Change in styles for me

[toddrod]

I am changing up my winemaking a little. All I have made in the past in country style fruit and grape wines. I am now going to do some wine cooler style wines. I just ordered supplies to make a Strawberry White Zinfandel and a Green Apple Gewürztraminer. This should be interesting.

 

[robie]

Let us know how it goes. We are always interested in good and good information.

 

[Runningwolf]

Toddrod, Hopefully you won't be dissappointed. You're going in the exact opposite direction of most people. While these kits can be good I would not expect them to stand up against your own. They will be very sweet and low on alcohol. This may be just right for some people. You can add half the fpack in the beginning to cut down on some of the sweetness. I also add additional suger up front to increase the alcohol. I shoot for a starting sg of about 1.08-1.085. Keep us posted.

 

[toddrod]

For me, I make mostly semi sweet - sweet wines, so this is in my realm of winemaking. I am looking at these more for gifts then anything else.

 

[Wade E]

You may want tro boost up the abv of these like what a lot of us do. I myself use appr 3 lbs of sugar in primary to get the starting sg up around 1.090

 

[toddrod]

Well, I put both of these kits to fermenting this morning as well as 5 gallons of Welch's Concord. Brought the S.G. of the Concord up to 1.10 and the other 2 kits to 1.090.

 

[toddrod]

Both kits came with EC1118 yeast so I used that as well in the Concord.

 

[toddrod]

I had time today to rack and add the flavor packs. I like the results so far. These will be good when they are ice cold to serve during the crawfish and crab boils during lent I plan on having.

 

[toddrod]

The Strawberry Zinfindel finished out at 1.015 and the Green Apple at 1.020 after the flavor packs were added. Pretty much where I backsweeten my normal wines.

 

[Minnesotamaker]

I find that people who drink very little wine, tend to like these wines. I used to drink them too and I had friends who liked them. But now I have trouble enjoying them because I they seem so watered down to me. It isn't so much the lower alcohol that is the problem, it's more like it is too thin or thready, almost like taking one of your other wines and adding a bunch of water. I still do make them to share though, because college kids and little old ladies still seem to like them.

 

[toddrod]

Bottled up both batches today and I like the flavors. Right now I am leaning toward the Green Apple more than the Stawberry.

 

[jwolf99]

You may want tro boost up the abv of these like what a lot of us do. I myself use appr 3 lbs of sugar in primary to get the starting sg up around 1.090

Wade - are you inverting the sugar for this or just adding the sugar directly at the start of primary fermentation?

I make WE Selection Estate German Mosel Gewurztraminer every year and would like to bump up the ABV level. I know that Riesling and Gewurz usually come out to around 8%. But I figured replacing the water with an inverted sugar mix would help kick it up a bit.

John

 

[Flem]

Dissolve the sugar in warm water and then add it to the primary.