Grape wine

Compo - Making grape wine is a big subject. I suggest reading some of Lum's excellent on-line winemaking book.

Bill Frazier Olathe, Kansas USA

Reminds me of a cartoon in one of my inherited winemaking books.

A fellow is sitting in a restaurant, looking at the wine list with shock and horror:

"GRAPE!? Haven't you got any PROPER wine?!"

(As an aside, I note with pleasure that my local wine store is has started to stock some "proper" wine, vinted on Quadra Island, just a ferry's throw from here. Their sparkling raspberry is quite acceptable- I need to see if they give tours and/or tastings.)

Cheers,

you dont absolutely NEED to do anything. Many wine makers, much of them Italian and Portuguese immigrants dont even add yeast, they let the naturally existing yeast do the work. They've been making wine like this sine there has been wine. The issue is that all the fancy chemistry and microbiological additives will help to make the wine "better" to commercial standards, and also protect it so that it has a better chance of surviving. It is about your taste, mostly, and your nerve to rely soley on nature or, to help things along for safe keeping. I've done it both ways, and certainly the more sciency way is more involved. So keep in mind that as people post suggesting that you alter your aidity, and add yeast nutrients, etc, that these things can help a situation, but at the end of the day you are likely to still have wine whether you do them or not. It is the refinement of the result that will differ.

Compo wrote:

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Many thanks for all the replies. I am hoping to have a large enough crop to make two batches next season, if so I shall try both with and without additives to see what difference it makes. Meanwhile I will search out some recipes and give them some thought before choosing one to use as the alternative to 'grapes only'.

Hi there Compo

I'm just starting out, so don't know much - pretty much all of what I know comes from books.

One of my books says that you adjust the acidity *after* fermentation as the fermentation proccess changes the acidity - so you don't really know what you're going to get until after fermentation.

So I'm interested in how adjusting the acidity *before* fermentation works.

Do you adjust it down to the 3.4pH area right from the get -go (and adjust again post-fermentation if neccesarry?)

If you only adjust post-fermentation does it mean that you're more open to microbial spoilage during fermentation?

Cheers mate

-Markus

Dear Compo, Get a wine making book and read it.

The message from "Markus" contains these words:

sorry, I'm a novice myself but I'm sure there is someone on here that can advise.

Cheers Compo.

Browsing this site may teach you a lot. Suggest the top website for recipes and advice:

good luck. DAve

Compo wrote:

To me it all depends on what "grape "you are referring to. And what kind of "wine" you wish to achieve.

The above site gives a lesson

Dick