My First Wine (Muscadine)

[abigtroutt]

I wanted to share my first wine making experience ever!

I just recently purchased my first small 1 gallon kit. I have 2 small muscadine vines which produced about 10lbs of grapes this year. I purchased the LD Carlson Vintner's 1 Gallon kit which included everything except Pectic Enzyme and Nutrient (which I purchased)

I used the recipe for wild grapes

6 lbs of Muscadine Grapes
6 pts Water
2 lbs Sugar
1/2 tsp of Pectic
1 tsp Nutrient
1 Campden
1 pkg of Red Star Montrachet

I picked the best of the 10 lbs and then froze them. We thawed then crushed by hands. added all the grapes, water, sugar, pectic, nutrient and campdon per instructions. Waited 24 hours then added the yeast. Started the SG at 1.10 (because I added too much sugar)

 

[abigtroutt]

After a week of squeesing the grapes and sturing the musk and wine the SG went from 1.10 to 0.092. So I removed the musk and let sit for several days.

 

[abigtroutt]

Today I splash racked the wine into the 1 gal carboy leaving the sediment at the bottom.

I did not add a campdon tablet yet. Should I add today or wait for another several weeks then add?

Thanks
Bill

 

[Julie]

add it now, since your wine reached .992 you needed to sulphite it then. If you are planning on backsweetening add sorbate as well and then you can take some of the wine, add sugar to it and warm it up until the sugar has disolved, then add that back into the wine. Taste it and if it is to your liking take a hydrometer reading and record that reading so the next time you do this you know where to backsweeten.

Muscadine makes a very good wine, enjoy it.

 

[jtstar]

One more thing you need to do is top up your one gallon jug so you only leave a minimum of only two inches of head space then put the remainder in a wine bottle

 

[abigtroutt]

Thank you and I followed both of your advice. The only thing I dont have at this time is sorbate to backsweeten. Looks like a trip to the wine store tomorrow....lol

 

[mrpoland]

Great post and pic! good luck!