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Saving my red wine?

I posted this earlier under the 'drying out my red wines' but I'll repost under a new subject in hopes I can obtain an answer.

I have 15 gallons of Cab Sauv and 5 gallons of Zin, so not an inconsequential amount. I oaked, MLF'd, and otherwise ran the reds through the same processes as the whites (processed gently at 68-72F in the basement heated booth).

The juices were obtained pressed without skins and both weighed in around 1.08. Reading more on the topic it would seem that I should have pressed the juice (if I had had skins) down around 1.05 to 1.00 or so.

The Zin has a gorgeous smoky bouquet- exactly what I was looking for with no hint of diacetyl and the Cab has a solid oak aroma that encourages that first sip- yet when that precious liquid touches the tongue there is nothing behind it. No taste but runny red juice. There is a residual sweetness that the Clinitest estimates at 0.25% to

0.5%.

At this late stage in the game, is there any way to salvage these wines? Should I consider blending them away with better 'cheap bottle' wine (Banrock Station is inexpensive) to mask the failure for this year? Would adding Grape Tannins so late in the process (I'd like to be bottling in 2 months) be advisable?

Thanks in advance for any assistance you can provide,

Jason

Reply to
purduephotog
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You can add tannin but that will only help with the structure of the wines - it sounds like there are other things missing. I've started with red juice and then moved to grapes and for my taste, there is a big difference in taste and quality. I still buy red juice occasionally but ferment it as a "2nd run" on pressed skins - this gives a very good wine that's ready to drink earlier than the 1st run from grapes.

Which brings me to the second option - you could wait until fall, get some grapes and referment the wine. To avoid dilution, do a grape batch before, press and add the skins.

Alternatively, do a grape batch in the fall with heavy extraction, don an ML on it, and then blend it with your current wine.

If that's not an option, then grape tannin is your best bet. If you can split the order with somebody or can buy in lower quantities, I'd get the good stuff (Biotan) from Scott Labs or similar rather than what's usually sold at winemaking shops. Here's the link

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You can do a blend trial, but my guess is you'd need too much of the commercial stuff to make a difference.

If you decide to wait unitl fall, addins some tannin now in any case should help to preserve the wine.

Pp

snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote:

Reply to
pp

Jason, Forgive me if you mentioned this already but is this your first experience with new wine? If so, I can tell you the evolution over the first year or two is amazing. What you think is light and insipid today may be pleasantly different in a few months. Time is almost always your friend with dry red wine.

Joe

yet when that precious liquid touches the

Reply to
Joe Sallustio

A RS reading of 0.25 to 0.50 would be considered fine for a dry red wine. It should mellow out nicely.

Ray

Reply to
Ray Calvert

First experience with new red wines, yes. Whites are fun (though I did learn MLF this year) and thought them to be at least somewhat similiar in processing- that'll learn me something good.

Any idea what Biotan runs for the smallest quantity or how long it keeps?

Thanks much!

Jason

Reply to
purduephotog

Biotan-Shelf life is 4 years at 18C or 65F if kept tightly sealed and dry, you can add an additional 10% per year for any loss in strength.

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Reply to
Jim

Missed that tidbit about 10%/yr update. I've got plenty of freezer space that I keep yeast cultures from beermaking in.

Now to find a price- I hope it's reasonable (which means

Reply to
purduephotog

Presque Isle does not handle that that I am aware of but sells about 10 different tannin products. I use the cheap stuff... You can call and ask them, they stock many items that aren't in the catalog. You can't go wrong with Scott Labs products though.

Joe

Reply to
Joe Sallustio

Jason, I second Joe's advice. Cabernet in particular seems to take on weight with time and transforms itself into a fine wine. At the very least you could wait until the fall and if it hasn't improved you could employ some of the strategies suggested by Pp. Don't give up yet, patience may be the key.

Tim

Reply to
Tim O

Thanks Tim and Joe (and others).

I'll bottle as needed, and I'll reserve maybe 5 gallons or so for tannins... and we'll see. 15 gallons of Cab would seem like such a waste, but since it's summer I figure I'll be drinking the 30 gallons of chard (or at least feeding it to those that are going to help put in the yard ;P).

Now to figure out how to make "Le Crema" style Chard....

Reply to
purduephotog

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