RJ Spagnols Orchard Breezin - Blackberry Merlot

[BDKS]

Here is my very first attempt at making wine. It is the blackberry Merlot Kit.

January 9, 2009
SG 1.050
Temp 72 degrees F

Optional Equipment: Bag Decapper

Juice and Bentonite

Water added and stirred until arm fell off

. Yeast Added

Lid covered. Photo of fermenter in oh

tub. Will contain any mess.

Final temperature check. Added more heat to room to bring up temp after photo was taken. Wine cellar temp has been holding52-57 degrees F

 

[BDKS]

Schedule
Day 1 Primary Ferment January 9, 2009
Day 14 Stabilize & Clearing January 23, 2009
Day 28 Bottle & Corking February 6, 2009

 

[Waldo]

Looking good Bobby. Did this kit come with any oak?

 

[admiral]

That bag decapper looks almost like mine!

Looking good.

 

[BDKS]

Looking good Bobby. Did this kit come with any oak?

No oak with this kit.

 

[Rube-a-Billy]

bdks
i used this kit to make apyment george posted a couple of months back.it boosted the alcohol and toned down the sweetness. by only using half the f-pack. it is still plenty sweet. will do again probably add some bananas for more body.


however you do iti'm sure you will like the outcome.enjoy!!!


here is the link in case you are interested


http://www.finevinewines.com/November_2008.htm

 

[Wade E]

What is the temp of your must?

 

[BDKS]

What is the temp of your must?

It was 72 degrees when I started yesterday. I increased the room temperature. Sitting at 71 degrees for must temperature. The room is starting to warm up a little.

 

[BDKS]

bdks
i used this kit to make apyment george posted a couple of months back.it boosted the alcohol and toned down the sweetness. by only using half the f-pack. it is still plenty sweet. will do again probably add some bananas for more body.


however you do iti'm sure you will like the outcome.enjoy!!!


here is the link in case you are interested


http://www.finevinewines.com/November_2008.htm

Thanks for the tip. We do like sweet wines. So I plan on staying with instructions from manufacturer on this one. I did see the pyment and might try on a future batch.

 

[BDKS]

Finally making some progress. The color is starting to turn lighter shade.

SG 1.030
Temp 75 degrees F

 

[BDKS]

SG 1.020
Temp 73 degrees F

Could this one be ready to stabilize and clear around Friday?(0.998)
7 days instead of 14 in instructions.

 

[grapeman]

Why rush it? Give it time to finish up on it's own. A bit of extra time is good for every wine.

 

[BDKS]

SG 1.000
Temp 68 Degrees F

It has a great color.

 

[grapeman]

Great color. I may sneak a straw in there!

 

[dfwwino]

Yup. When are the techies going to develop a way for us to transfer some liquid through the internet. I'd love a taste of that this morning. Looks delicious.

 

[BDKS]

SG 0.996 (Edited for typo)
Temp 68 Degrees F

 

[BDKS]

SG 0.996 again today. Stabilized, Cleared and Degassed. I did not realize how heavy the glass carboys are full. I might consider going to better bottle for any bulk aging. I am planning on letting this one sit until day 28 (February 6, 2009)

I tried some of the left-over reserve. Good flavor. This might be a good one to go half on the sweetening.

What was the formula for % Alcohol? I tried different searches and could not find.

 

[Wade E]

I use this formula 1.050-.996=.054x131.4= 7.095% abv

 

[dcrnbrd]

Everything looks good. Dont rush it. I rushed mine and had some sediment in the bottles. rack it a couple of times to get all of the sediment out. This wine is ready to drink within a few months of bottling and definately is better at 9 months. Good luck.

 

[BDKS]

Everything looks good. Dont rush it. I rushed mine and had some sediment in the bottles. rack it a couple of times to get all of the sediment out. This wine is ready to drink within a few months of bottling and definately is better at 9 months. Good luck.

Thanks for the tip. This one is not dropping much sediment. About an inch. Or maybe it does not seem like much next to strawberry that has tons. I took a small sample and held up to the light. It seems to be clearing.