Syrah/Primitivo Big Day

[CDrew]

Just one of the reasons I love PS. Crazy dark - stains everything, including the test glasses.

My neighbor commented on that as he was helping me press today. He wasn't familiar w/ the varietal, but he and his wife both like big, tannic wines. He subsequently went out and bought some after we pressed.

So it's so dark, it stains the HDPE bucket I used to move it around. Had to clean it out with Oxyclean. I think I'm going to use about half of it to blend with the Primitivo, and the rest I'll bottle as it's own thing.

I've also noticed that the Enzyme treatment before fermentation makes a huge difference in color extraction. I've used the Lallzyme EX and Lallzyme EX-V, both work great. I can't honestly tell the difference when used.

 

[Boatboy24]

So it's so dark, it stains the HDPE bucket I used to move it around. Had to clean it out with Oxyclean. I think I'm going to use about half of it to blend with the Primitivo, and the rest I'll bottle as it's own thing.

I've also noticed that the Enzyme treatment before fermentation makes a huge difference in color extraction. I've used the Lallzyme EX and Lallzyme EX-V, both work great. I can't honestly tell the difference when used.

I love blending Zin (primitivo) with PS. Makes a fantastic wine. 15-20% PS is where I usually end up. Usually start at 10%, and make samples between there and 25% to test.

Agree on the enzymes.

 

[CK55]

I love blending Zin (primitivo) with PS. Makes a fantastic wine. 15-20% PS is where I usually end up. Usually start at 10%, and make samples between there and 25% to test.

Agree on the enzymes.

Zinfandel is deff the most used term as like 93% of all the zin in the world is in the us. With italy basically having the rest. So I just use zin because they can label it as zin in Italy.

But that sounds like a great blending ratio

 

[ceeaton]

Cool. Thanks for some oak help. I'm going to go for the xoakers at MoreWine's recommended dose rates. They have had excellent recs so far so will stay with the program for now.

Sorry for the delayed reply, work is nastily busy (better than the alternative, for sure).

That's a good amount to start with (at least that's where I started). They can take up to a year to remove all the goodies, but they don't impart as sharp of an oak flavor like chips can. I didn't sterilize in any way, figured the Kmeta in the wine at that point would be good enough (added them to my Zin after MLF completed).

They also work well in the smoker after you are done with them in the wine. Burn for quite some time.

 

[CDrew]

Sorry for the delayed reply, work is nastily busy (better than the alternative, for sure).

That's a good amount to start with (at least that's where I started). They can take up to a year to remove all the goodies, but they don't impart as sharp of an oak flavor like chips can. I didn't sterilize in any way, figured the Kmeta in the wine at that point would be good enough (added them to my Zin after MLF completed).

They also work well in the smoker after you are done with them in the wine. Burn for quite some time.

Thanks, that's helpful. I'll get some at MoreWine and will add at the end of the month, figuring MLF will be basically done by then.

The smoker idea is a very good one. I went to Alaska twice this summer and have a freezer full of salmon, some of which we will eventually smoke.

 

[skhnmh]

I could use some oak advice at this point.

-I have French Medium "wine stix" that I got from MoreWine that I'm going to use in the Syrah. Looks simple. 1 stix per carboy!

-I have nothing for the Primitivo. I like the look of the round oak balls to toss in the carboy. Anyone use these?

-How do you sterilize the oak of any type prior to putting it into the wine? Spray with StarSan or KMBS ? I was considering steaming in a vegetable steamer. That should heat it to 212F without changing it like boiling would. Just curious if anyone has done that.

Hi Drew,
After a lot of experimenting with oak adjuncts, we've found that Stavin Oak Cubes work the best in our IntelliTanks®. The sticks get "stuck" and like with barrels are really hard to get out. The cubes just float out when you clean out the tank. They come sealed in a foil bag so you can just dump in the amount you like. They also have a great calculator on their website.

Cheers,
Steve
Catalyst Manufacturing

 

[ceeaton]

I went to Alaska twice this summer and have a freezer full of salmon, some of which we will eventually smoke.

https://barbecuebible.com/recipe/hot-smoked-salmon/

Yum!

 

[CDrew]

Hi Drew,
After a lot of experimenting with oak adjuncts, we've found that Stavin Oak Cubes work the best in our IntelliTanks®. The sticks get "stuck" and like with barrels are really hard to get out. The cubes just float out when you clean out the tank. They come sealed in a foil bag so you can just dump in the amount you like. They also have a great calculator on their website.
Cheers,
Steve
Catalyst Manufacturing

Thank you, Steve. The 3/8 inch cubes are a good small size. I need to order a couple more IntelliTanks. I think these are great and I'll be getting 2 or 3 more.

 

[CDrew]

I pressed the Petite Sirah after work today and net yield was 23 gallons. I think I could have pressed a day earlier but had a work commitment until 9pm. Cap was in danger of collapsing this evening when I pressed. I expect 20 gallons or so after racking off the gross lees tomorrow afternoon. Wine tastes great with great color and nice tannin. After then next rack I hope to have 20 gallons going forward. Just hoping the extra day before press doesn't do any harm.

I'm kind of impressed with this Avante yeast which by specs seems ideal for nearly any red wine. Anyone know of any problems, even theoretical? It's quick, clean, no H2S, ferments to dry with no issues at all.

No pictures since I didn't finish cleaning up until after dark, but my wine making gear like the press, my fermenters etc are cleaned up with PBW, all residues removed and ready for 2019.

 

[CDrew]

I got the Petite Sirah racked off the gross lees and tucked away into the guest shower. We are not having company until Christmas so it can sit there and complete MLF in style.

I have about 22 gallons and it tastes great. I was even able to combine some left over Petite Sirah with some left over Primitivo making my first blend of the 2018 vintage.

 

[CDrew]

So here is the rest in a closet. Syrah on the left and Primitivo on the right. You can see how space efficient the IntelliTank is-It holds 15 gallons and doesn't take up space the way carboys do. It's pretty heavy though and I put it on a Harbor Freight movers dolly. I need a few more of those! Great product for small scale production.

So this is all the wine I'm going to make this year, but it's about 70 gallons. I was going to make some Cabernet, but I'm out of carboys and energy. It was a busy 3 weeks!

This was my 3rd year wine making and my second taking it seriously. I learned a lot in the last year, realized that enzymes, and tannin additives make a huge difference and will continue over time. I also think that the Avante yeast is a permanent go to. Next step is to solve the oak puzzle without a barrel.

I got lucky on some really excellent grapes for 2018 and I'm hoping that I can make something of the resulting wine.

 

[CK55]

View attachment 51643 View attachment 51644

Nice job I started my small 5 gallon batch of field blend as im calling it 40 year old vine wine.

I am eager to hear more as the time goes on, I am really interested to see your finished product.

 

[Johnd]

I got the Petite Sirah racked off the gross lees and tucked away into the guest shower. We are not having company until Christmas so it can sit there and complete MLF in style.

I have about 22 gallons and it tastes great. I was even able to combine some left over Petite Sirah with some left over Primitivo making my first blend of the 2018 vintage.

View attachment 51642

LOL!!! Love the shower decor! Don’t think I’ve ever seen that before, though I once thawed out some frozen must buckets in the bathtub. Looks like you had a pretty good year, congrats!

 

[CDrew]

Another big day today. Racked all 3 (primitivo, syrah, and petite sirah) into Intellitanks for aging until next fall, when I kind of need to bottle to make room for more wine! Spent most of the day at it between the set-up, the actual racking and the clean up. The clean up meant taking 12 carboys, completely cleaning and getting them ready for next year.

I am really liking the sanitary fittings that come with the Intellitanks. I used the racking system they sell in conjunction with the all in one wine pump to move the wine from carboys into the tanks. I added oak to the tanks with the Stavin wine cubes 2.5oz/5 gallons.

I ended up with a 4 full 15 gallon intellitanks. 2 of the Primitivo, and 1 each of Syrah, and Petite Sirah. I also ended up with a bonus 6 gallon carboy of 50/50 Primitivo/Petite Sirah, and a 6 gallon of Syrah, and a 3 gallon of Petite SIrah. As well as a nearly full 750ml of mixed everything which I am going to drink tonight.

I'm super stoked though. The flavors are great, the color is great, and I think I've beat the problem of wine that is too light with the enzyme treatment. It's going to be tough to wait 2+ years to really go after it but even the new wine I'm drinking now is very good. Already it's miles better than last year.

I'll try and edit with pictures of my "closet winery". The Intellitanks are ideal for this level of production, and the sanitary fittings are a huge bonus. Makes it a clean and neat set up, though it does take longer. But once set, it's quick. But I need a bigger closet. The only nice part is a pretty much permanent temp of 58F.

I also feel I stressed the All In One to the max today, racking 70 gallons of wine in quick succession. It did the job though, so I'm holding off on buying a bigger vacuum pump.

 

[stickman]

You must have had a good vacuum going, is that a bung in one of the carboys?

 

[CDrew]

You must have had a good vacuum going, is that a bung in one of the carboys?

Ha-yes. I gave it too much of a smack and it popped inside the neck. So I pushed it all the way in and will retrieve in time.

 

[stickman]

I've had it happen a couple times myself, I was degassing a full 15gal demijohn, still have a few wine stains on the wall.

 

[CDrew]

Update:

My wife asked me to bottle a magnum of the 2018 Petite Sirah to give to my daughter and son-in-law for Christmas (they helped to pick the grapes). I protested that it's WAY TOO EARLY but this was not heard. I did have a 1/2 gallon left over Petite SIrah that didn't make the main event sitting in a growler, and so that got bottled with a glass left over for me.

This is by far the best wine I've made. Good fruit, great color, excellent (young) flavor. No Oak, so it basically is a neuvo Petite Sirah, but dang it's good if I say so myself. In a year or two after a bit of oak (the main 20 gallons has oak cubes on board already) this should really be good. It makes me want to taste the other 2018's but that will have to wait for a racking day in the spring.

Magnum next to a normal bottle of wine for scale:

 

[NorCal]

Cheers @CDrew. Not sure how I missed this thread the first time through, I was probably busy with my own harvest. I live right up the road from you in Loomis. Have you joined or got to know any of the Sacramento Home Winemakers or the Placer County group? There are a handful of us here that go in and buy grapes, I think we did close to 4 tons collectively last year. Also, a fellow car guy. You have the same cherry picker as I do Drop me a PM if you would like to talk.

 

[CDrew]

I was inspired by @NorCal 's barrel tasting and so I did a version of the same. My wine is in 15 gallon Poly Intellitanks and has had Stavin oak cubes for about 2 months. I was also concerned that they might be "overoaked" because though I had followed the Morewine dosing recommendations to the letter, another source suggested that was on the high side of their recommendations. The reason there are 4 glasses is I have 4 Intellitanks. 2 with the same Primitivo and 1 each of Syrah and Petite SIrah.

Tasting notes:

Primitivo: Good fruit flavors, and I'm not getting a lot of pepper notes. Color is excellent for type and there is a bit of tannin astringency in the aftertaste. Not overoaked, though you can tell it is there. No off flavors or smells. And no difference between the tanks either.

Petite Sirah: Darker, good clarity for 2 months along. Very good fruit and lots of tannin, which I hope becomes "structure" over time. Not overoaked at all, and in fact, barely detectable.

Syrah: Definitely my short term favorite. Tastes "big" with lots of fruit, and soft tannin in the background. Almost as dark as the Petite Sirah. Already would be great with something like Lasagne (sorry Francophiles). I can taste just a hint of oak, which I think is about right for the style I'm shooting for.

Primitivo75/Petite Sirah25: This was surprisingly good for young wine. Even 25% Petite Sirah darkened the Primitivo up noticeably. I'll likely blend 20-25% Petite Sirah into the final Primitivo when I bottle it. More taste tests in the future.

Overall conclusion: Good progress, not overoaked and a huge improvement from last year!! Going to let everything ride awhile(oak and all) before racking.

And as a bonus, I purged the small headspaces with CO2 when I buttoned everything up.