What's in your glass tonight?

[Hazelemere]

Carol's Muscat Chardonnay 2023

This is why I use bentonite the way I do. This wine is in a glass at 3 weeks from start of ferment. Can you believe it? Look at it.! Crystal clear blended about 50/50 in the glass with Brehm Chardonnay from frozen California juice. Its aging in my cooler to re-blend with my homegrown Reichensteiner when the Reichensteiner has cleared to boost its acid the way the Chardonnay does.

Here are my comments:

Colour - perfect right now

Smell - fine no yeastiness

Tannin - good

Acid - good

Flavour - rich, tasty in spite of being so very, very young

Bottom line - This the best homegrown white that I have tasted in 20 years. It has the potential to be an absolute smasher from a 71B fermentation. I should get 55 bottles which I won't bottle until Easter at the earliest to allow it drop any future protein haze that the bentonite missed. I will definitely use 71B yeast again.

Good luck with your wines.

 

[David Violante]

 

[Hazelemere]

View attachment 106139

How do you like it? I've tasted sensational Finger Lakes Rieslings and Pinot Gris from Konstantin Frank and Heron Hills but never a really good red.

 

[ChuckD]

Does Suck.

 

[David Violante]

How do you like it? I've tasted sensational Finger Lakes Rieslings and Pinot Gris from Konstantin Frank and Heron Hills but never a really good red.

We really liked the Cab Franc, it was a little light but we’re used to some heavier reds. Very enjoyable after a long drive, sitting out by the fire pit. We’re going to Heron Hill today.

 

[winemaker81]

How do you like it? I've tasted sensational Finger Lakes Rieslings and Pinot Gris from Konstantin Frank and Heron Hills but never a really good red.

McGregor makes really good reds

 

[wineh]

Another Okanagan beauty! I'm glad we stopped at this proprietor run vineyard/Winery. This guy knows what he's doing! Very powerful dark wine. Currants, tobacco and vanilla stand out, and it gets right to the back of the palette. 14.8%
Will pair perfectly with fresh Moose tenderloin!

 

[David Violante]

We enjoyed the two below wines from Heron Hill yesterday, the one on the left is from one vineyard, the one on the right is from several different vineyards around the lakes. One had one terroir, the other a sum of different terroirs. They were both good, the one from several areas was a bit more rounded in flavor and mouthfeel. It was quite an interesting tasting. Of course one year to the next has differences as well, but it was great to experience the diversification of grapes. Many of their reserve wines are single vineyard and their others are from a variety of vineyards.

 

[David Violante]

This was our hands down favorite for flavor, mouthfeel, complexity, tannins, and fullness. I’m not sure how to explain that but many of the wines we tasted from a variety of wineries seemed… thin?

 

[David Violante]

We tasted a number of wines from Keuka Spring, they had a selection of about 20 to choose from and we each chose 6 plus a reserve tasting. Of all, we enjoyed this one the best. Both Keuka Sprint and Heron Hill had time to talk with us as we were there on a Monday afternoon. Here’s the tasting sheet on the Saperavi.

This site and the collective network of friends and colleagues here have been absolutely instrumental in how my wines have turned out. As I’ve just delved into MLF, I feel next year a barrel is in the works.

 

[Hazelemere]

This was our hands down favorite for flavor, mouthfeel, complexity, tannins, and fullness. I’m not sure how to explain that but many of the wines we tasted from a variety of wineries seemed… thin?

View attachment 106174

good on them for that. Baco Noir can be first class as you have noted but needs to be dead ripe and handled with supreme care by a competent winemaker. Heron Hills obviously has a competent winemaker. Try their Riesling!!

 

[Hazelemere]

We tasted a number of wines from Keuka Spring, they had a selection of about 20 to choose from and we each chose 6 plus a reserve tasting. Of all, we enjoyed this one the best. Both Keuka Sprint and Heron Hill had time to talk with us as we were there on a Monday afternoon. Here’s the tasting sheet on the Saperavi.

This site and the collective network of friends and colleagues here have been absolutely instrumental in how my wines have turned out. As I’ve just delved into MLF, I feel next year a barrel is in the works.

View attachment 106175

 

[Hazelemere]

Amador Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

I have 2 left which I will put on my wife's wine rack. She likes low acid, rich non-tannic reds. This is in that class. I'll take the rest of the bottle that I just opened and put it on top of the fridge for her.

Here are my comments on a fresh grapes fermented hand destemmed with RC212 yeast and fermented at SG :1.107 i.e. 14.5% alcohol.

Colour: Inky purple red

Smell: pomegranates, figs, cocoa very pleasant

Tannin: perfect

Acid: fine

Flavour: a bit of a sweet aftertaste which my wife will like. This is her palate to a T. It is rich and tasty but her style not mine. I like more acid and for my palate I have blended versions of this which I like better. However one of the deep lessons is to not force your palate on the people around you. We can all choose something different. This wine is hers.

 

[Hazelemere]

Black Iris 2023

This is 62% wild blackberries at 6lb per imperial gallon water with 3lbs cane sugar plus 38% wild pitted black cherries at 7 lb per Imperial gallon of water plus 3 lbs cane sugar both treated with pectic enzyme. This glass is racked out of a blended carboy at the end of 71B fermentation ahead of oaking with medium toast American oak into my walk in cooler. Iris who is my neighbour has 1 of the cherry trees on municipal property right next to hers just next to a road near my house.

The cherries were picked from 4 mature trees all within 2 miles of my house.

Here are my comments:

Colour: inky purple

Smell: very complex and fragrant leather, molasses, cherries, blackberries (I think 71B yeast improved it)

Tannin - perfect (berries/cherries were pressed 6 days into ferment to get rid of all the blackberry seeds)

Acid - perfect

Flavour - for red fruit table wine this is really good even at such a young age. I'll oak it next and then use it lots of different ways e.g. 1) sweeten a tiny bit with Bols Cherry liqueur 2) sweeten a tiny bit with blackberry liqueur 3) blend with homegrown Regent and/or Marechal Foch post malolactic to create Black Fusion 2023 4) leave it alone 5) blend with 2020 Sheridan Syrah that had a burnt rubber nose but is improving with Marechal Foch and/or Regent to resurrect the Syrah.

Bottom line - this is amazingly good, especially at such a young age . I have ~76 bottles and probably try all of the above combos or not to explore it totally. I think that the 71B yeast is perfect for this fruit i.e. soft, complex and fragrant wines even at a young age.

 

[Hazelemere]

Russet 2023

This 2023 Russet (majority), King and pears (minority) homegrown organic apple wine chaptalized with cane sugar and aging in my cooler after being sulphited and treated with bentonite (racked twice off bentonite and sulphited to about 35 ppm free sulphite). This was fermented with 71B yeast with nutrient. I have about 75 bottles in my cooler at SG 1.000 and will sorbate it when it is bottled probably around Valentine's (some) or Easter (some more) or August 2024 (all of it). All of the apples were ground with an electric grinder and immediately pressed with a bladder press with about 25 ppm free sulphite with pectic enzyme and nutrient.

Here are my comments:

colour - deep golden yellow and very clear (I wouldn't want it to go darker).

smell - sensational smell (I used to use EC-1118 yeast but used 71B for the first time on my apple wine based on comments on this web site about 71B yeast which I hadn't ever used in over 55 years of winemaking. 71B rules on high acid apple wine e.g. Russets for smell.

acid - slightly high even at SG 1.000 but that is how I like my acid in white table wines. The acid should drop as this wine ages and should become even more fragrant. I'll make some of this for my wife and either sween it some more or blend it with 2nd run Washington Chardonnay to drop the acid as a house wine for her.

tannin - fine

sweetness - the acid is high enough from the Russets to balance the sweetness

flavour - this is an extremely young wine that shows the benefit of bentonite treatment that has a really good rich and complex flavour. The 71B yeast seems to be a perfect partner for high acid Russet apple wine, espescially since it is reported to ferment some of the Russet malic acid. I will absolutely use 71B again on Russet apple wine.

PS I'm tasting it in a 50/50 blend with Sheridan Chardonnay piquette (some Madeline Angevine) fermented with V-13 yeast (this photo is on the right). The piquette drops the acid and sweetness on the Russet apple wine. The Russet eliminates the flatness of the piquette (i.e. low acid). Some of the piquette "Chardonette" containing some Madeline Angevine 1st run should make a decent house white for my wife and son-in-law 1st and me 2nd as Russet Chardonette 2023 although I like Russet 2023 better for myself. Bottom line is that this wine can be used lots of ways successfully.

 

[Boatboy24]

Couple IPA's before the kids' homecoming game. Then a little post game.

 

[jswordy]

That was a very good, sweet and well-rounded African beer. Somewhat reminiscent of Heineken but with a fuller malt and hop flavor. ABV seems higher than US standard, perhaps 6 or 6.5%. Not imported here, so this likely was my one lifetime can!

 

[ibglowin]

Wait you saying your boys are in HS?

Couple IPA's before the kids' homecoming game. Then a little post game.

View attachment 106246

 

[Hazelemere]

Carol's Muscat Dry Auslese 2023

This is 100% homegrown organic muscat from 20 parts Siegerrebe 10 parts Ortega and 10 parts Reichensteiner at SG 1.092. Siegerrebe - Ortega wre fermented with 71B. Rechensteiner was fermented with V-13. I've just racked this blend into my cooler (50 bottles) with 4 bottle of Siegerrebe Ortega top up which I will used to drop the acid on my wife Carol's share of this. I was looking for acid. She isn't. I'll try to leave this alone until August 2024 and then bottle it to really let it develop its flavour and smell. Here are my comments on this wine right now after racking and before adding sulphite.

Appearance: lemon yellow, colour is perfect (i.e. no oxidation at any stage of processing)

Smell - really good intense muscat nose

Tannin - perfect

Acid - perfect for me, too high for my wife. I'll drop the acid on hers with the Siegerrebe Ortega top up and let her maker blend the way she likes it. i.e. we will each each get a different version of this.

Flavour - this is really tasty considering it is only a month old. It has the potential to be an absolutely smashing white wine that will last for eons. The last time I had a homegrown white wine this good was in 2003.

Afterthought - I had to cull damaged grapes for Ortega nd Reichensteiner. This took hours and hours but I did it. The Siegerrebe were in beutiful conditon and didn't need to be cleaned. All of the grapes were dry i.e. no rain at all for least a month. Sometimes the grape god Bacchus is with you and this was one of those years.

 

[Hazelemere]

Carol's Muscat Dry Auslese 2023

This is 100% homegrown organic muscat from 20 parts Siegerrebe 10 parts Ortega and 10 parts Reichensteiner at SG 1.092. Siegerrebe - Ortega wre fermented with 71B. Rechensteiner was fermented with V-13. I've just racked this blend into my cooler (50 bottles) with 4 bottle of Siegerrebe Ortega top up which I will used to drop the acid on my wife Carol's share of this. I was looking for acid. She isn't. I'll try to leave this alone until August 2024 and then bottle it to really let it develop its flavour and smell. Here are my comments on this wine right now after racking and before adding sulphite.

Appearance: lemon yellow, colour is perfect (i.e. no oxidation at any stage of processing)

Smell - really good intense muscat nose

Tannin - perfect

Acid - perfect for me, too high for my wife. I'll drop the acid on hers with the Siegerrebe Ortega top up and let her maker blend the way she likes it. i.e. we will each each get a different version of this.

Flavour - this is really tasty considering it is only a month old. It has the potential to be an absolutely smashing white wine that will last for eons. The last time I had a homegrown white wine this good was in 2003.

Afterthought - I had to cull damaged grapes for Ortega nd Reichensteiner. This took hours and hours but I did it. The Siegerrebe were in beutiful conditon and didn't need to be cleaned. All of the grapes were dry i.e. no rain at all for least a month. Sometimes the grape god Bacchus is with you and this was one of those years.

I added 1/8 tsp potassium metabisulphite to each 25 bottle carboy to raise the free sulphite to 30 ppm for aging to August 2024.
I'll measure free sulphite levels and will try to bottle this at about 25-30 ppm free sulphite so it can age for years without oxidation.