Poppyseed Cellars

I stirred the pots this morning. Also tasted:

• All three containers have a strong oak nose, with a significant oak taste. I decided to take the oak out. I got them all out of the demijohns, but one wouldn’t come out of the carboy.
• I used up all but 1/2 bottle of the topping wine. The topping wine still tastes fruity and fresh.

I decided to add the potassium bicarbonate to the last 2008 SB carboy, since the last one worked so well. This time I added 14 grams, instead of 11 grams. 14 is supposed to bring me down 2 g/L TA, based on teh Fermcalc calulator, which doesn’t quite agree with the BevPeople. We’ll see. I will put it out into the cold after we get back from our LA trip.

I stirred all the pots, and tasted and smelled everything. Nose is strong oak, nothing bad. Taste is still very good; noticeable oak. I am thinking that this oak needs to come out. I also topped off the containers with one of the bottles. The wine in the bottle was wonderful, fruit of fruit. I hope we don’t lose that in the oaked wine. For now, the oak is really strong. Some numbers:

• pH: 3.85!  It came up. If I am still a tenth low compared to Vinquiry, we are near 4! Oh well…we are going to have to drink this quickly!
• TA: 6.8 g/L   (using pH meter to find endpoint of titration) If I am measuring right, this definitely is coming down to where we want it. The Vinquiry report showed us starting at 7.5. So the MLF is working. I calulated a TA of 6.65 if all the malic converts to lactic. Which means the MLF should be about finished. Seems too early.

I bottled the cold 3 gallon carboy!

• Last measurement of SO2 was at about 25 ppm.
• I added 20 ppm more SO2. That should be enough, even if it had gone to 0, since pH is 3.1.
• 15 bottles, which is just about right from 3 gallons.
• Final numbers
  • pH 3.1
  • TA: 8.3 g/L
  • SO2 > 20 ppm

HOORAY!  Just one carboy to go…

I tasted the 2008 SB this morning, after stirring the syrah. It has lots of citrus, grapefruit. The sour acid taste has diminished; not gone.  I think this will be a nice crisp SB for hot summer days. I am going to bottle this 3 gallon carboy tonight, and go ahead and deacidify the last 3 gallon carboy.

Busy morning. The MLF continues. Still a steady stream of bubbles.

• I stirred all  three containers this morning.
• Nose:
  • Oaky. We are planning on this dissipating. Definite fruit under the oak.
  • Nothing bad.
• Taste:
  • Fruity. Smooth. Crisp. Mild to medium tannins. Very nice balance. I didn’t measure it, but I think the acidity must be shifting.

Next stirring (Tuesday night), I’ll measure pH and TA and see how it is going.

I remeasured the acids in the carboy with the potassium bicarbonate:

• pH: 3.1
• Acid: 8.3 g/L

So it definitely improved.

I just measured my cold (32 F) 2008 SB. I used the new acid test kit.

• 32 F 3 gallon carboy:  
  • 9 g/L
  • pH 3.0. This came up a little from 2.9
  • It hasn’t really dropped. It has only been 5 days, but I thought that would do something. I will measure the other carboy, that has been in the garage at ~60F.
• Garage temp carboy
  • pH 3.0
  • Acid: 9 g/L

Seems like the cold stabilization isnt doing anything. I decided to try potassium bicarbonate on the cold carboy:

• 3 gallons = 11.4 L
• 1 g/L of potassium bicarbonate reduces acity approximatley 1 g/L, which is what I want.
• I added 11 g to the carboy. Lots of bubbles produced, which is what is supposed to happen. I will test the wine tomorrow

I stirred the syrah tonight, all three containers. Still lots of bubbles coming up, so the MLF is cranking along.

I also tasted a sample from each container. They were all very similar:

• Nose: Mostly oak at this point. I don’t know if that is normal or not, but the oak seemed to be the strongest aroma. The fruitiness seems subdued.
• Taste: Nice wine. The oak seems less noticeable on the taste.I can’t be sure, but I think some of the harshness has gone away, and the wine seems smoother.

Wow. I was experimenting with a new TA meaurement kit tonight. This time using a pH meter to find the endpoint. Worked great. At least with my 2008 SB.

I had opened the 3/4 gallon jug of 2008 SB to use as my sample. Phew! It stunk, big time. Totally oxidized, with smells reminiscent of sherry, but really foul. Yuck! I wonder what happened? There was still a lot of lees in the jug.

I looked back. This jug was the last racking of the 6 gallon carboy. So maybe I picked up too much of the lees. I don’t know. I hope my other 2 3 gallon carboy are OK. I opened one and it smelled great! 

Took a small sample to show my fellow winemakers at work. Poured the rest down the drain…

Just checked the syrah, and I can see many tiny streams of bubbles rising to the top. The MLF is moving right along.

I also added more ice to the SB. It must be down close to 32F. The ice is surviving through the day. Maybe tonight I’ll pull the carboy out and see if I am getting any tartrates. If so, this is a really nice way to lower the acidity.

Last night was pretty cold (41F at my house). I moved one of my high acid 2008 SB carboys outside for the evening, then in the morning went out and surrounded it with ice. I am trying to cold stabilize it, and maybe drop the acidity. It is around 9g/L now; I would like to get down to 8 g/L. We’ll see! I wish I had a big refridgerator.

Went out to the garage this morning to check on the malolactic. All three containers had a fine stream of bubbles rising. The themometer read about 66 F. So the MLF seems to be progressing fine.

I stirred each container. Lots of bubbles ame up. Everything smells good.

Erwin came over and we racked the syrah off the gross lees at 2:30 pm. It toiok us three hours to do everything.

• Racked most of the containers into 2 20 gallon tubs.
• Racked the rest of the last demijohn into the now empty and cleaned demijohn.
• Racked the tubs back into the demijohn + carboy.
• We ended up with almost 34 gallons of racked wine.
  • 2 14 gallon demijohns
  • 1 5 gallon carboy
  • 4 wine bottles.
• We started with 36, so we lost 2 gallons, or about 6%.
• We started the malolactic fermentation:
  • Enoferm Alpha malolactice bacteria
  • 2.5 g bacteria hydrated with 50mL distilled water.
  • 20 mL into each of 2 demijohns
  • 10 mL into the 5 gallon carboy
  • Put in the oak staves at the same time; apparently the staves give the bacteria a god surface to work on.
• We put medium toast french oak staves into the demijohns and carboy. The label suggested 3 staves/5 gallons. We put approximately 2 staves/5 gallons. I was worried about overoaking. This way there is no chance the oak needs to come out before the malolactic finishes, which should be in 4-6 weeks.
  • 6 staves each carboy
  • 2 staves for the 5 gallon carboy.

We got a Vinquiry 1 Panel done on our fermented wine. There were some surprises.

• TA: 7.48 g/L.  This was high. We expected 6 g/L based on our tartaric addition. Here is the history:
  • TA initial must: 4.42 g/L
  • Added 242 g tartaric acid.
    • We now have 36 gallons = 136.27 L. So this addition was 242/136.26 = 1.78 g/L. We should have ended up at 4.42 + 1.78 = 6.2 g/L.
    • What if we really only have 30 gallons (113.56L), after we remove the solids by racking. Then the addition was 242/113.56 = 2.13 g/L. We then end up at 4.42 + 2.13 = 6.55 g/L.
    • None of these calculations shows any way for us to get to the  7.48 g/L that we got.
    • How did it happen?
• pH: 3.8 . This is high, but tolerable. We won’t do anything to bring it down. We already have enough acid, see above. Here is the history…
  • pH initial must:  3.69 (me)
  • pH initial must:  3.81  (Vinquiry )
  • pH after tartaric addition:  3.41 (me)
  • pH after fermentation: 3.80 (Vinquiry)
  • pH after fermentation: 3.74 (me)
  • Question 1:   why did it come down to 3.41? I thought becasue of the tartaric addition, although I was surprised by the change.
  • Question 2: Why did it go back up to 3.8?

There were also some numbers that made us happy:

1. Alcohol: 13.69% This was pretty good, considering our sugars were at 23.5 brix. This is a conversion rate of 13.69/23.5 = 0.58. I think was is considered th enormal range  is 0.55-0.67.
2. Free SO2 of 2 ppm and total SO2 of 13 ppm are nice and low for the upcoming malolactic fermentation, which likes low SO2 levels. After the ML, we will need top sulphite pretty heavily becasue of our high pH.
3. VA of 250 ppm is nice and low. I had been worried because of the ethyl acetate aromas coming off the must near the end of the fermentation. I am sure of what I smelled; it just wasn’t enough to be a problem. At low levels it is considered one of the componenets of a fruity wine.
4. The sugar level was very low. 21 mg/100mL = 21 mg/100 g = .02% sugar. I measured .3% with the clinitest kit. Why am I not even close? In any case, it is very low.
5. The malic is at 2.51 g/L. This will get converted to lactic, which will lower the TA, and make it taste less harsh. The conversion ratio is ~0.67, so we will lose 0.33 * 2.51 = .83 g/L of TA, leaving us at 6.65 g/L. The wine should be smoother. The lactic acid that results is less harsh than the malic that was there.

• Pressed into the following containers
  • 2 14 gal demijohns
  • 1 6 gal carboy
  • 1 1 gal jug
  • 1 3/4 gallon jug
  • 1 750 mL wine bottle
  • 3/4 750 mL wine bottle
  • Total wine ~36 gallons
  • Measured sugars using clinitest:  0.3%
• Nose: good; fruity
• Taste: several glasses worth :-). Fruity. Can still get what I think is a strong acidity. But maybe it is just unsettled wine. We’ll probably do a vinquiry panel tomorrow, so we’ll get the numbers.
• Here are some pictures:

10PM: Since we might need a 6 gallon carboy for the syrah pressing tomorrow, I decided to rack the 2009 SB and clean up 1 carboy:

• Racked the 6 gallon, 6.5 gallon, 1 gallon into clean 6, 6.5 gallon carboys.
• Measured the SO2 at ~ 25 ppm.
• Added 25 ppm more SO2.
  • 6 gallon * 1.6 mL/gallon 10% SO2 solution = 9.6 mL, to each carboy
• Nose: excellent; fruit, citrus, grapefruit, no sign of H2S.
• Taste: also excellent. Good acidity, nice and crisp. I had a glass left over and drank it down.
• This might end up my best wine ever.
• The wine is still cloudy. I’ll let it sit 2 months, and check to see if it needs to be fined.

7:30 PM

There was a slight cap, and a little fizzle left in the must. I punched it down. I got a strong whiff of what I believe it ethyl acetate, but I am not sure. It seems to be there when I take the plywood and sheet off of the fermenting bin. Then it goes away. The wine smells and tastes fine. And the garage smells great. I put down a layer of CO2 with the tank to try and keep the O2 off of the must. We’ll get a panel done after pressing, and see how much VA there is.

We will press Wednesday evening, into 2 14 gallon demijohns, plus a 6 and a 3 gallon carboy, if needed. Hopefully that is enough glass.

8:30 PM;

• Punchdown
• Still actively fermenting
• Must temp 74 F.

7AM:

• punchdown
• must temp 75 F
• sugar: 0 brix!
• taste: lots oif fruit. Still pretty acidic. Slightly tannic, but not much. There is still some juice to come out of the berries. That may bring down the acidity. Or maybe I am competely wrong, and it is something else I am tasting. After we do the malolactic, we’ll probably run one more Vinquiry panel, so we’ll know.

We are ready to press. Maybe today!

Sunday 5PM:

• Punchdown
• Must temp 78 F

Time to plan for pressing!

Sunday, 9AM:

• Punched down
• Must temp: 78 F. Temperature is starting to drop.
• Sugars: 2.5 brix, so we are almost done.

Saturday:

• Punched down around 4:30PM, with Irwin.
• Must temp 82 F.
• Sugars: can’t remember…Erwin, if you read this, do you remember?
• Punched down again at around 9PM.
• Must temp 82F

• Punch down 7:30AM
• Musty temp 82 F.

• Punchdown at 5:30 PM
• Must temp 82 F.

• Another punchdonw at 6:45 PM.
• Must temp 82 F.
• Sugar: 9.5 brix
• Nose: good
• Taste: Still sweet. Very fruity. Distinct bitterness. I am guessing this will go away. I have noticed the same thing in my sauvignon blancs. I think it is pretty acidic. I hope we didn’t over do it with the tartaric addition. We’ll find out if we do another vinquiry panel. Also, the pH will give us a bit of an idea.

• Punch down at 7:15 AM
• Must temp = 80 F
• Sugars: 12.5 brix
• Nose: Good.
• Need to figure out the malolactic fermentation.
• Need to figue out what we will press into.

I went out to do some errrands this evening. When I returned and came into the house, the whole house smelled of fermenting wine. Not just the garage! It was wonderful. THis has got to be my favorite time of year. It rained most of the day, so no sun to warm the must.

• 9:15 PM: Punched down the cap.
• Must temp 76 F.
• Sugars: 16.5 brix. By tomorrow morning we’ll be below 13, so I did the nutrient addition.
• Added 19 g Fermaid K mixed into juice solution. Stirred it in really well.
• No more additions required at this point, although we need to decide when to inoculate for the malolactic.
• Put two 125W heat lamps pointing at the bottom of the bin.
• Put on the sheet and plywood, covered with blankets. I hope to get over 80 F by the morning.

Picked up a couple of heat lamp bulbs from Home Depot, and came home after work.

• Kids did the punchdown.
• Must temp = 74 F, so it came up on its own, without my heating pad.
• Sugar: 18 Brix! Zowee, that came down fast. I will need to put in the next nutrient additon tonight before going to bed. It is supposed to go in at 16 Brix.
• I will set up the heat lamps to try and keep it warm through the night. I think I will place two heat lamps on the floor, and heat up the underside of the bin, and cover the top with sheet, plywood and blankets.

7:15 Punchdown: Everything still going fine.

Must at 70 F. I will pick up a radiant space heater today, and see if I can use that to warm the must. This fermentation is ending up like a white fermentation…pretty cold. That should give us a nice fruity wine. But we won’t get the color extraction we need unless we get up into the 80’s.

Where is that sun when you need it! No Sun coming for a few days.

• 9:30 PM: Punched down the cap.
• Must temp still around 68 F.
• I placed a glass tray on top of the must, then placed a heating pad in the tray. I will try running it all night, and see if I can warm up the must a little.
•  

   

   

Left the garage door open all day; the fog never cleared

Still, I got home at 6PM and could hear the must bubbling. There was a decent cap; the kids did the punch down.

• Must temp: still 68 F. I somehow need to warm this up.
• Sugar: 24.5 brix.
• Nose: very nice. No problems.

I’ll take another look just before bedtime.

Just checked, and so far, no obvious fermentation. I stirred it up, and brought up a lot of foam, so maybe it is starting. The color is really deepening. These few days of “cold” soak are really drawing out the color.

I tasted the juice; still tastes great.

This morning I’ll leave the garage door open, so the southern sun will be on the bin most of the day. The bin is covered  with a sheet, and a piece of plywood. The plywood gets very warm in the sun, which should indirectly heat up the must.

• Tartaric addition:   Took ~ 1.5L of jiuce and mixed in the 242 g of tartaric. After stirring until dissolved, I poured it into the bin, and stirred it in.
• Fermaid K addition:   Took ~ 1 L of juice and mixed in 19 g of Fermaid K. Stirred until dissolved, and poured it into the bin, and stirred it in.
• Yeast addition:
  • The yeast datasheet says to use 20-40g/100L of juice. We picked 30 g/100L.
  • 151 L * 30g/100L = 45 g yeast. This approximately matches the 1g/gal number I have seen elsewhere.
  • The datasheet says mix the yeast with water, 10x the amount of the yeast. If we do 45 g yeast, that’s 450 g = 450 mL of water. I have always mixed 1/2 water and 1/2 juice. So I will take 225 mL distilled water and 225 mL juice.
  • Yeast solution temperature = 70 F. Here is the  yeast foaming after 20 minutes:
  • Must temp at time of yeast addition = 68 F. Datasheet says keep the temps similar.
  • Added the yeast and stirred it in after 20 minutes, per the data sheet.
  • We are off and running! Hooray!

Finally, I remeasured the pH: 3.41  Wow! It dropped a lot. But it will probably go back up, since we added tartaric based on the final wine volume, and a lot of the juice is still trapped in the grapes. once that juice comes out of the grapes, the pH will probably go back up.

The juice tastes great. I think the acid has made it crisper. The flavors are much stronger. The garage is smelling great. I wish it was inside the house!

The grapes, as I finished up….

5PM: Measured the must temperature…66 F. Good temperature. Plan is to start the fermentation tomorrow around lunchtime.

We got our Vinquiry report. Numbers didn’t really match our measured numbers which is a bit dissapointing.

• sugar:  Us: 25 brix;      Vinqiry:23.5 brix;   why the difference?
• pH:      Us: 3.69,           Vinquiry: 3.8;         why the difference?
• TA:      Us: 5.5g/l;        Vinquiry 4.4 g/l;     why the difference? This was a very hard measurement. It is difficult to see the endpoint when doing this.

Tartaric addition calculation:

• 40 gallons = 151.4 liters
• Current TA = 4.4 g/l
• Desired TA = 6.0 g/l
• Addition/l = 6.0 – 4.4 = 1.6 g/l
• Total Addition = 1.6 g/l * 151.4 l ~ 242 g tartaric acid

Sugar addition:

• We will not do a sugar additon. Potential alcohol ~= 13.4%, which is a good level.

 Additional SO2 adition:

• Because the pH came in at 3.8 in the Vinquiry report, we decided to bump the SO2 to 100 ppm.
• Based on the FermCalc calulator, this is 295 ml of 10% solution. We already added 220 ml, so we need ~75 ml more.
• Added 75 ml 10% soulution 9:30 PM

Yeast selection:  We chose to use ES488, purchased 500g from Vinquiry. With the additional SO2, we’ll probably wait until Wednesday to start the fermentation.

We picked the 2009 Syrah from Ken Hunt at Nolan Vineyards:

Here is some of the picking crew:

The dogs name was Syrah! Ken was really helpful. He drove his tractor with Erwins 1/2 ton bin on a trailer, so we dumped our grape tubs right into the bin. The picking was very efficient.

Here are the numbers:

• Clone: Durell
• Rootstock: 3309 or 1616 or 110R
• ~500lbs grapes picked into Erwins first half ton bin, 7:30 – 9:00 AM 11/1/2009
• Crushed at my house into Erwins second half ton bin
• Must temp 58 F.
• Sugar: 25 brix
• pH: 3.69
• TA: 5.5 g/l
• ~400 ml sample frozen for Vinquiry 3.5 analysis

Must volume calculations:

• Must volume in half ton bin: 44″x44″x6″ = 11616 in^3 = 6.72 ft^3 = 50.3 gallons must
• Wine volume estimate from grower: 7-8 gal/100 lbs grapes
  1. 7 gal/100 lbs: 500 lbs * 7 gal/100 lbs grapes =  35 gallons wine
  2. 8 gal/100 lbs: 500 lbs * 8 gal/100 lbs grapes = 40 gallons wine

SO2 calulations:

• Because pH is 3.7, add 70 ppm SO2
• From Beverage People catalog, 75 ppm SO2 = 4.9 ml/gal 10 % SO2 solution
• 4.9 ml * 70/75 = 4.6 ml for 70 ppm
• Pick 45 gallons, halfway between 50 gal measured must volume and 40 gal estimated final wine
• 45 gal * 4.9 ml/gal = 220.5 ml to get 70 ppm SO2 in 45 gal
• The fermCalc calculator comes up with 207 ml for the same conditions. Close enough.

6:30 PM: ADDED 220 ml 10% sulphite solution, and mixed it in