Wine Temp Control System

I have struggled for some time to control temperatures during fermentation. Cooling whites and warming reds is a challenge for home winemakers. So I read with interest a forum post in which a home winemaker attempted a solution to this problem. I talked it over with Adam who designed a solution, and over Christmas break we got to work.

The first version of the device proved under-powered. This post will detail the second version. The materials:

• Arduino Microcontroller
• Power supply cable
• Temp sensor
• Motor drivers (3)
• 5V regulator
• Relay boards (2)
• Terminal blocks (3)
• 500W power supply
• 3-fan Peltier cooling device
• Wire, solder, tools

The basic layout of this is 120VAC to 12V DC power, which for the purposes of the relays and the Arduino gets regulated down to 5V DC with the regulator. The three terminal blocks are 12V, 5V, and  a common ground. The fans and the pump run through the relays, but in this version they stay on all the time, with the relays only opening when the program is refreshed and uploaded. The Arduino controller sets the direction and voltage to the Peltier coolers through the 12V motor drivers.

We are using a PID controller. We had to adjust some code and do some "loop tuning" but now it seems very stable.

The next steps are to add power (so that it runs without the computer), add the LCD, and build a container.

2017 Wines - Chapter 8 - Estate Berry

This wine was planned, both because we needed an "estate" wine and because it served as a chance to clean out the freezer.

Ingredients:

• Serviceberry, 1# 15oz
• Blackhaw, 1# 10oz
• Haskaps, 7oz
• Elderberry, 12oz
• Blackberry, 3# 3oz
• 5 pints water
• 620g sugar
• 2t pectic
• 0.25g Lallzyme EX
• 1g Opti Red
• 1g Booster Rouge
• 1t calcium carbonate

I combined the first 7 ingredients and gently crushed the fruit. Blackhaws don't really crush very much, they are mostly seed. Then the must got a 3 day cold soak. After rewarming, I added the remaining ingredients. The pH adjusted from 3.16 too 3.4 with a very small amount of calcium carbonate. SG was 1.085. K1-V1116 and away we go.

I made no attempt to control temps, really just a lazy approach to this wine. On day 8 we were at 1.004 and racked to carboy. After another week, racked off the gross lees and added another dose of KMS.

I have no notion what this wine will be like. I would have liked a better balance of fruit but this was the 2017 hand we were dealt.

Life Skills: Welding

There is a set of life skills every person should have. One need not necessarily use all of these skills often - indeed if you don't live out in the country you might rarely have the need. But the ability to sweat a pipe, run a table saw, lay brick, and run a chainsaw not only improves the size of one's toolkit, but improves one's creativity, confidence, and problem-solving abilities.

Welding has always been on that list. My friend Eric learned welding in a life skills class in college. But there is no longer any need for a college course. With Youtube, one can learn these skills, the basics anyway, without spending any tuition money.

An encounter with another friend, Jorgen, proved to be my welding tipping point. In his old warehouse he had various steel carts and other useless objects. He brought them home while considering what useful thing he could make.

That day, I bought a welder.

It is a DC arc welder, supposedly good for general fabrication and at the same time relatively easy to learn. Two hours of Youtube later, I'm welding.

My first project, one that has been needed for many years, was a water meter valve key for the poolhouse. This valve is particularly stiff and unusually deep. The typical store-bought keys have failed in numerous ways, but on the third try our local plumbing company finally devised a solution using 15/16" socket flipped around so that the wrench end (rather than the end that goes on the nut) fit down on the valve. With two pairs of locked nuts, one at the top and one at the bottom of a threaded rod, we could get the water on and off. But the socket wouldn't stay on the nut. For the last several years I held it on with duct tape.

The plumbing company's second try had the benefit of a length and a strong handle, but end of the key never fit well on the valve. So I cut off the end, flipped around the socket, and welded it up.

It's not pretty but it seems strong. I won't know for sure that it works until spring. Next project is a pin-hitch garden cart.

2017 Wines - Chapter 7 - Blueberry Rosé

I started this wine without having recently tasted last year's version. The last time we tried it I found the last glass much better than the first. After starting this year's version however we opened another bottle from 2016 and I found it fairly offensive. It aired out and seemed to blow off whatever icky aroma it had upon opening, but my expectations for this wine going forward have been tempered.

I pressed 26# of blueberries, added KMS, then added to that juice the free run from the straight blueberry wine.

I added 46oz Sauvignon Blanc concentrate, 1.2g water, 1 can of Niagra white grape concentrate to make up a little volume. Starting pH 2.86, adjusted to 3.33 with 6t calcium carbonate. Starting SG 1.070, adjusted to 1.085 with 460g sugar. Then added 2g Booster Blanc, 6g Opti White, 1.5t tannin, 3t pectic, 0.3g Lallzyme EX, and let it sit overnight.

The next morning the pH was 3.56, a little higher than I wanted but I'd rather be adding acid back to this wine then trying to deacidify it like I did last year. Pitched QA 23 with the usual GoFerm and Fermaid K nutrient protocol, and 4.5g bentonite on day 3.

Not the most pleasing color at this point. but after 7 days we got to 1.010 without incident, and so I racked to a 3 gallon carboy.

The fermentation didn't really stall at all with racking and looks to be finishing strong under glass. The one seasonal wine remaining to make is elderberry.

Having Helpers Home

Over Thanksgiving Jake and Allie came home. We only had one serious day of work, and it came after Allie left, but we got a lot done. Trusted friend Jorgen lent me his Stihl chainsaw-on-a-stick and we cleaned up the Lacebark Elm trees lining the driveway. Then Jake helped with the annual task of putting up the greenhouse plastic.

I've run out of washers for the green clips, we'll see if we can pick up some replacements at the hardware store. We're trying an experiment this year; we're leaving the south end uncovered, just a single layer of tempered glass, to see if we can let more light in without sacrificing too much heat.

2017 Wines - Chapter 6 - Blueberry

We had a few pounds of blueberries left over from 2016. Together with those we picked we wound up with 43# of berries. At the usual 6#/gallon rate we could have gotten 7 gallons of straight blueberry wine. But in an effort to stay out of a rut, I tried something different this time.

I split the berries up, putting 17# in the primary bucket. After the crush, I poured off most of the free run for the rosé. After gently pressing the remaining 26#, I added that cake to the primary as well, so we had the skins of 43# of blueberries altogether. I treated it with KMS.

After several hours I added 46oz of Merlot concentrate, 1 gallon of water, 3g Booster Rouge, 3g Opti Red, 0.6g Lallzyme EX, 6t of pectic enzyme, and 1.5tsp tannin. I adjusted the pH from 2.85 to 3.78 with calcium carbonate. 690g sugar brought the SG from 1.064 to 1.086 and I let it rest overnight.

The next morning the pH was back down to 3.29. A bit more carbonate brought it back to 3.44 and we pitched K1-V1116 with GoFerm during rehydration.

I made the usual bentonite and Fermaid-K additions and in 1 week we were down to 1.006. The wine was pressed yielding 3.5 gallons of dark, rich, heavy blueberry wine.

At 1.006 it has little more fermentation to go. If I don't see any bubbles in the next few hours, I may bring it up into the warm pantry to assure it doesn't stick.

2017 Wines - Chapter 5 - Sauvignon Blanc

In addition to the Zinfandel grapes, I picked up a 6 gallon Sauvignon Blanc juice bucket. Starting numbers were pH 2.97, TA 0.51%, and SG 1.090 - no adjustments needed. I added 6g Booster Blanc, 12g Opti White, and pitched QA 23.

I tried to keep this ferment as cool as possible with ice packs. The problem, as with the Zinfandel, was that vacation was approaching. I had to cut back on the ice packs and let the temp drift up in order for the ferment to finish before we left. I step-fed Fermaid K, added 9g bentonite on day 3, and by day 9 it had dropped to 1.015, where I racked it to the carboy.

The following day I topped it up and added the KMS. Upon return from vacation it was quiet, so I racked, topped up again, and now it just needs to be cold stabilized and cleared.

2017 Wines - Chapter 4 - Zinfandel

We pushed vacation back in order to avoid any conflict with fall grape shipments. As it turned out, we'll need every day in order to get the two California wines tucked away.

I drove to St. Louis for these 3 lugs of old vine Zinfandel. It was nice to meet one old friend and one new friend at St. Louis Wine and Beermaking. Jerry, with whom I have corresponded for years but had never met, gave me his leftover KMS. Stephen helped me with the dosing. There we crushed the 3 lugs, dosed the KMS at 50ppm, and I trucked the grapes and the Sauvignon Blanc juice bucket back home.

The numbers were decent - TA 0.58%, pH 3.45, and 22.5 Brix - good enough that no preferment adjustments were needed. I added 4.5t pectic enzyme and 1.2g Lallzyme EX, each divided between the 3 buckets, and stacked them in the fridge for a 2 day cold soak.

After warming, I added 8g Booster Rouge, 8g Opti Red, then pitched RC 212 rehydrated with GoFerm. To get the temp up, like last year, I added a nice comforter.

Over the next 3 days I used Fermaid K, 2t step fed, with 12g bentonite. Tm was 26.0C. It fermented steadily down to 1.004 on day 7. With vacation looming, I pressed.

I have 7-7.5 gallons (not sure if that is 6 or 6.5g carboy), but there is at least 1/2 gallon of gross lees. I expect it to be under 1.000 by tomorrow, at which time I'll rack off the gross lees and get the MLF started with VP41 on oak cubes.

Fall Has Arrived

Fall blew in suddenly last night. Fortunately yesterday we got most of the plants in the greenhouse. Still harvesting purple guava, passionfruit, sugar apple, acerola, and cherimoya.

Sega Palms did not make the greenhouse cut this year

The juice and grapes from California arrived. I picked them up Friday in St. Louis. It was fun to run into Jerry, who I have corresponded with now for a couple of years but had never met. Also great to meet Stephen, head of a St. Louis-area winemaking club, who provided some helpful advice on sulfites. The Sauv Blanc and Zinfandel are underway, full posts to follow.

I bottled some wine. Blueberry is smooth and delicious.

Passionfruit is Sauv Blanc-level sharp but polished and beautiful; it fills the room with passion fruit aromas. Maybe it could have used a little more sugar.

The QA 23 left our Vignoles with plenty of tropical aromas as well. I got this guy off the fine lees, now we just need to wait for it to clear.

We have just a bit more yard work to do to be ready for vacation. I fear we will return to winter.

2017 Wines - Chapter 3 - Pawpaw

We ended up with about 9# of pawpaws, so I decided to go ahead and try making the wine.

They look like potatoes

• 5# pawpaws, consisting of 2# pulp and 3# peeled fruit
• Sugar, 2# 1oz
• Tannin 1/2t
• Pectic 1t
• Lallzyme EX 0.1g
• Citric acid 2.75t
• Water 8.5 pint
• Opti White 1.9g
• Booster Blanc 1.1g
• Bentonite 2g

The pH started at 4.51 but adjusted to 3.54. SG 1.085. I used QA 23 and started off in a cooling bath, but when the fermentation didn't really take off, I let it come up to room temperature.

I added bentonite day 3 and then pulled the fruit bag at 1.032 on day 7. Racked to carboy on day 9.

As you can see, this wine is a pulpy mess. A few days later when the wine was quiet, I racked off the pulp, coming up about 100ml shy of a gallon.

At this point I topped it with some Vignoles and dosed with KMS. The pawpaw smell (closest perhaps to bananas) is gone, and at this time the aroma is closer to pineapple than anything else. We can count it as a success so far, having avoided any stink during the ferment. 

Roll Out the Barrel

There comes a point with certain endeavors that you realize you might be in too deep. With winemaking, that point has almost certainly been reached when you install a vineyard. But a better, more accurate marker might be the acquisition of a barrel. 

This is a little 10L barrel which matches my most common 3 gallon batch. It sealed up in a couple of days. Today it received the 2016 elderberry-blackberry blend.

I'm not wild about the spigot, it tends to leak. And the hole on top is too small to admit my autosiphon. But it sure smells great. We'll leave the 2016 EB in for 2-4 weeks. Next up is the 2016 Syrah. I'm hoping it will concentrate it to an acceptable level.

The barrel wasn't the only toy which arrived this week. I got a backpack mister/sprayer. I found a little powdery mildew on some of the grapes. So yesterday I fired up the sprayer for the first time. It's pretty darn heavy when full. Four gallons of Captan and Immunox were sufficient for one pass through the vineyard. It will take some fine tuning to make this whole spray process more efficient.

Paybacks and Payoffs

I have not yet decided whether to make pawpaw wine. I'm freezing the pulp as they ripen, and I've got over 4# now which should be enough for a 1 gallon trial. It would be easier if I knew whether it would be any good. Online reviews are scarce and indeterminate. One person paraphrased Jack Keller, calling it "life-changing," but given what Keller wrote I think that is a bit of a stretch. For now I'm content with smoothies.

In the greenhouse I made a discovery that will be meaningful to very few of my friends. We have fruit set on garcinia intermedia. This is most commonly known as Lemon Drop Mangosteen. This garcinia is a seedling from my first PR trip in 2010. It is not the first it has flowered but it is the first time to set fruit. It is hard to contain my excitement.

As a thank-you for the grapes and support, I took the Books some wine. I sent two bottles of their 2016 Chambourcin and one each of the 2016 Blackberry and my 2016 Motley Red blend. Early reviews, based on the text messages, were favorable.

Estate Pawpaws

It is difficult to get to them in time, the deer eat them right off of the tree. They will ripen just a little bit after picking.

2017 Wines - Chapter 2 - Vignoles

I got a text from the local vineyard a couple of weeks back. They were unable to get their Vignoles pruned last winter and therefore are unable to harvest mechanically. Once ready, I could take all of the Vignoles I wanted.

Of course the call came at perhaps the worst possible time. Lisa and I were set to leave town for four days and so I couldn't really start a ferment. The solution turned out to be a well known technique known as cold settling.

We ended up with about 90# of grapes. Field testing showed pH 2.81 and SG of 1.086. We whole-cluster pressed around 6 gallons which tested at 2.85 and 1.084.

Before heading out of town, I raised the pH to about 3.0 with 2T calcium carbonate, added 2T pectic enzyme, then capped the bucket for a 4 day period of cold settling in the fridge.

The wine 4 days later had dropped a fair amount of tartaric acid and sediment, and racking yielded a nice clear must. I will definitely perform cold settling again! The pH hung in there at 2.99 but the TA was brutally high at 15g/L. Calculations indicated that 7T of calcium carbonate should drop the TA to around 8g/L and coincidentally this was the maximum recommended dose. We slowly added the calcium carbonate, watching the pH, but eventually wound up adding the maximum amount and arrived at an acceptable preferment pH of 3.33.

We used 11g Opti White, 6g Booster Blanc, 0.6g Lallzyme EX. We used QA 23 with GoFerm and Fermaid K, step fed. We mostly succeeded in keeping the fermentation below 15C using ice packs placed in water every 4-6 hours in the outer bucket.

The cooler temps didn't slow down QA 23 at all. Bentonite was added at day 3. The Vignoles dropped to 1.004 by the 7th day with great aroma and no off odors. After racking, we are just short of 6 gallons.

We'll give it a few days to finish up in the carboy and rack it off to a 5g and 1/2g carboys. A very promising wine!