (I'm just up the road near CV Schools just off Rt 11 - I can get to the TP interchange in about 7 minutes if I don't hit the lights).

 

[PhilDarby]

Ive kinda made similar stuff (Im living in the uk) there isn't much available in the way of grape juice locally by me although I kinda prefer white I can get the ingredients for a red far more easily, although I cant get much in the way of white grape their is 2 veg shops close by, so ive kinda experimented with a mixture of real fruit and grape concentrate.

locally I cannot get white grape juice and there is only 2 red grape juices I can find locally one is welches red but low sugar the other is a Spanish red grape, I tend to mix one litre of each per gallon, with a combination of raspberry from cartons and black currant (reconstituted Ribena, watered down 4 to 1 and used the same as the carton juice then) recently ive tried red plums at a rate of one container ie 6 plums per gallon, de piped and sliced leaving the skins on.

taste wise, raspberry tends to give a slightly dryish flavour which is quite pronounced, the Ribena gives a bit of a more mellow raspberry hit, the plums tend to give a very mellow kinda taste, think merlot type flavour from plums.

If u use real fruit I tend to remove the fruit after about 7 days using a sieve, this is quite important as it prevents off flavours from rotting fruit, in my experience, by that time most of the sugar is alcohol and the fruit is beginning to look a bit sad any way.

as a rough guide ive found 2 litres of grape, plus, up to 1/3 rd of other juice combinations work well per gallon I also add between 1/2 to 1 kg per gallon of sugar, which usually ends up around the 13.5 to 14 % abv region.

hint if you read tasting notes for a particular red grape wine eg merlot cabernet etc you can add small amounts of fruit mentioned in the tasting notes to arrive at a desired flavour, also don't forget to use a source of oak, which makes a red nicer usually.

its my experience that carton juice on their own are quite bland unless u add extra fruit to tweak them.

If u get stuff floating on top use a syphon to get rid of it, fruit sediment which sinks is fine provided it passes through a sieve, in my experience and likely adds to the flavour once its matured, if your after a burgundy kinda taste, leave the wine siting on the sediment which has sunk, while it matures, anything which floats can add off flavours.

thinking strawberry and other fruits with tiny seed pips, these need filtering with a fine cloth filter, the tiny pips if left in the sediment produce an excess of tannin from the pips and a decidedly bitter taste, I expect most other pips to have the same effect, so best to remove pips after around 7 days or so, by whatever means u need ie big pips pick them out eg plum stones if u use them for finer pips filtering may be required.

welches on its own ive found to finish slightly sweet and slightly bland with little character, to speak of, hence the tweaks, although its a perfectly fine base grape juice.

Hope it turns out ok.

 

[Medic8106]

I made a blackberry wine using a concentrate, some frozen fruit and then topped it up with their Farmers Pick Blackberry. Very good (still a little young). If I remember to bring a bottle in to work I could drop one off for you to sample (I'm just up the road near CV Schools just off Rt 11 - I can get to the TP interchange in about 7 minutes if I don't hit the lights).

I actually work down in Harrisburg at the central office although I live close to the interchange.

Thanks everyone, I'll try to keep updated how things go. Pitched the yeast this morning and have a nice active ferment going on tonight!

 

[Julie]

I actually work down in Harrisburg at the central office although I live close to the interchange.

Thanks everyone, I'll try to keep updated how things go. Pitched the yeast this morning and have a nice active ferment going on tonight!

Yes please keep us updated! I am very interested in the blackberry, my daughter lives in Carlisle, I think I need to tell to pick me up some of that blackberry, where did you get it from?

 

[Medic8106]

Yes please keep us updated! I am very interested in the blackberry, my daughter lives in Carlisle, I think I need to tell to pick me up some of that blackberry, where did you get it from?

Carlisle Walmart

 

[Medic8106]

Any suggestions how to finish this off? Clearing agent, aging, back sweetening?

 

[Julie]

Any suggestions how to finish this off? Clearing agent, aging, back sweetening?

I don't use any clearing agents and I age for a year. Also, you ever think of adding oak? I had Hungarian oak to my blackberry. Backsweten to around 1.005

 

[Medic8106]

I don't use any clearing agents and I age for a year. Also, you ever think of adding oak? I had Hungarian oak to my blackberry. Backsweten to around 1.005

Never used oak. When and how long? I'm in no hurry for it, so I can age. Have plenty DB on hand.

 

[hardworkin]

I used the mixed berry version of the Welches Farmers Pick to make some Dragon Blood. It turned out really good. I currently mixed 2 64 ounce containers of the Blackberry Farmers Pick in a 5 gallon container of fresh apple cider. Its still sitting in a carboy waiting to clear. I am looking forward to trying it.
FYI...I have found that locally Walmart sells the farmers pick in 64 ounce containers, where as, Wegmans sells it in 46 ounce containers.

 

[JimmyT]

So how did this turn out? I just bought 7 gallons of the blackberry from Walmart to play with.

 

[Medic8106]

So how did this turn out? I just bought 7 gallons of the blackberry from Walmart to play with.

Don't know. It's in it's third month of secondary and is due to be racked at this time, once I find some time. I plan on leaving this age for close to a year before bottling, no clearing agents. I'll let you know later!

 

[Arne]

Don't know. It's in it's third month of secondary and is due to be racked at this time, once I find some time. I plan on leaving this age for close to a year before bottling, no clearing agents. I'll let you know later!

You know you can sneak a taste or two while things are sitting around. Sometimes it will give you a chance to change it just a bit to make it more like you want it. Seems like I always have to taste a little, or maybe a lot. Have to find a smaller container then. LOL, Arne.

 

[Medic8106]

I bottled the blackberry farmers pick wine a few days ago. I had back sweetened to 1.020. Its been sitting since last December. I think it turned out well though tastes young. Will let it sit for a while. Decent body and dark color. I would use it again. Pic of my quality assurance sample.

 

[Scooter68]

Is that blackberry 100% Blackberry or a blend of Blackberry and Apple and/or grape juice?

 

[Medic8106]

Is that blackberry 100% Blackberry or a blend of Blackberry and Apple and/or grape juice?

It's 100% Blackberry made from Welch's Farmers Pick Unfiltered juice.

 

[Scooter68]

Hmmm... Just found this on a site - This is what's in Welch's Farmer's Picked Blackberry Juice and their Unfiltered BlackBerry Juice. Mind you it's still legally 100% juice... It's just not 100% Blackeberry Juice. Hence that's why I ask. Found the same thing on commercial wines called blueberry or strawberry etc.

Label contents for Farmer's Pick:
"Ingredients
Grape, Pear and Blackberry Juices from Concentrate (Filtered Water, Grape, Pear, and Blackberry Juice Concentrates), Blackberry Puree, Natural Flavor, Citric Acid (for Tartness)."

Label for Unfiltered 100% Juice:
"Grape Juice from Concentrate (Filtered Water, Grape Juice Concentrate), Pear Juice from Concentrate (Filtered Water, Pear Juice Concentrate), Blackberry Juice from Concentrate (Filtered Water, Blackberry Juice Concentrate), Blackberry Puree, Natural Flavor and Citric Acid (for Tartness). Gluten free."

 

[wineforfun]

@Scooter68 You, my friend, have discovered the "trickery" used in juice advertising.

Most all 100% juices or concentrates label their product so that one assumes you are buying 100% blackberry, blueberry/pomegranate, cranberry, etc. However, almost all of them will consist of pear and/or apple as the first juice(s) listed. Old Orchard Blueberry Pomegranate for instance, actually lists blueberry and pomegranate as the last two juices in the mix.

You will notice most all 100% products advertise it as just that, 100% juice that is the particular flavor listed, though most people read it as 100% of the particular flavor listed.

Now there are some exceptions to that such as orange, pineapple, etc.