I will be making my first grape wine this fall. I live in the Willamette Valley in Oregon, so I have access to many varieties of grapes. I have made a couple of fruit wines and one kit (Sauvignon Blanc). Is it preferrable to start with a white or red the first time out, or does it matter? Any suggestions?
Thanks
Lucky you - living in the Willamette Valley
If you have access to some white that has already been crushed, pressed and chilled and settled, I would go with this. Whites can be a pain in the a.. if you have to do all of this yourself - and you may not have the equipment or access to a place to chill and settle the juice before fermentaion. If you start with the white juice as described above, you can be drinking some good wine in a matter of 6 to 8 months or there abouts.
If you do not have the equipment to process the whites yourself, I would go with the reds as it is (in my opinion) easier because you do not have to immediately crush, press, chill and settle the juice. You just crush the grapes, ferment on the skin and in about 10 days to two weeks press off the wine from the skins. You will, however, have to wait a while longer before you can enjoy the wine - probably at least a year to a year and a half. These are just my opinions, others may disagree.
Willy, White wines are more difficult to make than red wines. I strongly suggest you do a couple of red fermentations before you try making a white wine. More info here
As commented on above, whites can be a pain to make if you do it all your self. Reds are much easier. Also, you can make some really nice whites from kits which are so much easier; but reds are far better made from fresh grapes. Go with red.
Ray
DrinksForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.