November 2013 Wine of the Month Club

[Jericurl]

Good to know.

As soon as mine ferments down I'm going to see if it needs more chocolate.
I did take a little taste when I put it in secondary and I liked it.

Lori,
What is this contest you guys are doing?

 

[the_rayway]

Hey Jeri,
We signed up to do the next Unofficial WMT Wine Competition! You should join as well!

 

[Jericurl]

Ahhhh, I'll have to post stalk you guys and see the thread.

Maybe it'll be something I can be part of next year.
Right now I've just got too much going on.
Things should slow down sometime in February. If I'm lucky!

 

[LoneStarLori]

Ahhhh, I'll have to post stalk you guys and see the thread.

Maybe it'll be something I can be part of next year.
Right now I've just got too much going on.
Things should slow down sometime in February. If I'm lucky!

Post stalk.. haha, never heard of that. I am probably guilty of it though.

The contest won't take too much time. After all, it's grocery store items. It has to be 80% Welchs juice. Concentrated or bottled. Any flavor you like. I think you should go for it since you have a talent for blending flavors most of us would never think of. And the judging isn't till May or june.

Here is the thread so you don't have to stalk for 30 mins.
Welchs wine competition

 

[buckhorn]

Well, I got my stuff together and have jumped into the Win-o-the-month club. So far I have only made 2 kits that are bulk aging in a carboy right now before I bottle. I have been reading and preparing to make some Dragon's Blood, and then this monthly idea was brought up. I like my wines on the sweet side and the 1 gallon batches will let me try more flavors rather than having 30 bottles of a wine I don't care for.

Tonight I mixed up my November wine (a little late in the month, but I made it) and plan to pitch the yeast tomorrow evening. I may add a twist to the idea (assuming I like the first batch of Dragon's Blood) I plan to make a 1 gallon batch of Dragon's Blood of various flavors to stock up for summer. I will also make a 1 gallon batch of wine each month and will be looking for recipes that I think sound good.

For November I am making:
Dragon's Blood -- the original triple berry blend as per DangerDave's recipe.
Pumpkin Pie Wine -- I adapted a recipe I got from Val (here on WMT) for canned pumpkin wine. I made adjustments that are not too outlandish but I think will bring closer to the taste of a pumpkin pie.

A couple things I observed:
1a. The DB color is already starting to show in the fermenter
1b. My SG read at 1.055 (recipe says target of 1.075) - I was very careful doing my conversions to scale down to 1 gallon. I will test SG again tomorrow before I pitch the yeast, but I am not sure I want to venture into trying to boost it with sugar before I finish 1 batch by the recipe and see how it tastes.

2a. The Pumpkin Pie smells WONDERFUL, if the final wine tastes anything close to how this smells, I will have a smashing success.
2b. The pumpkin in a 2 gallon fermenter has me a little concerned whether it has enough room for the foam without overflowing (as I have seen some others dealt with on here). My local supply store did not have any anti-foam to try. I placed the fermenter into a large plastic tub in case it does overflow I don't have the whole room a mess. I may also leave a spatula in the bucket to see if that helps reduce the bubbles similar to placing a wooden spoon across a boiling pot to keep it from boiling over.

Well -- this post seems to have turned into a babble...... in short, I'm in.....
-Brian

 

[LoneStarLori]

Hi Brian, glad we hooked another.

Sounds like you are off to a great start. I will have to lookup that pumpkin pie recipe. It sounds pretty good. How long is it till it's drinkable? Next fall or sooner.

I'm not sure what type of fermenter your 2 gal is, but I buy 5 gal FOOD GRADE buckets at Lowes for about $5 they also have lids available but I just you a cotton cloth over mine secured with a piece of elastic to keep the fruit flies at bay. I usually start out with at least 3.5 gals so these for perfect for me.

 

[the_rayway]

Well, I got my stuff together and have jumped into the Win-o-the-month club. So far I have only made 2 kits that are bulk aging in a carboy right now before I bottle. I have been reading and preparing to make some Dragon's Blood, and then this monthly idea was brought up. I like my wines on the sweet side and the 1 gallon batches will let me try more flavors rather than having 30 bottles of a wine I don't care for.

Tonight I mixed up my November wine (a little late in the month, but I made it) and plan to pitch the yeast tomorrow evening. I may add a twist to the idea (assuming I like the first batch of Dragon's Blood) I plan to make a 1 gallon batch of Dragon's Blood of various flavors to stock up for summer. I will also make a 1 gallon batch of wine each month and will be looking for recipes that I think sound good.

For November I am making:
Dragon's Blood -- the original triple berry blend as per DangerDave's recipe.
Pumpkin Pie Wine -- I adapted a recipe I got from Val (here on WMT) for canned pumpkin wine. I made adjustments that are not too outlandish but I think will bring closer to the taste of a pumpkin pie.

A couple things I observed:
1a. The DB color is already starting to show in the fermenter
1b. My SG read at 1.055 (recipe says target of 1.075) - I was very careful doing my conversions to scale down to 1 gallon. I will test SG again tomorrow before I pitch the yeast, but I am not sure I want to venture into trying to boost it with sugar before I finish 1 batch by the recipe and see how it tastes.

2a. The Pumpkin Pie smells WONDERFUL, if the final wine tastes anything close to how this smells, I will have a smashing success.
2b. The pumpkin in a 2 gallon fermenter has me a little concerned whether it has enough room for the foam without overflowing (as I have seen some others dealt with on here). My local supply store did not have any anti-foam to try. I placed the fermenter into a large plastic tub in case it does overflow I don't have the whole room a mess. I may also leave a spatula in the bucket to see if that helps reduce the bubbles similar to placing a wooden spoon across a boiling pot to keep it from boiling over.

Well -- this post seems to have turned into a babble...... in short, I'm in.....
-Brian

Hey Brian!
Could you post the recipe for the Pumpkin Pie Wine? I'd love to hear what you put together.

 

[Jericurl]

Buckhorn,

If you wouldn't mind, please post your recipe/method for your November wine.

These threads are going to be used for learning together and that will make it easier to pinpoint any great successes or dismal failures.



Ok all, I posted a summary in the first post of who has joined so far and what each person is making.
I wish I could fast forward a year to see how all of these turn out. They all sound fantastic!

 

[Jericurl]

Lori,

Thanks for the link to the contest. It sounds like a lot of fun.
I'll fitz around a bit after Thanksgiving and see if I can come up with anything that sounds good.

 

[buckhorn]

Pumpkin Pie Wine (untested recipe)

Here is the recipe as I have tweaked it, the ingredients do not list the original recipe that I did not use..... Be aware I am a total newbie at this (started my first kit barely 2 months ago) and this is my first actual recipe. So, what you see is a major experiment and this time next year may end up as 1 gallon of "lessons learned - don't do this"

Pumpkin Pie Wine
volume: 1 gallon
4 Lbs Canned Pumpkin [I used 2-29 oz cans of Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin]
3 Tbsp McCormick Pumpkin Pie Spices [Directions say 1 TBSP per pound for a pie]
4 cups White Granulated Sugar
2 cups Light Brown Sugar
1 tsp Bentonite
1 tsp Acid Blend
1 tsp Yeast Nutrient
1 tsp Wine Tannin
1 tsp Pectic Enzyme
1/4 tsp Amylase Enzyme [Not sure if this is enough, but directions on the bottle said 1/2 tsp for 5 Gallons]
1 Gallon Water [I used a whole gallon of water to give me some extra when racking off the lees, hoping to retain a finished gallon]
Yeast [original recipe called for Montrachet, I am actually going to split a packet of Lavlin EC-1118 with my gallon of Dragon's Blood]
1 Campden Tablet (or equivalent K-meta)

I will also add 1 cinnamon stick (broken) and 1 vanilla bean (cracked) if I can find them in the next couple days.

1. Put pumpkin paste and Pumpkin Pie spices in a mesh bag, tie the end and place in fermenter.
2. Boil water, Stir in Bentonite, Add White and Brown Sugar. Stir until Sugar is completely dissolved.
3. Pour boiled mixture over mesh bag containing Pumpkin
This is where I am at this point -- the remainder of the instructions are my planned steps for the rest of the process. They are subject to change if circumstances necessitate.
Note: Through this process, do not squeeze the bag - it will cause the pumpkin to squish out and possibly cause trouble clearing the haze
4. Let Cool to Room Temperature, remove mesh bag and place in a sanitized bowl. Add Acid Blend, Yeast Nutrient, Wine Tannin, Pectic Enzyme, and Amylase Enzyme. Stir well.
Take Temperature and SG Reading. SG should be 1.080-1.090, as white sugar if necessary/desired. Replace Mesh Bag.
5. Daily: Remove Mesh Bag and place in sanitized bowl. Record Temperature and SG. Stir must Vigorously. Replace Mesh Bag.
6. When SG reaches around 1.040, transfer to a secondary and fit with an airlock. Let Mesh Bag drip (Do Not Squeeze) and add to secondary. Discard Pumpkin from the Mesh Bag. Add 1 Campden Tablet (or equivalent amount of K-Meta) to secondary
SG of 1.040 is from original recipe, wondering if I should wait until 1.020, like my kits were, to have less fermentation in secondary
7. After a few days when Fermentation has slowed, top up as necessary
8. When Fermentation has ended (3 days at same SG); rack, stabilize and sorbate. Back Sweeten with Simple Syrup of Brown Sugar.
I will sample to see how it goes, but current plan is to bulk age for 6 months, then bottle age until Next November (1 year from start).

As I said, this is the current plan - I always welcome suggestions/comments from others. The mixture smells fabulous at this point -- if the wine tastes half as good as the smell, this will be a keeper of a recipe.

-Brian

 

[Winenoob66]

Hi Brian,
If your a member of a Sam's club in PA check there for the cinnamon sticks and Vanilla as they carry them here in NC.

Your recipe looks pretty good on the pumpkin, Keep us up to date so we can see how it is going.

Update on Sugar wash posted in original post.
Seems it is still at 1.030 after 14 days.

 

[Jericurl]

Hmmmm....

How long has it stayed at that sg?
Do you think you have a stuck fermentation or is it just moving slow?

Is it pretty warm where it is fermenting or pretty cool?
Do you have any yeast nutrient or energizer?

 

[Winenoob66]

Yeah were on the same wave length tomorrow I plan on hitting my LHBS and grabbing some, but in the room where it is it is a little cooler round 65 so I placed a sweater around the carboy to try and warm it some.

 

[Stressbaby]

Pics of my lime-ginger.
I left a lot of head space since it was still fermenting when I moved to secondary. I plan to rack and top off this weekend.

 

[LoneStarLori]

That look pretty nice Stressbaby. Almost like a big margarita waiting for a glass and some salt.

 

[buckhorn]

This is what my Pumpkin Pie Wine looks like 24-hours after pitching the yeast. It sounds like a good bowl of Rice Krispies, and you can easliy see the bubbles rising from low in the bucket to the surface .. ... SG has dropped from 1.090 to 1.066 in the first 24 hours.

 

[Jericurl]

So far, so good. I wonder how it's going to finish out.


Stressbaby, that looks delicious. Have you tasted it yet?

 

[Stressbaby]

Not yet. Racked it yesterday, though, and it is VERY limey!

 

[Elmer]

A little late to the thread, but the month is not over yet.

Chocolate/raspberry wine:
1 gallon water
1/2 gallon white grape juice
2lbs home grown black raspberries
4TBS cocoa (baking)
Tannin
Yeast nut
Yeast energizer ( all according to package directions)
5 cups white sugar

SG 1.080

 

[the_rayway]

Racked my hot pepper the other day. SG is .992!
So hot it'll burn you both ways.

Very hazy, so I might have to hit it with some more pectic enzyme. Darn Apple Juice!