White wiine on the skins

[Rocky]

I have seen in a number of sites and reference books that when one makes white wine from grapes, the grapes are squeezed but not left to ferment "on the skins" and I am wondering why that is; for the color, the "lightness," why?

I know that when we made wine at home many years ago and we blended red and white grapes, everything went into te fermenting barrel. I made Delaware wine in New York from grapes a few years and I fermented that wine on the skins. It turned out fine. Also, when I make white wine from kits, I normally add a box of white raisins and I really like the taste and body it gives.

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.

 

[JohnT]

This is done to reduce the tannins and bitterness that could be imparted to the wine. most whites strive for "light and crisp". This is one way to get closer to that.

 

[Rocky]

Thanks John. That makes sense.

I am very much a red wine drinker and like the tannin. When we made wine at home it was 3:1 red to white (using Zinfandel or Alicante and Muscat). The Muscat was normally higher in sugar and gave it a little more smoothness and punch.

 

[AlFulchino]

one of my sellout wine blends contains a white grape fermented on the skins....there are a couple of people in italy doing this as well...it is nothing new..goes mack thousands of yrs......there is even an interesting fermentation technique that i am exploring this confounds most popular thought...i have not mastered it yet, but hope to some day

 

[Wade E]

Intersting Al, Ive never hard of anyone fermenting on the skins with whites. I know you dont want to divulge any info on which ones but are there specific grapes you only do tis with Impresuming?

 

[Rocky]

Like I said above, Al, when I lived in Rochester, New York I had a business associate who owed a small "vineyard" that had a number of Delaware grape vines. I was welcome to as much as I could pick because they only used a small amount each year and the rest went to the birds. I made a 20 gallon barrel wine by crushing them into a working barrel and leaving the skins in for the primary fermentation period, then finished fermentation in the 20 gallon barrel. I yielded a little more than 8 cases. I gave a case to the guy who owned the vines (I actually worked with his wife) and it knocked his socks off. He could not believe that it came from his grapes. It may have been a fluke, but even the owner of a commercial vineyard that I knew was impressed.

 

[AlFulchino]

Wade, once in a while we must be Luke Skywalker and close our eyes and trust the Force and see what happens

 

[AlFulchino]

Rocky what was the color of the wine?

 

[grapeman]

Have you begun harvest yet Al? It must be getting close by now. How did the storm treat you guys? Around here it is hard getting around as a lot of places I travel to markets were washed away. I have to go to a town tomorrow and cross the Ausable River. The bridges are closed so I will need to detour about 30-40 miles. Tomorrow afternoon our market is norally in a lot next to a park on the river. It was about 15 feet under water and most roads into town are still washed out. Sundays market is in a field outside a town that no longer hardly exists. Vermont got all the coverage, but we are on the flipside of the lake and took it just as hard. We are trying to do all the markets just to show our support to the communities.

 

[robie]

For us who are far away, it's hard to imagine and feel what has happened up there in the Northeast.

I know I used to hear about and see photos of tornado damage and feel bad about it, but it wasn't until I actually saw up close and in person an area blown away that it really hit me how devastating weather disasters can be.

I'm sure seeing your area right now would take our feet out from under us in the same way.

 

[Rocky]

Rocky what was the color of the wine?

The wine came out a little more golden yellow than the commercial Delaware, but not a significant amount. The vineyard across the street, Casa Larga, made a Delaware that same year and it was slightly lighter. I thought the tast of my wine was fuller than the commercial wine.

 

[AlFulchino]

thanks for the color info, i was curious!