Blueberry Port

[Boatboy24]

I've got about 16.5 pounds of blueberries in the freezer and a half gallon of Knudsen's organic blueberry juice. I've settled on attempting a blueberry port and will use the recipe from Keller's site as my basis. Here it is:

6 lb. blueberries
1/2 pt. red grape concentrate
1/2 c. light dry malt
1-3/4 lb. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. pectic enzyme
1-1/2 tsp. acid blend
1/2 tsp. yeast energizer
1/2 tsp. wine stabilizer
4 pt. water
crushed Campden tablet
wine yeast
Wash and crush blueberries in nylon straining bag and strain juice into primary fermentation vessel. Tie top of nylon bag and place in primary fermentation vessel. Stir in all other ingredients except stabilizer, yeast and red grape concentrate. Stir well to dissolve sugar, cover well, and set aside for 24 hours. Add yeast, cover, and daily stir ingredients and press pulp in nylon bag to extract flavor. When specific gravity is 1.030 (about 5 days), strain juice from bag and siphon liquor off sediments into glass secondary fermentation vessel. Fit fermentation trap. Rack in three weeks and again in two months. When wine is clear and stable, add red grape concentrate, wine stabilizer and crushed Campden tablet, rack again and bottle. Allow a year to mature. [Adapted from Raymond Massaccesi's Winemaker's Recipe Handbook]

I'm going to attempt a 3 gallon batch. Instead of using the measured sugar as written, I'm going to target an SG of 1.110-1.120, in hopes that I'll finish somewhere between 15 and 16% (I'm going to use EC-1118). From there, I'm going to give it some brandy and let it sit on a mix medium French and American oak.

Now my questions: 1) anyone tried Keller's recipe and care to share your thoughts? 2) I'm not sure about the backsweetening with grape concentrate, but am looking for some input on that. I don't want this to be too "grapey". I guess I could use another concentrate 3) where the recipe calls for 1/2 tsp of wine stabilizer, I assume that means K Sorbate. 4) any other suggestions?

Thanks! I'll be sure to post some pics as I get this going.

Jim

 

[Arne]

I would step feed the sugar. Start it out 1.080 or so, ferment down to 1.050 or so, then add half the sugar that is left, stir it in good, when back down to 1.050 or so again, add the last of the sugar. Be aware when adding the sugar the ferment can foam up quite a bit so have plenty of headspace room at that time. Arne.

 

[eblasmn9]

I've got about 16.5 pounds of blueberries in the freezer and a half gallon of Knudsen's organic blueberry juice. I've settled on attempting a blueberry port and will use the recipe from Keller's site as my basis. Here it is:

6 lb. blueberries
1/2 pt. red grape concentrate
1/2 c. light dry malt
1-3/4 lb. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. pectic enzyme
1-1/2 tsp. acid blend
1/2 tsp. yeast energizer
1/2 tsp. wine stabilizer
4 pt. water
crushed Campden tablet
wine yeast
Wash and crush blueberries in nylon straining bag and strain juice into primary fermentation vessel. Tie top of nylon bag and place in primary fermentation vessel. Stir in all other ingredients except stabilizer, yeast and red grape concentrate. Stir well to dissolve sugar, cover well, and set aside for 24 hours. Add yeast, cover, and daily stir ingredients and press pulp in nylon bag to extract flavor. When specific gravity is 1.030 (about 5 days), strain juice from bag and siphon liquor off sediments into glass secondary fermentation vessel. Fit fermentation trap. Rack in three weeks and again in two months. When wine is clear and stable, add red grape concentrate, wine stabilizer and crushed Campden tablet, rack again and bottle. Allow a year to mature. [Adapted from Raymond Massaccesi's Winemaker's Recipe Handbook]

I'm going to attempt a 3 gallon batch. Instead of using the measured sugar as written, I'm going to target an SG of 1.110-1.120, in hopes that I'll finish somewhere between 15 and 16% (I'm going to use EC-1118). From there, I'm going to give it some brandy and let it sit on a mix medium French and American oak.

Now my questions: 1) anyone tried Keller's recipe and care to share your thoughts? 2) I'm not sure about the backsweetening with grape concentrate, but am looking for some input on that. I don't want this to be too "grapey". I guess I could use another concentrate 3) where the recipe calls for 1/2 tsp of wine stabilizer, I assume that means K Sorbate. 4) any other suggestions?

Thanks! I'll be sure to post some pics as I get this going.

Jim

Interesting recipe. I have been stocking up blueberries in the freezer to make something. I was thinking about a blueberry wine, but the port sounds better. I will watch your progress with interest.

 

[Jeff180]

Mine was based off Keller's. My blueberries weren't that sweet so I probably used more sugar.

6lbs blueberry
1/2c DME
1.5 lbs corn sugar
1.085 sg
EC-1118
About 1.3 gallons at this point, including the fruit skins.

I added a pound of sugar on day 5, and another pound on day 7 when I pressed the fruit and added benonite.

Finished at 0.990 sg (day 30). My math puts it around 19% alcohol - no brandy needed. I stabilized and added a final pound to bring it up to 1.016sg. At 3 months I added some oak. 3 weeks later it's about ready to bottle. Final volume is 1.4 gallons.

 

[Boatboy24]

The berries are thawing, and I'll be mixing this up tonight, then pitching the yeast tomorrow. Anyone have thoughts on the 4pts of water called for in the recipe? That's a half gallon of water - seems like a lot to me for a 1 gallon batch.

Also: how much KMeta is in one camden tab? I only have powdered Kmeta.

Thanks!

Jim

 

[Jeff180]

The water sounds about right. I think the blueberries were around 1/2 gallon in volume. You'll lose some volume when you remove the skins, so I started by adding water to a bit over a gallon. But then my sg was low and needed more sugar. That's how I ended up with 1.3 gallons to start.

KMeta is 1/4 tsp for 5 gallons. You can dissolve the 1/4tsp into a measured amount of water then add 1/5th of that. I also added pectic enzyme, nutrient, and energizer to start. Yeast went in the next day.

 

[Boatboy24]

Thanks Jeff - do you think you have good body and flavor even with the water addition? I'm making what will end up being a 3 gallon batch, so I'm looking at a lot of water to add. I'm just concerned it's really going to thin the wine out.

 

[Jeff180]

My port had a good amount of body. We felt it was full enough to handle the oak. I think the final sugar after stabilizing helps add to it. I definitely wouldn't say it was watery.

You could always start with less water and add more later if needed. It'll lower your final alcohol though.

Or you could split it. Instead of 3 gallons I turned my batch of blueberries into one gallon each of port, wine, and mead. Then you're not investing so much into one recipe.

 

[RegionRat]

I am going to try this. I am shooting for 5gal batch. The recipe calls for DME in cup measure.
Most places I have looked online sell DME by the pound. Can someone let me know in ounces or grams how much does one cup of DME weigh?

RR

 

[Boatboy24]

I bought a 1lb bag and "eyeballed" it. It looks to me to be about 2 cups. I'll know tonight when I get everything mixed up.

 

[wineon4]

I have picked 10 gallon of blueberries and hope to continue picking until the bushes give out. I hope to pick enough to make 20 gallon of wine. I made about 30 gallon last season and it turned out great. As for fruit amounts I use all fruit and only enough water to dissolve the sugar. Freeze the berries then thaw after they are thawed add Pectic enzyme, Kmeta, and raw sugar and macerate until all the juice is out. Allow to stand for several days to extract all the juice. I then use only enough water to dissolve my sugar about a quart then make the wine leaving the mashed up berries in the must a real pain to rack to the secondary but OH THE FLAVOR. Never had a bad batch.

 

[Boatboy24]

RR: I measure just shy of three cups of DME in the pound I bought.

Jim

 

[RegionRat]

RR: I measure just shy of three cups do DME in the pound I bought.

Jim

Thanks. I didnt want to overbuy. According to a friend of mine that brews beer he says this stuff does not have a long shelf live...

 

[Jeff180]

I also get around 3 cups to a pound.

DME will last a year or so if you keep it airtight and dry. You can use the leftover to add some sweetness + body to cider (graff), or try out a small batch of beer.

 

[Boatboy24]

Pitched the yeast about an hour ago. The primary smells like a giant blueberry pie! With all the fruit and the juice I added, I'm around 4 gallons. I estimate I'll be right around three when I take the fruit out. SG is at 1.084, temp at 73 F, and pH of 3.52. I think the pH is high. Anyone have any thoughts?

 

[Bacci]

Pitched the yeast about an hour ago. The primary smells like a giant blueberry pie! With all the fruit and the juice I added, I'm around 4 gallons. I estimate I'll be right around three when I take the fruit out. SG is at 1.084, temp at 73 F, and pH of 3.52. I think the pH is high. Anyone have any thoughts?

Tartaric acid addition may help or extra KMS. I'm thawing my 20# BBs in the morning to start mixing up for 5 gal fermentation w/raisins. I'm shooting for bit lower SG reading this year, 1.085 would be perfect for me. Last year's batch was too hot with a starting sg of 1.26

 

[Boatboy24]

Update: Things have been moving along, but very slowly in the last few days. I've step fed twice during the process - enough to give me an ABV of ~17% if if ferments dry. Two days ago, I was still sitting at 1.036 - that was about day 12, so I pressed the fruit and got it out of there, added a little nutrient and let it go. Of the nearly 17lbs of blueberries I started with, I had two softball sized lumps of fruit after pressing. As of last night, I was only down to 1.030, so I added another packet of EC-1118. Things seemed "perkier" this morning. I'll take another SG reading tonight and hopefully, we're off to the races again. The must still smells really, really good. I'm getting kind of psyched about this wine and hope it keeps fermenting. I've been keeping temps around 74.

 

[Boatboy24]

OK, getting a tad concerned. My SG is still dropping, but its still only down to 1.014 as of this morning - 14 days after pitching the first batch of yeast. I still have it in the primary, and am hesitant to move to a carboy - I'm concerned the lower presence of air will stall it completely. Lid is on and the primary is air locked.

Any suggestions? I have no off odors or anything else that would indicate stress or a stuck fermentation.

 

[jamesngalveston]

what kind of yeast.

 

[Boatboy24]

what kind of yeast.

EC-1118 both times.