A Journey in a Journal

Back by popular demand!
... Okay, not really lol.

I find that the notes I take on the forum are better than the notes I take in my actual wine journal; so for the benefit of everyone, I've decided to bring this Wine Journal back to life. For good, this time.

Here's some of the wines I'm still working on; while most of you are probably finishing up 2014 wines, I'm still bulk aging 2013. I didnt make much of anything in 2014, so 2013 has gotten to bulk age for longer.

I will be picking up another 60lbs/5 gallon bucket of Blackberry Honey here shortly, for 2015. But I'll wait until we get there, before I reveal what I'll be doing with that.

So here's whats on the table;




2013 Apple-Pear Bochet




2013 Banana Bochet Port
You can read about this in its entirety, here




2013 Mead




These are probably three of my finest batches in the 4+ years I've been making wine/mead. Everything from here out will be honey-based, no white sugar anywhere, which is why we're in the Mead section.

I have a number of empty carboys for the 2015 adventures, so that'll be a lot of fun; but I will be trying to get these three into bottles here shortly.

Feel free to ask questions, toss out comments.. I know some of you will even 'yank my chain' - it's okay, I can take it; this thread is as much for you as it is for me and my note-taking, so let's make it a conversation

Hold onto your hats, there's plenty to come in the near future

Sorry Deezil, they are too clear, you must have done something wrong or missed a step. WVMJ

I was about to comment on the clarity. What did you do to get them that clear?

Lol ya'll are funny;

Just pectin enzyme pre-fermentation, bentonite on the 3rd day of fermentation, post-fermentation degassing with the vacuum pump.. and time.

I also adjusted the pH/TA and sugar levels correctly pre-fermentation; fed the yeast with Go-Ferm and Fermaid-O for really clean fermentations; and used Booster Blanc/Rouge, Opti-White/-Red, and FT Blanc/Rouge to enhance the structure, bouquet, and stabilize the color.

It's mostly just time and patience that got them that clear; these were all racked before I took these pictures yesterday, you can actually still see the CO2 bubbling on top of the 2013 Mead - it's still loaded lol.

FINALLY!!!! Lol, when Deezil says back by popular demand, what he's actually saying is: "Ray, stop PM'ing me for my recipes!!!"

Those three carboys look incredible. The clarity really is wild.

Hats off to you, Manley. Those carboys look first class.

Those really are beautiful to look at and I'm sure will be amazing to drink! I love that in the first picture you have WineMakingTalk up on your computer screen!

Rather new to mead making, however, have several large projects working. Do you find adding bentonite changes the flavor at all? Also, is it wise to add it after fermentation?

Bentonite can strip flavor, color and aroma if used too heavily, but I always start with rather light additions . You can use it post-fermentation, but I prefer to use it during.

Been a while, but I got those two clear batches - 2013 Apple-Pear Bochet & 2013 Mead - bottled up;




And I ordered another 5-gallon bucket / 60lbs of Blackberry Honey; broke it down into quart jars and came out with 21.75 quarts, plus the 2 quarts I had left over off to the right. Gives me 23 quarts to use for meads/melomels, and 3/4 quart to eat otherwise.




You can see there's plenty of empty carboys.

I'll be trying to get the 2010 RJS Riesling Ice Wine & 2013 Banana Bochet Port both bottled soon as well, I just need to afford the bottles. I cant believe I havent bottled that 2010 RJS Riesling Ice Wine yet, but I'm sure its going to be worth the wait.

I also need to get these Blackberry batches sorted out - 2011 has Blackberries + Sweet Cherries + Honey + Cherry Liqueur (vishnik?) + Blackberry Liqueur ; 2012 has Blackberries + Riesling grape skins + sugar; 2013 has Blackberries + Honey - the first two have messed up pH/TA readings, but the 2013 is relatively balanced, just needs to finish clearing.

That's all I have left in the works though.
Time to play catch-up.

Lots of ideas to come, but we'll see what kinds of fruit falls into my lap.

In an effort to 'climb back on the horse', I decided to clean out some of the fruit in the fridge... Was pretty unsuccessful, honestly. There's all kinds of stuff in there - watermelon, honeydew, blueberries, cherries, blackberries, raspberries, grapes, pineapple...

'Bout that pineapple..




I know there's a watermelon in that picture.. And I was going to use it, to make a pineapple-watermelon mead.. But, see, I got the honey dissolved..




And it smelled amazing; I love this blackberry honey.
I added 1/4 tsp K-meta, thinking I was going to use the watermelon.
So then came the pineapple; 3.5 pounds.




But uhh.. It smells so amazing, that I couldnt make myself add the watermelon.
I crushed the pineapple up by hand.
Since I added the k-meta, I'll add pectic enzyme in the morning and start the yeast starter. Then I'll pitch that tomorrow afternoon/evening, after I check the SG, TA/pH.

There's another batch to start too; Blackberry-Cherry Mead

Anyway, here we go again..
Lol

I sure wish I could get my hands on some of that Blackberry Honey! We just don't have that here (also, is it weird that when you said you crushed the pineapple by hand I imagined a giant viking crushing it in one hand?)

Looking forward to hearing about your newest ventures!

That's about what it felt like though, it was so ripe that it just mushed between my fingers lol

This is only a gallon batch; I dont usually take notes or anything - I'm not as precise as one might (read: should) be.

I know it's 1 quart of honey, I know its 3.5lbs of pineapples.. That about.. err, I know I'm using R-HST for a yeast

And the usual culprits;

Go-Ferm
Fermaid-O
Opti-White, pre-fermentation
Booster Blanc, when I rack to glass / ending phase of fermentation

I just wing these little batches though, quite honestly, when it comes to how much I'm adding of what, and when. I'm home a lot to check over the fermentation constantly, so it's not something I recommend. But these little scrap 1-gallon batches are for cleaning out the fridge and seeing if I want to make a larger, more precise batch.

I can tell you already, I'll be making a larger Pineapple Mead.

I do still measure the sugar and acidity; cant slack on that.

SG: 1.085
pH: 3.21

I'm rolling with it; the Go-Ferm is kissing the hot water, the yeast will go in shortly, sit for a bit and then it's off to the races.
I should be able to start the 3-gallon Blackberry-Cherry Mead tomorrow, with W15 yeast; that'll be a fun one too, more precise lol

Actually, I tasted a jam at the Farmer's market yesterday that was made with honey, pineapple and pears. It was incredible. A possible thought for a future mead?

How do you find using R-HST, and W15?

That sounds pretty nice, actually. I remember reading that pineapple wines are generally related to something like a Chardonnay when they're finished; the pear would probably be really good, in there.

R-HST and W15 are probably my two favorite yeasts, so far.
Here's the notes I have for them:

R-HST

S. cerevisiae cerevisiae
Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, White French Hybrids, Icewine

Alcohol tolerance of 15%
Temperature tolerance of 50F – 86F
‘Moderate’ fermentation speed
‘Medium’ Nitrogen needs
‘Low’ H2S production
‘Aggressive’ to competition

White: 4
Rose: 1
Red: 1
Late Harvest: 1
Stuck Ferment: 1
MLF: 2

Ø Selected for its exceptional oenological properties in Riesling from trials conducted 1991 to 1996 in the Heiligenstein region of Austria
Ø Retains fresh varietal character while contributing body and mouthfeel
Ø Produces crisp, premium white wines intended for aging
Ø Best used when the most transparency between a fruit and a finished wine is sought
Ø Useful for showcasing quality fruit and terroir differences, as well making sure original fruit characters are retained in a final blend
Ø Has a short lag phase and generation time, even at cold temperatures, allowing it to dominate and persist over spoilage yeast such as Kloeckera apiculata, where other S. cerevisiae might have difficulty
Ø High degree of ester production

Click to expand...

W15

S. cerevisiae cerevisiae
Gewürztraminer, Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Rosé, French Hybrids, Fruit Wine

Alcohol tolerance of 16%
Temperature tolerance of 50F – 81F
‘Moderate’ fermentation speed
‘High’ Nitrogen needs
‘Low’ H2S production
‘Aggressive’ to competition

White: 4
Rose: 4
Red: 3
Late Harvest: 1
Stuck Ferment: 1
MLF: 4

Ø Isolated in 1991 at the Swiss Federal Research Station in Wädenswil, Switzerland
Ø Developed to ferment dry whites at moderate speeds when bright fruit and heavy mouthfeel are desired; also be used to ferment high quality, fruit focused, light red wines
Ø Produces higher levels of glycerol and succinic acid, especially at higher fermentation temperatures (77F +)
Ø Enhances varietal character

Click to expand...

I first used them when I made my 2012 Riesling by hand. I split that batch of grapes in half and fermented each half with the two yeasts. They both blew me away. I've used them a few more times since then, but I'd have to look through my notes to figure out where.

I need to make two batches of the same thing and ferment them side by side, to figure out which of the two yeasts I really like for which purposes. They both do a lot of the same things - fruit's really forward in aroma and flavor, they both bring some backbone/mouthfeel/substance, they both ferment really cleanly (provided you feed W15 enough).

It's the differences I need to highlight though, and I can only really do that by running a few whites and a few reds, with side by side comparisons. The Riesling I mentioned, was fermented separate then blended together, so there's nothing to compare, there.

Deezil you look like a mead expert so let me ask a question. I made a grilled peach melomel, after about 1 month in the carboy I added Super-Kleer and it cleared right up. After about 2 more months in the carboy after racking it I added about 1 pound of honey to the 3 gallon batch to back-sweeten it, obviously it clouded right back up. What would you do now? I don't want to strip any more flavor out of it. Will it eventually clear on its own?

A grilled peach melomel sounds amazing!

Make sure it's degassed, and then wait. The batches on the first page were done without any clearing agents, except for the Bentonite added during fermentation. The rest was a thorough degassing, and waiting. They can hold an incredible amount of CO2.. Incredible..

Meads take their sweet time coming together, flavor wise, so it needs to sit anyways.
I let them bulk age for ~18 months, racking may be twice over that time (every six months, the third 'racking' is bottling)

Patience, my friend.

I am not the requested mead expert, but I have noticed that my meads can at times be very challenging to get to clear even after over a year in the carboy. They are not gassy, they just don't always clear that well. I have gotten around this by utilizing superklear in conjunction with a polish filter and plenty of aging time.

That's excellent information Manley! Much appreciated. I need to get my hands on a few pouches and play around a little bit I've enjoyed working with BA11 and IVC D254 and seeing the differences. Although, I definitely don't take notes as good as yours regarding my yeasts.

Regarding the clearing, I probably should have used the Super-Kleer after I back sweetened not before.