Went to the Farmers Market this morning

[jobe05]

And my supplier was ready for me:

80 Pounds of fresh picked Scuppernongs from Georgia:

These are all good size, aout a quarter in size. They smell so good, just bringing them into the house, fills the whole house up with that sweet scuppernong smell.

They even look good in the glass!

I'm trying to get JW wines boxed up for shippment next week, JW, would you like a few pounds of these to make a gallon batch? I can include them in the box, just let me know.

 

[Joanie]

Wow!!! They're lovely, Jobe!!

 

[grapeman]

Those sure are different looking grapes Jobe. I can imagine the smell from way up here. Too bad you weren't closer. I picked up a manual crusher yesterday. It doesn't have a de-stemmer, but you don't need one with those babies! 15 minutes of hand cranking and we would have them in the fermenter.

 

[Wade E]

Jobe, those look awesome! how many of those do you need per 6 gallons?

 

[jobe05]

Appleman.............. PSssssst......... over hear......... under the bush...........

SHhhhhhh....... Don't let anyone know we are having this conversation.........

Thay sure are nice looken but I'm told they aint no grape.............. some type of cousine to the grape or sumpen............ like they came from w. Va.......... or sumpen............ Anyways, they sure are good.

Wade: I'm gonna start with 5 # per gallon and am going for about 14 gallons to start out with. adjustments will be made once they are all squeezed and SG brought to the proper level. I would like to shoot for 11% to 11.5% ABV, I think thats were it taste the best. So I'll use 70 pounds, I'll have a couple of pounds of waste (rotten or not ripe enough) and should have about 5 pounds extra, which is why I offered them to JW if he wanted to make a gallon of the best tasting southern wine there is.

Pressing these whole is almost impossible. The skins are very thick ad tough to squeeze. I put about 3 pounds in my small press, squeeze them by hand just to break the skin open, then squeeze, let up the pressure, stir up by hand and squeeze again, and again and again, then add 3 or so more pounds and repeat the process. I also squeeze with a straining bag in the press to help drain more clear juice and less seeds, skins and pulp..

I will take some pics along the way and start a thread under the fresh fruit catagory.

 

[jobe05]

I picked up a manual crusher yesterday.

Didn't you have a nice crusher, or press in one of your older post when you were doing some apples? I liked that one, it had a cutter on the side didn't it? To chop the apple before it went into the press?

I had a guy in Charlotte that was going to sell me one for $300 but we could never meet up so I gave up on him, too bad though, I would love one like that. Although it wouldn't help with these.

You'll have to post some pics of your new press.

 

[grapeman]

jobe it isn't a press I got, just the crusher for doing just what you say is hard to do. My press does have a grinder for apples and I have used it for grapes, but it chews everything up si I wanted the crusher to be gentler on the stems and seeds. Drop the scupps/grapes/whatever in and crank and they come out the bottom all crushed and ready to press. I'll post a couple pics tomorrow of it I took today, just not at that computer in the office now.


And Jobe, yes they are a true grape-of the muscadine type.



A scuppernong is a large type of muscadine, a type of grape native to the present-day southeastern United States. It usually has a greenish or bronze color, and is similar in appearance and texture to a white grape, but rounder and about 50% larger.


Its name comes from its original place of production, Scuppernong, North Carolina, where it was first grown during the 17th century, a name itself tracing back to the Algonquian word ascopo for the sweet bay tree.

 

[Waldo]

Freeze them suckers first jobe. Makes the juicing so much easire podner. I bet you could get one of your local grocery stores to let you put them in their freezer for about a week if you promised tghe manager a couple of bottles of wine

 

[Wade E]

As i have never done grapes yet, I can attest to the freezing part with the crab apples. They were rock hard before freezing and after 2 days they were soft like grapes.

 

[jobe05]

So Waldo Steered me wrong last year when he pulled me to the side and said:




Pssssttt
Jobe,,,,Over here....No......Over here !! Behind the bushes...Listen
man..I didn't wanna say anything out there in the forum where everyone
could hear me but man you can't be going round calling them fine
Muscadines and Scupes "grapes" . Im a feered it might even put a jinx
on your wine ya make from em. Yeah, I knows they are kin and everything
jobe but sometimes ya know its jes better that some folk dont know who
your kin is man....I know buddy...your still a learning and I am too. I
jes felt I wouldnt be a doing my friend right iffen I let it just
slide. No..heck no..I ain't mad at ya. Now sneak back over ther and
see iffen ya can change that topic fore anyone else sees it but
us....yeah, yeah, yer welcome man...now dont be a slobberin all over
me ,,,jes go and do it..</font> </font>

Edited by: jobe05

 

[Wade E]

 

[Waldo]

Boy you better get outa them bushes and listen to me now

 

[NorthernWinos]

Nice score on the fruit...what ever they are.


I have never seen any grapes that look like that...look at the size of them!!!!


Do they taste like a grape????

 

[jobe05]

Boy you better get outa them bushes and listen to me now

Couldn't freeze them Waldo, no space (and time). They came in at a bad time for me but I had to take them. I told my market guy to wait later in the season to get them from the vineyard he got them from last year, but he was told that due to the heat and dry conditions here in NC, I had better take what I could get, and I think he was right. Out of all the vendors at the market, All but one carries Paulks vineyard brand , and the local grown one were less that the size of a dime, with NO flavor at all. Besides, Wineries don't freeze theirs......... I wish I could have, these were a nigh mere to press.

Very thick skined:

Skins are like rubber! With a little layer of very sweet, very good flavored meat on it. Then there is the center meat that holds the seeds (4) that is not as sweet but very good, and very thick..... Pressing was no fun:

Then My press BROKE!!!!!!! OH CRAP!!!!!..................

So I went to my old standby.......... actually, my new standby:

Hand cut the scuppernongs and smashed by hand:

Squeezed out as much juice as I could, then steamed the rest with a little sugar on the skins:

The juice is yellowish green color with a very strong scuppernong smell.

I ended up with almost 3 gallons of juice from 40 pounds of the scuppernongs, then topped up to 6 gallons. It's setting now with campden, awaiting the Pectic enzyme then the yeast, D-47.

 

[NorthernWinos]

Will the wine be green????


I don't think you'd have had to do anything to the fruit before using the steam juicer....just throw them in whole next time with a half cup or so of sugar.


Will be watching this wine...very interesting to us Northerners who are happy with Chokecherries and apples...etc.

 

[Joanie]

Jobe, is that the press you panted and spruced up?

 

[jobe05]

The wine will be clear. The skind are very tough. When you put one in your moth, they kinda snap open. I tried steaming them last year whole and most did not open, I had to squeeze them to pop them open, so now we just cut them in two, which seem to work fine.

Joan: Yes, thats the press. There's another press plate on Ebay right now, so she may be operational by next week.

Edited by: jobe05

 

[Joanie]

Glad there's a fix in the works!

 

[JWMINNESOTA]

ScupperWHAT kinda alien fruit is that?

Ive kinda turned into NW in that the chokecherries and wild grapes are my world, even though I was born in Roswell THAT looks alien

, sure it makes a fine southern wine though.

 

[Waldo]

Looking might good jobe. How acidic were the Scupes? I talked to my friend Boyd yesterday evening and he said he has a blend he did last year he wants me to try out when I go down there this morning tro pick Muscadines. He did a 80/20 blend of Muscadines and Scuppernongs that he said is absolutely awesome.