Making wine with no yeast

[laneygirl]

I visited a winery in Denver called Balistreri, yesterday, with my brothers on my Thanksgiving vacation.They do stuff "organically" with no yeast additions prior tofermentation and NO sulfites added throughout the process. The grapes are not necessarily organic coming from western slopes of Colorado, but the rest of the process is very "natural".


I am wondering if anyone out there makes all natural fruit wines with no yeast additions.


They took several measures along the way to help prevent oxidation and also the need to add preservatives. After transferring to oak barrels, they shoot CO2 into the space so they can top off without oxidizing. Then at bottling time, they fill the bottling mechanism with argon and fill the bottle with nitrogen and after filling the bottle, spray CO2 into the top and then cork it.


We got to taste 15+ wines and they were quite good. I really liked the whole approach and wonder if it's achievable at home.

 

[grapeman]

Of course it is "Possible" to do the same at home, but results can be highly unpredictable. First off you CANNOT make wine without yeast. The yeast is needed for fermentation to take place. What they are doing is relying on native yeasts beginning the fermentation. I would bet you they are indeed innoculating the wine with yeast through the equipment or barrels. Native yeasts exist everywhere, but if you don't innoculate with a known yeast, you can't predict the outcome of the yeast. I mean no disrespect here, but making a good wine with known yeasts is difficult enough. If you don't know what yeast you are using you have no way to know what flavors it might impart or at what alcohol level it will die. You can make a good wine without extra additions with precautions but do yourself a favor and use a good high quality yeast to kick it off.

 

[laneygirl]

Yes, what I meant was no additions of yeast, except what came on the grapes. I was a little surprised...but also realize that Belgians have been making beer this way and with what's natural tothe area (e.g. Lambic).

 

[Tomy]

<H3>The basic steps to making a drinkable alcoholic beverage:</H3>


The easy way:


Buy a 5 gallon / 23 liter bucket of grape juice. ($25.- to $50.-)
Do not open.
Leave it in a spot between 70°F / 20°C and 80°F / 30°C for a month or two.
The warmer the faster she goes.


Open it without shaking it.


Siphon off the contents, into gallon jugs with screw-lids or 2 liter coke bottles, leaving most of the sediment on the bottom of the bucket.


Drink the stuff.

 

[Dean]

It is possible to do at home after a long number of years of making wine in the same location. Just as it happens that way in France, Italy, etc. After decades of making wine, they have yeasts that permeate the equipment, air, etc that are all of the same strain. That way, they don't really gamble on wild yeast, as they have a strain that they KNOW takes their wines to dry.

Grapes usually cultivate a yeast on them that will take them to dry most times. But I heard a story on here or anothe board about an elderly italian man that used to always make wine the natural way with no yeast, but didn't really like those Cabernet Sauvignon grapes as they always made the wine a little too sweeta for him. That means they didn't finish fermenting!

Since winemaking is both science and art, I'd start first with the science of creating the wine, using acids, yeasts, etc and testing. The art comes into play with oaking, barrel concentration, tannin additions, and blending. Almost makes a winemaker a modern day alchemist using magic and science.

 

[vicks]

How to Make a wine without yeast

 

[Rocky]

Laneygirl, I will give you my direct experience and caution that it is not meant as a recommendation although it may answer your question. I have been involved in wine making on and off for more than 60 years starting as "unpaid labor" stripping grapes from their stems by hand when we had our family winemaking sessions. With my Grandfather, Father, Uncles, Cousins and Brothers, we would make about 200 gallons a year using California grown grapes (Zinfandel blended with Muscat in approximately a 3:1 ratio of Red to White). After I was married, I made my wine in my home in much the same manner but at a lesser quantity, normally 30-50 gallons per year. I have made wine from grapes and other fruits among which were Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel/Muscat, Sour Cherries, Sweet Cherries and Blackberries. In making wine from these fruits, I did not add yeast to any of it and I relied on the yeasts that were present on the fruit when acquired. When making wine with my family, we added nothing to the wine. No yeast, no sulfites, no nutrients, etc. We did not even have a thermometer or hydrometer! It was not until the late 1960's that I even heard about potassium metabisulfite and my Father-in-Law and I used it just before bottling for preservation purposes and I have been using some form of sulfite since then.

All that being said, I would add that the wine varied greatly from year to year and in our unscientific minds we attributed the variation to the quality of the grapes. If we made good wine, we assumed the grapes were really good "that year." If we made bad wine, they were not and we were doomed from the beginning. I believe now that there were many more factors that contributed to the variation at least one of which was relying on "naturally occurring" yeast. Although we used California Zinfandel and Muscat, the grapes could have come from vineyards that were in different areas of the State. Further, we did not know of "old vine" grapes and only bought whatever tasted good to us and was reasonably priced at the produce company.

Today, with a somewhat better, although still incomplete, understanding of the science involved, I believe I am making better tasting wines with greater consistency than we made at home "the old way." I believe the key to this as in any science is to remove variation. By better understanding the material we are starting with, be it grapes, a kit or juice, and knowing how to improve certain characteristics and by better control of the fermentation process, we can make better wines.

 

[jamesngalveston]

I am not saying anything about making wine the old way. But rocky, I think you gave very good advise.

 

[Julie]

Do you guys realize this thread is close to 6 years old?

 

[jamesngalveston]

nope..i did not see that, thanks julie...i better get more coffee

 

[Julie]

nope..i did not see that, thanks julie...i better get more coffee

Lol, I'm thinking that is a good idea!

 

[djrockinsteve]

Maybe this thread will get better with age.

 

[Julie]

Maybe this thread will get better with age.

LOL, leave it to you to come up with a good answer

 

[Arne]

Maybe this thread will get better with age.

New and improved updated version. Arne.

 

[jswordy]

Do you guys realize this thread is close to 6 years old?

It's like a long-lost grandchild!!!! Hi honey!!!!