Cabernet and Merlot Fresh Grapes from Deming, NM
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AlFulchino
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agreed...good stuff.......but i still have never come across CA grapes w a ph that high..whats in that guys water/irrigation?
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We just don't see numbers that high here, so we don't know the right way to adjust the pH for it (or at least have never had to try it).
Great summary Wade. Makes a good starting point.
Great summary Wade. Makes a good starting point.
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Mike best of luck to you. Great picture and i agree it would make a great label.
Wade, many thanks for posting the Primer on working with fresh grapes.
I think I am getting a handle on the numbers and getting them dialed in.
I read somewhere that rain just before harvest could cause a big rise in pH.
I think I am getting a handle on the numbers and getting them dialed in.
I read somewhere that rain just before harvest could cause a big rise in pH.
NOTE TO SELF: If you haven't used your battery operated pH meter in a while and you get screwball numbers it could be time to change the batteries!
Took a sample of Merlot in to work today to double check the numbers I got last night and I could not believe the difference.
Today :
pH was 3.7
TA was 7.0 g/l
Last night I was totally freaked out about the numbers and added a little Tartaric to see if I could get things in line. The pH meter was reading all over the place and I couldn't even get the meter to properly calibrate with my 4.0 buffer.
I prepared a starter solution with yeast nutrient and some must and pitched the yeast this AM. Temps are a little low in the winery ~ 67 so may have to warm it up a bit but things were already starting to bubble at lunch.
Took a sample of Merlot in to work today to double check the numbers I got last night and I could not believe the difference.
Today :
pH was 3.7
TA was 7.0 g/l
Last night I was totally freaked out about the numbers and added a little Tartaric to see if I could get things in line. The pH meter was reading all over the place and I couldn't even get the meter to properly calibrate with my 4.0 buffer.
I prepared a starter solution with yeast nutrient and some must and pitched the yeast this AM. Temps are a little low in the winery ~ 67 so may have to warm it up a bit but things were already starting to bubble at lunch.
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Another note to self:
If you haven't used the pH meter in a while, you may want to rehydrate per instruction manual for you meter. Also if it takes a long time for readings to stop moving, you may need a new probe if rehydrating doesn't help it.
If you haven't used the pH meter in a while, you may want to rehydrate per instruction manual for you meter. Also if it takes a long time for readings to stop moving, you may need a new probe if rehydrating doesn't help it.
AlFulchino
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glad this topic came up...and Mike glad that you are safe guarding the country at your place of work....please check all the batteries there 
interesting comment about the rain causing a rise in ph...is the rain itself in that area alkaline? just curious
i must confess that all the thing Wade posted have their place..but i do almost NONE of them...i know they work otherwise people wouldnt do them....i just have found that good grapes in general..ALWAYS make a good wine if given time..i am not knocking all the techniques in any way shape or form..i just havent seen the need to use most of them...and i can only offer that none of my wines sit around collecting dust from lack of sales....i raise this point for one reason..to emphasize that grapes are wanting to be a wine...good wine....newcomers to grape wine making should have less fear than they usually have....its like the issue of exposure to O2.....more is made of it than need be
interesting comment about the rain causing a rise in ph...is the rain itself in that area alkaline? just curious
i must confess that all the thing Wade posted have their place..but i do almost NONE of them...i know they work otherwise people wouldnt do them....i just have found that good grapes in general..ALWAYS make a good wine if given time..i am not knocking all the techniques in any way shape or form..i just havent seen the need to use most of them...and i can only offer that none of my wines sit around collecting dust from lack of sales....i raise this point for one reason..to emphasize that grapes are wanting to be a wine...good wine....newcomers to grape wine making should have less fear than they usually have....its like the issue of exposure to O2.....more is made of it than need be
Ha!
Luckily its a 110v AC model.....
No, our rain is like everyone else's, "acid". Our soil IS however pretty alkaline by nature (volcanic). Not sure if there is any correlation at all tho in that matter.......
Luckily its a 110v AC model.....
No, our rain is like everyone else's, "acid". Our soil IS however pretty alkaline by nature (volcanic). Not sure if there is any correlation at all tho in that matter.......
Al Fulchino said:glad this topic came up...and Mike glad that you are safe guarding the country at your place of work....please check all the batteries there
interesting comment about the rain causing a rise in ph...is the rain itself in that area alkaline?
Update:
Things are looking pretty good this AM. Put some heat on both primaries yesterday afternoon to raise them up from ~68 to ~ 72 degrees by this this AM. Added some DAP and some Fermaid-K per directions stirred well with the punch down tool.
Starting to smell pretty good in the winery! Took the heat off this AM.
Will see how high these heat up to now on their own!
Things are looking pretty good this AM. Put some heat on both primaries yesterday afternoon to raise them up from ~68 to ~ 72 degrees by this this AM. Added some DAP and some Fermaid-K per directions stirred well with the punch down tool.
Starting to smell pretty good in the winery! Took the heat off this AM.
Will see how high these heat up to now on their own!
AlFulchino
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lookin good pal....you are on your way!
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Yep, that is wine in it's infancy! Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble.
So today I was trying to catch up on my newspapers I had yet to read an low and behold in last Sundays paper there is a nice article on an old retired chemist from the lab (sound sorta familiar?) who opened one of the first commercial wineries in the area. Although he has ceased operations for one reason or another he did have an interesting quote:
“The growing season is great because of the sunshine,” Balagna said. “So you get very high sugars in the grapes and that translates to pretty high alcohol in the wine and also good flavors. New Mexico wines are quite fruity and you usually have to add acid because they are usually not acidic enough.”
This is exactly what I found in both batches. I corrected my Merlot but left the Cab alone and will take some numbers and do some acid additions after fermentation completes.
Learning lots by any means I can these days!
“The growing season is great because of the sunshine,” Balagna said. “So you get very high sugars in the grapes and that translates to pretty high alcohol in the wine and also good flavors. New Mexico wines are quite fruity and you usually have to add acid because they are usually not acidic enough.”
This is exactly what I found in both batches. I corrected my Merlot but left the Cab alone and will take some numbers and do some acid additions after fermentation completes.
Learning lots by any means I can these days!
AlFulchino
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fabulous Mike....that is key info......i always think its a little miracle when info like this passes by our eyes just when it is needed..i believe there is a reason this happens
Punching caps down 4X a day, sorry Al, not getting up at 2:00AM, where's Waldo when I need him!
Caps are HUGE compared to a 1.5L grape pack in a kit.
Temps in the primaries this AM were right at 80 degrees and I could feel the heat when I was punching and swirling!
Should try and get an SG reading later today.
Good to see you back Big Ike!
Caps are HUGE compared to a 1.5L grape pack in a kit.
Temps in the primaries this AM were right at 80 degrees and I could feel the heat when I was punching and swirling!
Should try and get an SG reading later today.
Good to see you back Big Ike!
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Mike, you MUST get up at 2:00 am TO PUNCH DOWN THE NIGHT CAP.
Seriously, I only punchdown about twice a day and never have color extraction problems. The cap doesn't dry out either in that time. It is amazing how in a 32 gallon Brute, the cap can get about a foot deep. I have even had it push the lid up even when leaving about 8-10 inches of headspace.
Seriously, I only punchdown about twice a day and never have color extraction problems. The cap doesn't dry out either in that time. It is amazing how in a 32 gallon Brute, the cap can get about a foot deep. I have even had it push the lid up even when leaving about 8-10 inches of headspace.
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