I have a 3 gallon batch of Berry Zinfandel (1/3 mixed berry wine, 2/3 Zinfandel) that's taken an incredibly long time to finish fermentation. I understand now where I went wrong with this batch, but I'd like to try to save it before it's a completely lost cause.
At the latest racking it was apparent that it was loaded with CO2 and had become a little oxidized. So it appears to still be fermenting, and due to the number of rackings and possibly a lower than ideal level of sulfites it has become oxidized.
I'm thinking about turning it into a Madeira type wine. To that end, in a month or so I might top it off with brandy and give it a good dose of sulfites. Hopefully this will stabilize the wine and prevent any further degradation. A month later I'll rack it again and sweeten it. Then I'll leave it in the garage for the summer. I live in Arizona, and my garage is 100 degrees plus for most of the summer.
I don't think my approach to saving a suspect batch of wine is original. I know there are other options for dealing with oxidation; Jack Keller describes a method using skim milk on his site, but I'm curious about Madeira and I'm inclined to go that route.
Has anyone on this forum made a Madeira wine before? Does my approach seem ok? Many Madeira recipes describe a step involving charcoal. Is this really necessary? Also, how much brandy should be required to stabilize this wine and bring it up to the expected
Thanks,
Greg