its your favorite wine still based on grapes? if not, what it is it?

[Granrey]

In my short experience on this hobbie either doing wines or researching. I came to realize grapes are most popular for wine for several reasons that today we can manipulate/modify (Ph, sugar content, taste, etc) in other fruits.

are grapes still your favorite? if not, what is it?

 

[Rice_Guy]

Grapes have an advantage in that they are close to the target of ideal must, therefore we can ignore 90% of the formula.
Working with other fruit takes an understanding of what grapes naturally contain and then building that into a formula, as an example I do lots of rhubarb but to put tannin in last year I tried a few percent of crab apple and for several years to put a pretty color in, it gets a few ounces of raspberry. “building blocks”

 

[Jal5]

I like grape wine but experimenting with other fruit comes a close second. Pear is one of my favorite non grape wines.

 

[winemaker81]

I am a dry red wine drinker, but honestly -- I'll drink almost anything. Whites and fruits have their place in my cellar. A crisp, barely backsweetened apple is a nice relaxing drink.

I have fermented a wide variety of things (check my site) and will continue to experiment. But 80% of what I made is red, as it's the one I love most.

Historically grapes =wine because as @Rice_Guy said, they are the complete package. In past centuries where access to sugar, yeast, etc did not exist, grapes were the go-to as they contain sugar, acid, tannin, AND have yeast growing on the skins. Unless you boil it, grape juice will ferment on its own, and if left in open air, airborne yeasts may infect boiled grape juice anyway.

 

[NoQuarter]

I think my favorite is a blackberry aged around 3+ years.
Fig, blueberry and muscadine also top my personal favorite list. All of these I have grown for over 30 years (even the sugar cane).
I started with country wines with my grandfather in the late 70s. Never even tried wine made from wine grapes till the 2000s.
I do love to make/drink the bold reds with a mild oak now though. I'm not sure a great red wine is the same category as a great country wine.
I love both but its like comparing a good sweet tea with a vanilla coke.

 

[Rembee]

My wife and I also grow our own muscadines and blueberries. We have been brewing our own country wines since 2004. Apple, lemon, peach, nobel muscadine and blueberry. Our favorite though is a blend of the muscadine and blueberries that we call "Musberry Wine"
Our Nobel Muscadine wine is a close second with our Blueberry wine coming in 3rd.
But all in all we find it very rewarding to grow, pick, freeze and then ferment our own grown fresh fruit!

 

[JustJoe]

I make wine from rhubarb, mulberries, blueberries, chokecherries and grapes and I like them all but grapes are still the best for my taste.

 

[mainshipfred]

Years ago I went to a wine event and just don't remember what it was. We were tasting red wines and a lady in the group wasn't participating. When asked why she said she didn't like red wines. One person told her you have to learn to appreciate red wines and her response was "why do I have to learn to drink something I don't like". I found it to be an absolutely honest and logical response. I still prefer a dry red but without "trying to learn" whites are becoming more appealing as are drier fruit wines.

 

[Scooter68]

To be perfectly honest I got into this hobby because I could not buy what I wanted from any stores and with the "no shipping" laws preventing me from ordering on-line I had no choice but to make my own.
I started with the intent to make my own Apple wine (Had a fantastic Apple wine in Weisbaden) but that changed quickly since I didn't have enough apples that summer but I did have plenty of blueberries.
From that I just kept trying different fruits (Keeping more into the classical "Fruit" category and not going into things like Rhubarb, or Pumpkin etc. (Nothing against those, just not of interest to me...currently)
I do not make grape based wine primarly because I can so easy to simply go find a WIDE variety on the shelves in stores. Try doing that with any "Country WIne" AKA wine from other than grapes and what you find typically are blends of fruits such as a blackberry wine that in truth is Blackberry and Grape wine. Again nothing against that but I was initially looking for Single varietal wines in order to enjoy just that one flavor.

Along the way I've done a couple of mixes or blend such as Pineapple-Mango which I thought at first I wanted MANGO-Pineapple until I tasted it. Also did a Peach Vanilla because of another fortunate experience. My first batch of Peach wine had a lot of pulp that consistent of peaches not fully broken down (My bad) and since that pulp smelled so good and honestly tasted pretty good too despite the yeasty taste, I tried it as a topping on some Vanilla ice cream. That of course gave me the idea of a peach wine with some vanilla bean in it and that was my second 'blended' wine. The final one has been a triple berry wine born out of a lack enough fruit. I found in our big freezer some Red Raspberries (about 1.5 lbs) Wild Black Raspberries (about 2.5 lbs), and some Wild Blackberries (About 1.5 lbs) While that amount of fruit (5.5 lbs) sounds like a low amount for even 1 gallon - Wild Berries are so much stronger flavored that it turned out to be a killer wine. Swirl it in the glass and the color of the wine lingers on the glass for several seconds.
So that's what I like and this is what I have made so far:


Apple Wine
Apple Cider (Some sweetened with Honey)
Blueberry
BlackBerry (Wild and Prepared Concentrate)
Black Current (Prepared Concentrate)
Wild Black Raspberry
Tart Cherry (Prepared Concentrate)
Sweet Cherry (Prepared Concentrate)
Elderberry (Prepared Concentrate)
Peach
Peach Vanilla
Plum (Prepared Concentrate)
Red Raspberry (Prepared Concentrate)
Pineapple-Mango
Triple Berry (Domestic Red Raspberry, Wild Black Raspberry, & Wild Blackberry)

Then the also ran group of:
(Yeah I Tried a few grape based wines)

Peach Riesling
Blush Zinfandel
Zinfandel
Strawberry (Not my best results)
Apricot (Hmm guess I don't like Apricot Wine)

 

[hounddawg]

hum,,, i have never yet made a grape wine,,,, I make my country wines to as close as the fruit/berry they are from,,, God makes the fruit/berry perfect,,, I just add alcohol,,,
Dawg

 

[hounddawg]

To be perfectly honest I got into this hobby because I could not buy what I wanted from any stores and with the "no shipping" laws preventing me from ordering on-line I had no choice but to make my own.
I started with the intent to make my own Apple wine (Had a fantastic Apple wine in Weisbaden) but that changed quickly since I didn't have enough apples that summer but I did have plenty of blueberries.
From that I just kept trying different fruits (Keeping more into the classical "Fruit" category and not going into things like Rhubarb, or Pumpkin etc. (Nothing against those, just not of interest to me...currently)
I do not make grape based wine primarly because I can so easy to simply go find a WIDE variety on the shelves in stores. Try doing that with any "Country WIne" AKA wine from other than grapes and what you find typically are blends of fruits such as a blackberry wine that in truth is Blackberry and Grape wine. Again nothing against that but I was initially looking for Single varietal wines in order to enjoy just that one flavor.

Along the way I've done a couple of mixes or blend such as Pineapple-Mango which I thought at first I wanted MANGO-Pineapple until I tasted it. Also did a Peach Vanilla because of another fortunate experience. My first batch of Peach wine had a lot of pulp that consistent of peaches not fully broken down (My bad) and since that pulp smelled so good and honestly tasted pretty good too despite the yeasty taste, I tried it as a topping on some Vanilla ice cream. That of course gave me the idea of a peach wine with some vanilla bean in it and that was my second 'blended' wine. The final one has been a triple berry wine born out of a lack enough fruit. I found in our big freezer some Red Raspberries (about 1.5 lbs) Wild Black Raspberries (about 2.5 lbs), and some Wild Blackberries (About 1.5 lbs) While that amount of fruit (5.5 lbs) sounds like a low amount for even 1 gallon - Wild Berries are so much stronger flavored that it turned out to be a killer wine. Swirl it in the glass and the color of the wine lingers on the glass for several seconds.
So that's what I like and this is what I have made so far:


Apple Wine
Apple Cider (Some sweetened with Honey)
Blueberry
BlackBerry (Wild and Prepared Concentrate)
Black Current (Prepared Concentrate)
Wild Black Raspberry
Tart Cherry (Prepared Concentrate)
Sweet Cherry (Prepared Concentrate)
Elderberry (Prepared Concentrate)
Peach
Peach Vanilla
Plum (Prepared Concentrate)
Red Raspberry (Prepared Concentrate)
Pineapple-Mango
Triple Berry (Domestic Red Raspberry, Wild Black Raspberry, & Wild Blackberry)

Then the also ran group of:
(Yeah I Tried a few grape based wines)

Peach Riesling
Blush Zinfandel
Zinfandel
Strawberry (Not my best results)
Apricot (Hmm guess I don't like Apricot Wine)

yup Arkansas has the strictest laws of all,,, just sending a bottle to a friend is a felony ,,,
Dawg

 

[hounddawg]

To be perfectly honest I got into this hobby because I could not buy what I wanted from any stores and with the "no shipping" laws preventing me from ordering on-line I had no choice but to make my own.
I started with the intent to make my own Apple wine (Had a fantastic Apple wine in Weisbaden) but that changed quickly since I didn't have enough apples that summer but I did have plenty of blueberries.
From that I just kept trying different fruits (Keeping more into the classical "Fruit" category and not going into things like Rhubarb, or Pumpkin etc. (Nothing against those, just not of interest to me...currently)
I do not make grape based wine primarly because I can so easy to simply go find a WIDE variety on the shelves in stores. Try doing that with any "Country WIne" AKA wine from other than grapes and what you find typically are blends of fruits such as a blackberry wine that in truth is Blackberry and Grape wine. Again nothing against that but I was initially looking for Single varietal wines in order to enjoy just that one flavor.

Along the way I've done a couple of mixes or blend such as Pineapple-Mango which I thought at first I wanted MANGO-Pineapple until I tasted it. Also did a Peach Vanilla because of another fortunate experience. My first batch of Peach wine had a lot of pulp that consistent of peaches not fully broken down (My bad) and since that pulp smelled so good and honestly tasted pretty good too despite the yeasty taste, I tried it as a topping on some Vanilla ice cream. That of course gave me the idea of a peach wine with some vanilla bean in it and that was my second 'blended' wine. The final one has been a triple berry wine born out of a lack enough fruit. I found in our big freezer some Red Raspberries (about 1.5 lbs) Wild Black Raspberries (about 2.5 lbs), and some Wild Blackberries (About 1.5 lbs) While that amount of fruit (5.5 lbs) sounds like a low amount for even 1 gallon - Wild Berries are so much stronger flavored that it turned out to be a killer wine. Swirl it in the glass and the color of the wine lingers on the glass for several seconds.
So that's what I like and this is what I have made so far:


Apple Wine
Apple Cider (Some sweetened with Honey)
Blueberry
BlackBerry (Wild and Prepared Concentrate)
Black Current (Prepared Concentrate)
Wild Black Raspberry
Tart Cherry (Prepared Concentrate)
Sweet Cherry (Prepared Concentrate)
Elderberry (Prepared Concentrate)
Peach
Peach Vanilla
Plum (Prepared Concentrate)
Red Raspberry (Prepared Concentrate)
Pineapple-Mango
Triple Berry (Domestic Red Raspberry, Wild Black Raspberry, & Wild Blackberry)

Then the also ran group of:
(Yeah I Tried a few grape based wines)

Peach Riesling
Blush Zinfandel
Zinfandel
Strawberry (Not my best results)
Apricot (Hmm guess I don't like Apricot Wine)

strawberry is very good at least to me at 2 to 3 years of age
Dawg

 

[winemaker81]

When asked why she said she didn't like red wines. One person told her you have to learn to appreciate red wines and her response was "why do I have to learn to drink something I don't like". I found it to be an absolutely honest and logical response. I still prefer a dry red but without "trying to learn" whites are becoming more appealing as are drier fruit wines.

I see her POV as short sighted. I tried Scotch many moons ago and didn't care for it, so I haven't bothered with it in decades. Recently a friend who is a Scotch lover introduced me to several brands, and I've become something of an enthusiast. I'm primarily a red drinker, but I have numerous bottles of Scotch, Bourbon, Irish whiskey, Cognac, gin, and tequila for when the urge strikes.

Our tastes and likes expand only if we try new things. Or sometimes retry old things.

I don't care for muscadine. Just not my taste. But that doesn't stop me from doing winery tastings on occasion, 'cuz my tastes may change or I may find one that simply works for me. I won't know unless I try.

About 5 years ago my niece was a bubblegum drinker, e.g., sweet drinks. She started drinking reds with me, her tastes changed, and now she's a red drinker. Sure, she continues to enjoy the sweet drinks with her friends who are not dry wine drinkers, but her tastes have expanded radically.

 

[Granrey]

To be perfectly honest I got into this hobby because I could not buy what I wanted from any stores and with the "no shipping" laws preventing me from ordering on-line I had no choice but to make my own.
I started with the intent to make my own Apple wine (Had a fantastic Apple wine in Weisbaden) but that changed quickly since I didn't have enough apples that summer but I did have plenty of blueberries.
From that I just kept trying different fruits (Keeping more into the classical "Fruit" category and not going into things like Rhubarb, or Pumpkin etc. (Nothing against those, just not of interest to me...currently)
I do not make grape based wine primarly because I can so easy to simply go find a WIDE variety on the shelves in stores. Try doing that with any "Country WIne" AKA wine from other than grapes and what you find typically are blends of fruits such as a blackberry wine that in truth is Blackberry and Grape wine. Again nothing against that but I was initially looking for Single varietal wines in order to enjoy just that one flavor.

Along the way I've done a couple of mixes or blend such as Pineapple-Mango which I thought at first I wanted MANGO-Pineapple until I tasted it. Also did a Peach Vanilla because of another fortunate experience. My first batch of Peach wine had a lot of pulp that consistent of peaches not fully broken down (My bad) and since that pulp smelled so good and honestly tasted pretty good too despite the yeasty taste, I tried it as a topping on some Vanilla ice cream. That of course gave me the idea of a peach wine with some vanilla bean in it and that was my second 'blended' wine. The final one has been a triple berry wine born out of a lack enough fruit. I found in our big freezer some Red Raspberries (about 1.5 lbs) Wild Black Raspberries (about 2.5 lbs), and some Wild Blackberries (About 1.5 lbs) While that amount of fruit (5.5 lbs) sounds like a low amount for even 1 gallon - Wild Berries are so much stronger flavored that it turned out to be a killer wine. Swirl it in the glass and the color of the wine lingers on the glass for several seconds.
So that's what I like and this is what I have made so far:


Apple Wine
Apple Cider (Some sweetened with Honey)
Blueberry
BlackBerry (Wild and Prepared Concentrate)
Black Current (Prepared Concentrate)
Wild Black Raspberry
Tart Cherry (Prepared Concentrate)
Sweet Cherry (Prepared Concentrate)
Elderberry (Prepared Concentrate)
Peach
Peach Vanilla
Plum (Prepared Concentrate)
Red Raspberry (Prepared Concentrate)
Pineapple-Mango
Triple Berry (Domestic Red Raspberry, Wild Black Raspberry, & Wild Blackberry)

Then the also ran group of:
(Yeah I Tried a few grape based wines)

Peach Riesling
Blush Zinfandel
Zinfandel
Strawberry (Not my best results)
Apricot (Hmm guess I don't like Apricot Wine)

How is the mango-pineaple combo?

lm currently doing 1 gal of each separate.

Im also doing a mix of soursop-grap. This has the best aroma so far. I cant stop myself from sniffing at the airlock. Its still in primary.

 

[Scooter68]

Garnrey asked: "How is the mango-pineaple combo? "

Great combo. Pineapple will dominate unless the percentage is way under 50%. But, as I found out - That's not bad. Mango rounds out the flavor and prevents the sharpness of the pineapple from being overcoming. So it's really going to be a Pineapple-Mango wine not the other way around.

Winemaker81 - I have all but refused to give the husband of one of my nieces any of my wine. When He took the wine, sniffed it and downed it like a shot of whiskey in a single swallow, I decided "No Wine for You "as my dad did with someone who downed a glass of Expensive Cognac is a single swallow. I can't rememeber and probably couldn't post what my dad said about the goof but let's just say our liquor cabinet was never opened to him again.

Tastes change and sometimes I think it's due our moods, experiences over the years or as we mellow out with age. I know I REALLY enjoy Irish Cream something soooo smooth and creamy just begs to be devoured - but in small sips. But I'm wandering off the topic.

 

[Venatorscribe]

I am very much with you all in regards taste and appreciation of all things wine. I enjoy a number of red wine varietals. However - as I get older I have developed an even greater appreciation of the complexity and flavour profiles of country wine. Albeit Rose Petals that I source from my neighbour, Pears off my tree blended with guava, certain tea based wine made from various bushes located in my area ... etc... . I believe we are all fortunate to have wine making as a passion. And fortunate to have a blog like this where we can chat away about our obsession. Cheers folk.

 

[winemaker81]

Winemaker81 - I have all but refused to give the husband of one of my nieces any of my wine. When He took the wine, sniffed it and downed it like a shot of whiskey in a single swallow, I decided "No Wine for You "as my dad did with someone who downed a glass of Expensive Cognac is a single swallow. I can't remember and probably couldn't post what my dad said about the goof but let's just say our liquor cabinet was never opened to him again.

Ditto -- I open one bottle when some folks are visiting, and other bottles for a different group. When we open champagne for my wife's birthday, I pour most people 1/3 glass, and my b-in-l gets a splash. He doesn't care for champagne and will drink a sip to be sociable, then he opens a beer. He's not offended (he appreciates the small glass), and there is no point in wasting it.

OTOH, when my sons are home, I send one into the cellar for a bottle, I know they'll bring up one of my best, and I save those bottles for the family/friends who have the palate to appreciate it. Others get the cheaper stuff, and they don't know the difference -- not that they're getting poor wine, as I don't have any in the house.

The flip side to my niece story is an old friend who learned to drink reds when we roomed together, but he never developed the taste. His preference has always been sweeter wine, although he developed an appreciation for better quality wines.

 

[hounddawg]

Ditto -- I open one bottle when some folks are visiting, and other bottles for a different group. When we open champagne for my wife's birthday, I pour most people 1/3 glass, and my b-in-l gets a splash. He doesn't care for champagne and will drink a sip to be sociable, then he opens a beer. He's not offended (he appreciates the small glass), and there is no point in wasting it.

OTOH, when my sons are home, I send one into the cellar for a bottle, I know they'll bring up one of my best, and I save those bottles for the family/friends who have the palate to appreciate it. Others get the cheaper stuff, and they don't know the difference -- not that they're getting poor wine, as I don't have any in the house.

The flip side to my niece story is an old friend who learned to drink reds when we roomed together, but he never developed the taste. His preference has always been sweeter wine, although he developed an appreciation for better quality wines.

better is a relative perception to ones taste,,,
Dawg

 

[burningfreak]

I have to say I do like a good dry red, but that doesn’t take away from my appreciation of other fermented beverages. Some days I want steak, other times pasta and occasionally I need a good greasy burger. I’m the same way with my wines and other alcohols for that matter. It’s hard to say which is better when I appreciate them for different reasons.

 

[Granrey]

Garnrey asked: "How is the mango-pineaple combo? "

Great combo. Pineapple will dominate unless the percentage is way under 50%. But, as I found out - That's not bad. Mango rounds out the flavor and prevents the sharpness of the pineapple from being overcoming. So it's really going to be a Pineapple-Mango wine not the other way around.

Winemaker81 - I have all but refused to give the husband of one of my nieces any of my wine. When He took the wine, sniffed it and downed it like a shot of whiskey in a single swallow, I decided "No Wine for You "as my dad did with someone who downed a glass of Expensive Cognac is a single swallow. I can't rememeber and probably couldn't post what my dad said about the goof but let's just say our liquor cabinet was never opened to him again.

Tastes change and sometimes I think it's due our moods, experiences over the years or as we mellow out with age. I know I REALLY enjoy Irish Cream something soooo smooth and creamy just begs to be devoured - but in small sips. But I'm wandering off the topic.

Did you make that combo from juices or actual fruits? im using stone juices