cherry concentrate

[Hunt]

I'm wanting to make a chocolate cherry wine and today I found a cherry concentrate at my store. It says there are over 1000 Montgomery tart cherries per bottle 100% juice. Anyone think that we'll work

 

[Julie]

make sure there is no sorbate listed in the ingredients and yes it should work. Is this a frozen concentrate?

 

[Hunt]

It's not frozen. And in the in ingredients all it says is 100% tart cherries.

 

[Julie]

Well it sounds like you can make wine from it, if it is a ready to drink juice, don't add any water, use all juice.

 

[Hunt]

I scored on some cherry concentrate today I picked up the equivalent of 120 lbs worth of cherries in concentrate form. Im thinking that should be enough to make 12 gallons of wine once all said and done. I have only one question before I get this going. Should I still use pectic enzyme even though its a concentrate?

 

[Julie]

Yes pectic enzyme helps with clearing a wine. And I know you are planning on making a chocolate cherry, I would suggest that you use a dark chocolate and stay away from cocoa.

 

[vernsgal]

I agree with Julie on the chocolate. And don't go cheap on it!

 

[Hunt]

would any kind of dark chocolate work like a bakers chocolate or something like that? I was gonna use a bar of chocolate that was 85% Cocoa but im guessing thats a bad idea

 

[vernsgal]

I use the Lindt chocolate bars 70-90%

 

[Hunt]

Those are the ones i was looking at but they were cocoa I think we have regular dark chocolate at my store Ill take a look.
Next question is should I stabilize the wine before adding the chocolate during secondary so I dont have another fermentation or should I just add the chocolate in primary?

 

[Julie]

Like Kim,I use Lindt's. I did use a German dark chocolate once that was 85% cocoa and that worked very well also. I stabilize and backsweeten and then add the chocolate and let it in for about 6 weeks.