Fresh Juice Bucket Recipe

[Samilyn]

So I have the a local Winery taking orders for the Buckets of grape juice in all different varitals. I would like to order a couple of them. The owners said all I have to do is add yeast. But I am wondering if anyone has any recipes for these buckets and timetables, like how long I should let it sit before doing something to it. Thanks

 

[Bartman]

Short answer: It depends. Long Answer will require more details from you - you don't really need a "recipe" as opposed to a timetable if the kit is pre-balanced and ready to go. If it's ready to have the yeast pitched, then it was already balanced at the vineyard or during processing. If it wasn't balanced, then you'd need to determine the brix (basically the sugar content), the pH, and the total acid (T.A.), and adjust according to some general rules of thumb. If all you have to do is add yeast, then it is pretty simple to select a yeast (there are a handful of widely used types, and a wide variety of rarely-used, specific-purpose types) and let nature take its course. It's your choice to use any or all of the available fining agents (bentonite, chitosan, etc.), as time will usually have the same effect if you are patient. If it is pre-balanced, and you've selected your yeast and the fining agents you will use, there aren't many more decisions to make, just a little work to do and a good bit of waiting.

For us newbies, the kits are easier and handier because they lead you step-by-step through the process. But it can be done and the information can be found without a kit's instructions, too.

Let us know what you are trying to do and you will get plenty of help and input from the forum-dwellers.

Bart

 

[Tom]

I do juice all the time from CA, Italy and Chile. He is right about adding the yeast. But make sure you have alot of extra K-meta, Sorbate and clearing agents.
Once in the secondary continue what you do in a kit. Major thing is juice is not ready for the bottle as fast as kits. I age my whites 6 months min and reds some up to a year depending on the wine.

Picking the right yeast for the profile is a "must" !

 

[Samilyn]

Thanks! I see what youare saying Bart. Yes, the Juice bucket is balanced. But How do I select the yeast? How long do I wait? Is there a timetable for this sort of thing?

 

[Tom]

You should pitch the yeast when the juice is room temp about 24 hours later. What are you getting so we can suggest a yeast

 

[Bartman]

Generally, dry reds get one type of yeast, dry whites a second, champagne a third, etc. Fine Vine Wine's online catalog of the Alljuice wines lists the minimum recommended times for primary fermentation, clarification (secondary ferm., more or less), and waiting time for bottling. I would use those time periods as bare minimums, but like Tepe has said elsewhere, patience is a virtue with wine-making (or something like that). There are multiple threads on this forum about bulk aging and waiting times for bottling and times for aging in the bottle, and numerous opinions about those time periods. Most agree with the general principle that longer aging is better, if you have the patience - 6 months to a year in the carboy (bulk aging) and an additional 6 months to a year in the bottle. So, roughly a year to two years before its gets REALLY good. Is that the sort of timetable you were looking for?

Bart

 

[Samilyn]

So would you say that the kits are drinkable younger than the juice buckets?

 

[Tom]

generally speaking yes. Some (entry level) not all kits are designed that way. The exception is the higher end kits.