Back home and working on some wine!
I've got a batch of tropical fruit I just backsweetened with sugar. I added bananas this time, to see the difference. It turned out lighter than my original batch. I wonder if I used enough fruit. The wife loves it, and that's all that matters. I couldn't tell much difference with the bananas. I'll see how it developes in the bottle.
I've also got a DB, to which I added some raisins and bananas this time. I'm scheduled to proceed with backsweetening tomorrow with this one.
The one that is amazing me is the blackberry. It's still clearing, but it smells and tasted wonderful. Johnna wants me to add some sugar to it, but I like it dry! I might have to split this batch. I made this one using the presser method and 12 pounds of blackberries. It's essentially a Dragonette variation (no lemon juice). I think it will be a favorate. If so, I'm going to need a source for fresh blackberries this summer! Might need to do some pickin'!
I'm going to bottle my Rosso Fortissimo very soon and store it in the Vault. I've recently run out of storage space for wine in my Lab (finally!), so I've got a "goat fence" rack going in under the basement stairs that will hold about 225 bottles. Pictures to follow. My Washington Merlot will go under there, too. These need to sit until Fall before the next tasting.
My wife's Green Apple Riesling is nearly clear and ready to bottle. That will keep her busy while I work on my other wines.
I am nearly overrun by wine! After 18 months of wine making, it is a milestone. Time to put in a new rack!
Your cellars are legendary!
