Old Vine Zinfandel Port

[marino]

Ahhh, that's helpful. They have syrah, I think ilk give that a shot!

 

[sour_grapes]

Colman, I just checked WGD. What do you think about a Carignan port? I'm not familiar with this grape, but it has higher Brix than the syrahs from 2013..

I've never even heard of that grape. And most info that I read was lacking at best. Not sure the flavor profile of the grape. If I were you I would grab a bottle of it at a store and see what it's all about. Sorry I can't help, but I know they come from the same vineyard as the Zin and they were quality!

You may never have heard of this grape, but I bet you have consumed plenty of it in your life! See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carignan#United_States

 

[ColemanM]

Enjoying the fruits of my labor.

 

[marino]

Already? How old is it? How does it taste?

Looks delicious. It's crying so hard!

 

[ColemanM]

It's very fruity and a little tart with a sweet full flavor. The nose is sweet and earthy with a hint of oak. It's not as dark as the 2011 vintage port I drank, nor as gritty either. I would say it's very close to a tawny port. It's still sitting with American and French Oak cubes in the carboy, but just had to sneak a taste. More of a bing cherry, red berry earthy sweet flavor than a stewed fruit raisin profile. I'd say I'm satisfied though may be a bit sweet for me. Won't have an open barrel for some time though, so I need to be careful not to taste it too often
P.s it's about 2 months old

 

[marino]

Hey Coleman! Ive had some bad luck happen with my wines here but I'm back to give it another try.

I have 2 lugs of Chile Syrah and Malbec coming in a couplle weeks. and am thinking of maybe making the Syrah into port. Do you think the Malbec would work as well? I have better luck with Port, it's the only wine that hasn't completely disappointed me.

I was trying to find a bucket of syrah, but no luck. appreciate any advice you have from your experience with the OVZ!

marino

 

[ColemanM]

Hey Marino, sorry to hear about your wines. What happened?? I think a Syrah would make a pretty good port. Your malbec could be iffy though. I just bought 4 different Malbecs and found them to be all over the place. I was under the impression that they where supposed to be much more blackberry dominant and these, well, had no identity. However at a higher brix and ABV it might show blackberry more. So I'd say go for it. Do them seperately. Then blend if you like.
I had a taste of my Zin and believe it may be too sweet. It is 1.040 (where both ferments stopped at) and fortified with 77% brandy. I think it needs to see a barrel for 6-9 months. Very good raisin stewed fruit and earth though.
Are you going to stop fermentation or back sweeten? If the brix are high I'd try and use a weaker yeast and arrest fermentation. Start adding brandy at 1.024 should hopefully stop it less than 1.02 hope you have better luck with your grapes. What was wrong with your other wines?

 

[marino]

Hey! I don't know what happened to my other wines. I just received my Vinmetrica 300 so I'm hoping to get some information from that ( I think I might have gotten into some acetobacter problems bc of poor sulfite management)

I'm still unsure of what to do with the Malbec. I could just make wine, but I don't want my wife to feel forced to drink swill--if making it a port gave me better hope, I'd go for that.

As for the Syrah, I think I'll stepfeed it and hope the yeast die at the right spot. I'll have some brandy around to see if I can stop it. I think I'll try to stepfeed it with some concentrate from a port kit I have.. Or maybe I should keep it simple and go all grapes...

What are some good ph and acid values I should be looking for?

Hows your Vadai barrel? Is your OVZ in it? I just ordered a 20L and have my LaBodega kit in it now. I also have 3 10L American Barrels with port in it.. I'm looking forward to the differences!

At least the port is all fine, the other wine is probs bad.. I'll hold it in bottles and hope for the best

 

[ColemanM]

Does your wine have a creamy ring on the top of the carboy? How has it gone bad? I can't help with TA and ph values. I'm not the chemist just a drinker. I only have the so2 tester. One day I'll get serious.

 

[marino]

Actually, there's a white ring on a couple. What's that mean?

 

[ColemanM]

I have no idea. It only happens to the kits I add pressed grape skins. Pectin haze? Not sure. I add extra sulfites to the top layer with a syringe.

 

[ColemanM]

Hope you're still here Marino, I added chitosan to my milky ringed Malbec kit and the ring vanished. I'm guessing pectin ring. Nothing bad. How did your wines turn out? I just topped my OVZin port in the barrel off today and had about 100ml left over from the top off bottle. Without it being in the barrel (what I sampled), it has mellowed incredibly gracefully. The 77% brandy has really softened, the 1.04 is not as cloyingly sweet as it once was. I'd have to say I am incredibly proud of this port. Raisin, earth, plums and light oak. Beats the 10 year old Frontenac port I had this summer from a local winery. This is about a $40-$50 drink. Hopefully it will age gracefully and become a 96 point $150 bottle.

 

[marino]

Hey Coleman! Good to hear from you! Wow, so this port is doing all this great stuff this early?? What are your tricks?

I kinda gave up on all this stuff, and then it turned out that it made the wines better (patience by quitting) !

I really want to make a OVZin port, but can't find good juice and skins for this. My La Bodega port is getting better but I wouldn't call it port (and not just because of the naming restrictions) it tastes like sucrose. I'm hoping barrel time will help it along.

How did you get your hands on the brandy? I'd love to get a batch of OVZin port going! I'll be visiting my uncle in the Douro Valley this summer. He's got a small producing vineyard. I'll be too early for harvest, but I'm hoping to pick up some pointers.

Hope to hear from you!

M

 

[ColemanM]

Hey Marino. So I had a sample from the barrel last week and I'd have to say it has a little oak to it. Maybe a tad much, but the barrel should be darn near neutral by now, so I'll leave it in. I have 1 gallon topping wine left. I can't quite explain the brandy. Let's say I know someone who knows someone. I also would have to say that this is a tawny port style. My grapes, if you recall, stall fermentation at 1.040 and I pressed and fortified. Overshot to 21% but oh well. If I did it again, I would add the brandy if it stalled (or at 1.030 if it was still fermenting) and let it sit for up to 7 more days. I'd have to research that but I think it would make a more vintage style port. I bought some Malbec from winegrapesdirect and I feel this would be a pretty good candidate for a port.
I was always ho hum on my port wine kit I made from winexpert, but I found one that was three years old, and I think the sorbate died because it was a sparkling port. Very very interesting. I chilled it but kind of preferred a 58* glass. Good luck on your next adventure. And have a great time in Douro!!!!

 

[marino]

I tried to do this with Malbec last year but had a lot of H2S problems. Still don't know how to fix it. Maybe it's too late? I got Chilean grapes in the spring and I didn't take enough care to learn all I could about the sulfites that those grapes get on the way here. I don't think I can salvage it. I tried multiple super splash rackings, even a few little tests with copper (in glasses) and no noticeable change.

I'll keep hunting for the OVZin and will let you know when I'm getting started!

 

[Busabill]

Hey all, I've been following this thread because I have 6 gallons of Zinfandel that I made from grapes picked in Lodi, started last September. It is dry, MLFd and just finishing 3months of French Oak. I want to take 1 gallon (or a little less and end with a gallon) of it and make a port. But I've never attempted a port before. Are there any issues with starting the port process at this point? Is it just fortify and back sweeten at this point? Is there anything to watch out for or make sure that I do or add? Thanks. This has been an interesting thread! REally want to make a good 20 abv or so port!! Cheers!!!

 

[ColemanM]

Hey busabill, can you find a 77% abv brandy? If so it would help. If not, I'd go with a Brady or cognac that you enjoy and use the pearson's square to fortify. I would also try and get you Zin up to about 1.020 after fortification. Mine was 1.040 but think it would do better with less sugar. Any questions, just ask. I'm here to help you make the port your friends will all ask for!!

 

[Busabill]

Hey, thanks for the reply Coleman! Why a 77% Brandy? And...after fortification, how much sugar do I add to get the SG to 1.020? What is the math there? And is that just simply measured with a hydrometer then? It seems there is a learning curve here, but I will get it.

 

[sour_grapes]

Hey, thanks for the reply Coleman! Why a 77% Brandy? And...after fortification, how much sugar do I add to get the SG to 1.020? What is the math there? And is that just simply measured with a hydrometer then? It seems there is a learning curve here, but I will get it.

You can let Fermcalc do the work for you: http://web2.airmail.net/sgross/fermcalc/fermcalc_applet.html

 

[ColemanM]

77% is for the least amount of dilution. Actually I think it's more like 72 that the Portuguese use. Otherwise your pouring in lots of water with a 40%. Not many people can find the higher stuff, sorry for putting it out there.