This is my recipe I settled on and put 15 gallons fermenting this morning.
Grapes = Purple Ison Muscadine grapes with a juice SG 1.060 / TA .45 / PH 3.0 straight of the vines
Procedure:
1. I crushed 120 lbs of muscadine grapes and adjusted the juice SG up to 1.10. I added kmeta and let sit for 24hrs. I used a food grade 30 gallon barrel for the intial fermentation.
2. I added a culture of Montrachet yeast to start the fermentation
3. After 4 days of fermenting on the skins I collected all the free run juice and did a very light press on the skins.
4. I collected 13 gallons of juice.
5. I then placed 2.5 gallons of juice in each of 3 carboys and added 1 tsp of yeast nutrient, 1tsp of yeast energizer, 1 tsp tannin and some bentonite
6. Then to each fermenter I added 3 cans of Welch's Concord concentrate and enough sugar water, with a SG of 1.10, to get a final volume of 5 gallons in each carboy.
I will let this ferment to dry and after the 2nd racking I will bulk age all 15 gallons together in a SS beer keg for 4-5 months.
After bulk aging I will add kmeta and sorbate and backsweeten to a SG of 1.010 (semi sweet level) and bottle.
You may ask what I did with the extra fermenting juice. Well, I got on the phone and called over a couple of friends and gave the juice to them in order that may make some of this heavenly elixir.
If you have muscadines this recipe works very well. You should try it as it does not have an over powering "musky" aroma or flavor.
Grapes = Purple Ison Muscadine grapes with a juice SG 1.060 / TA .45 / PH 3.0 straight of the vines
Procedure:
1. I crushed 120 lbs of muscadine grapes and adjusted the juice SG up to 1.10. I added kmeta and let sit for 24hrs. I used a food grade 30 gallon barrel for the intial fermentation.
2. I added a culture of Montrachet yeast to start the fermentation
3. After 4 days of fermenting on the skins I collected all the free run juice and did a very light press on the skins.
4. I collected 13 gallons of juice.
5. I then placed 2.5 gallons of juice in each of 3 carboys and added 1 tsp of yeast nutrient, 1tsp of yeast energizer, 1 tsp tannin and some bentonite
6. Then to each fermenter I added 3 cans of Welch's Concord concentrate and enough sugar water, with a SG of 1.10, to get a final volume of 5 gallons in each carboy.
I will let this ferment to dry and after the 2nd racking I will bulk age all 15 gallons together in a SS beer keg for 4-5 months.
After bulk aging I will add kmeta and sorbate and backsweeten to a SG of 1.010 (semi sweet level) and bottle.
You may ask what I did with the extra fermenting juice. Well, I got on the phone and called over a couple of friends and gave the juice to them in order that may make some of this heavenly elixir.
If you have muscadines this recipe works very well. You should try it as it does not have an over powering "musky" aroma or flavor.
