Fall Winemaking is Underway

The sauerkraut went into the fridge after 5 days of fermentation.  It is chunky and crisp with enough acidity.

We are home for the first weekend in a couple of months. This provided the opportunity to catch up on some winemaking. I bottled the elderberry-persimmon wine. This wine is unique for the large dose of bentonite and heavy toast oak chips in the primary, then a secondary treatment of some black currants. I think it is very good at 8 months, and it is supposed to improve for a couple of years.

We racked the starfruit and lychee wine.  The starfruit wine is not quite clear but will, once again, be fantastic.  I think we have the starfruit wine recipe dialed in pretty well. Getting the pH low enough with mostly citric acid is the key. No malic acid for this wine, acid blend or otherwise. The lychee wine unfortunately blew off all of the lychee aromas during fermentation. I anticipated this, and kept back 15 large lychees from the greenhouse.  These were thawed, destoned, chopped, treated for several hours with pectic enzyme, then added to the secondary. I expect a wine that is subtle but distinctly lychee.

We then kicked off the first of the fall batches.  This one is blackberry.  We are going with (almost) straight fruit. It is said that it normally takes about 11-12# for a gallon.  I had 29.5#, just under 10# per gallon for the 3 gallon batch.

To make up the volume I did use about 4 pints of water. I have some of last year's blackberry wine to top off with if the volume is still short.  The initial pH was 2.79 and it took 7t of calcium carbonate to get it to the desired 3.4.  Sugar calculations were perfect, we're starting at 1.084. I let the pectic work a full 24 hours. 71B will hopefully tame some of the malic acid.

Shawn and Suzanne came over for supper.  We had a nice veggie-based chili, then Suzanne make a delicious apple galette.  I was a poor host.

Spot the veggies?

Apple Galette.

Here is my recipe for 3 gal of carambola wine.

16# carambola
1 liter white grape concentrate
Sugar: 3# (SG 1.082)
Campden: 2 tab at start
Yeast nutrient: 3/4t Fermaid K divided
Yeast energizer: 1t GoFerm
Tannin: 1/2t
Pectic enzyme: 3t
Citric acid: 6t  (starting pH was 3.27)
Tartaric acid: 3t
Opti white: 6g (dose 1-2g/gal)
Water: 2gal
Yeast: QA23

Add Campden tablets at fruit thaw.  Bag the sliced fruit.  Add bagged fruit, grape concentrate, sugar to primary.  Boil water, pour over primary.  When cool, add Optiwhite, pectic, acids, and wait 12-24 hours. Double check pH and adjust if needed.  Rehydrate yeast with GoFerm and pitch.  Step feed the Fermaid K. Stir twice a day.  Bentonite on day 3.  Drip drain bag and rack to primary when 1.010 or lower.  Usual care thereafter.