Recent content by Eland

I haven't used a fining agent, nor did I really want to. I did hit it with plenty of pectic enzyme though. Like I said, it is clear enough for me to read newspaper through a glass carboy. When I bottle, i just don't want to end up with sediment in the bottle. I may end up using some superkleer...

Where does one get 55#'s blackberries? They should be getting ripe here in a couple of weeks, but I won't get nearly that many.

I have a pear wine that I think is clear. I can actually read anything I put behind the carboy. My question is why can I still see the flashlight beam through the carboy instead of just a point of light on the other side. It has been thoroughly degassed. I have a wild grape that's clear and I...

Wayne, Do you think it has a pectin haze? I started mine in February and it has been clear since mid-April. I did go heavy on the pectic enzyme for this very reason though. If you haven't already, I would degass it good and hit it with another dose of pectic enzyme. It won't hurt.

Waldo, I steam juiced mine and it turned out really well. I started my batch in February and will be bottling soon. Although mine does not have a lot of pear flavor, it is trying its best to taste like a chablis, which I'm okay with. The next batch will definitely have an f-pac.

Thanks for the link Tepe. I plan on picking a ton of them this year and that's some useful information. The wild bushes on our farm have never gotten as big as the ones on Cracked Cork's wineyard.

Waldo, as Wade mentioned, I used the ascorbic acid to prevent browning.

Tepe, if I remember correctly, it took me about six hours to finish that batch.

An update on this wine: I racked again on 02/24/08 into another secondary. The 1 gallon jug was very clear already, while the 5 gallon carboy is still somewhat hazy. The taste was actually pretty good and somewhere between a riesling and a chablis. I put 1oz of medium Hungarian oak in the...

We always called these "Fox" grapes. Some also call them "possum' grapes. I couldn't begin to give you a botanical classification.

I didn't take any brix readings, but I did add 10 lbs of sugar. (I edited my original post to include this.) Additionally, these grapes are/were very acidic and that's showing in the final product now. I did backsweeten to 1.002 which helped it quite a bit and is in the range I like.

It is improving, but this one is going to take some time. Hopefully when I taste it again in about three weeks, the oak will have smoothed it out some.

Tepe, I will post the recipe and other specifics tonight when I get home. I don't have my notes with me at the moment. I can tell you however, that the starting sg was 1.084 and I transferred it at 1.00.

I started this six gallon batch of pear last Tuesday. The recipe I used and specifics are as follows: 3 Gallons Pear Juice From Steamed Pears (27lbs) 1 tsp Ascorbic Acid 5 tsp Acid Blend 4 tsp Pectic Enzyme 3/4 tsp Grape Tannin 5 tsp yeast nutrient 1 tsp yeast energizer 1/4 tsp...