Saturday, November 16, 2013

Update

I racked the pineapple wine after a month in the secondary with a PA of - 3% and a total ABV around 13%.
The blueberry wine continues fermenting, bubbling steadily after a month.
The citrus wine (3 weeks in) has about stopped bubbling but hasn't started clearing yet.
The tart cherry wine is still bubbling briskly after a week in the secondary.

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Cherry Wine, Day 6

I racked the cherry wine to the secondary with a PA of under 1 %. It's a repulsive opaque pink, but I'm sure once the yeast settles out it will be better-looking.
Ch ch ch ch ch cherry bomb
Meanwhile, the pineapple wine has cleared up nicely, the blueberry wine continues bubbling pretty strongly (3 weeks so far!) and the citrus wine has slowed to the occasional bubble. I'm out of space now, so I have to wait until something gets bottled to start something new.

Monday, November 4, 2013

Cherry Wine, Day 1

I took a recipe from Terry Garey's book The Joy of Home Winemaking, with only slight modification. Here it is:
3 1/2 quarts of water
3 cans of tart red cherries in water (Oregon brand Montmorencies)
2 1/4 pounds of sugar
1 tsp acid blend
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1/2 tsp pectic enzyme
1 pkg Montrachet yeast (Red Star dry)

I boiled the water and added the juice from the cherries and the sugar.
I put the cherries in a straining bag at the bottom of my primary fermenter.
I poured the boiling sugar water over the cherries.
I added the acid blend and yeast nutrient.
When the must cools, I will add the pectic enzyme and 24 hours later I will pitch the yeast.
I plan to let it go in the primary for five days, drain the fruit without squeezing and rack to the secondary.
I expect it to remain in the seconday (racked a couple of times) for 3 to 6 months before bottling.
Pie? No.

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Citrus Wine, Day 6

The wine has fermented vigorously and got down to a PA of about .5% so I squeezed out the fruit and racked it to a secondary.
It's not just for breakfast anymore.
Meanwhile the pineapple wine is clearing up as the fermentation slows to a crawl and the blueberry continues bubbling merrily away with no sign of any clearing as yet.