Blackberry Port-style wine

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summersolstice

Drunken Friar Cellars
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After Midnight blackberry Port-style wine

This wine took best of show in 2009 at the Nebraska State Fair. It's going to be a little difficult to reproduce but certainly doable again. I began this with the intent of producing a Port-style wine but I sort of improvised as I went along. It’s somewhat complex with quite a few steps and ingredients.

9-1

48 oz can of Alexander’s Burgundy concentrate
17 lbs frozen blackberries in a straining bag
12 cups (6 pounds) sugar
1 ½ teaspoons acid blend
1 teaspoon pectic enzyme
½ teaspoon tannin
2 ½ teaspoon yeast nutrient
½ teaspoon yeast energizer
3 ½ gallons of tap water
20 grams untoasted American oak
1 pkg Lalvin K1V 1116

OG 1.110

On 9-3 the gravity was down to 1.045 and I drew off 4 cups of the fermenting must and stirred in 2 more cups of sugar and added back to the must.

On 9-5 the gravity was 1.018 and I added another cup of sugar and 1/2t of Fermaid K

On 9-10 I racked to the secondary. Gravity was 1.00 and at this point the volume was 4.75 gallons. I topped a 3-gallon carboy and put the remaining 1.75 gallons onto 6 lbs of Oregon tart cherries (in a straining bag) in a plastic primary. To this I added 20 grams untoasted American oak and 40 grams heavy toasted American oak. I also added 1 pint of Everclear and a pint of Paul Masson Brandy. This is a common practice to fortify Port-style wines.

On 9-22 I racked the fortified cherry oaked wine and the original blackberry/Burgundy to a 5-gallon carboy with a ½ gallon growler as reserve.

On 10-6 I added potassium metabisulfite and potassium sorbate to stabilize and backsweetened with 500ml Wine Expert grape concentrate and ¾ cup of sugar. Final graity was 1.005.

On 1-3 I added 1 ½ oz medium toast American oak.

Bottled on 3-14


Drunken Friar Cellars
 
How did this turn out? I'm going to have a lot of blackberry so this season and was thinking of blackberry port.

Thanks Barbie
 
How did this turn out? I'm going to have a lot of blackberry so this season and was thinking of blackberry port.

Thanks Barbie

It turned out very well. In fact, it took best of show at the Nebraska State Fair a few years ago. Like all port-style wines, it's sweet but the alcohol kick offsets the sweetness.
 
What do you suppose the outcome would be replacing the sugar with honey?
 

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