There isn’t much to watch during these first five days. On days 3 and 4 you could set a clock to the bubbles in the econolock. Every three seconds there were bubbles. Fermentation was taking place. On day 5 however the three second pattern stopped. There were still bubbles ranging at different times from every five to eight seconds. On day 6 there were no more bubbles present. I took a reading of the specific gravity at 0.992. It was time to rack the wine from the primary fermenter to a carboy. We tasted the wine and thought that it needed some time to rest. There were some hints of a typical Cabernet Sauvignon nose and taste. The wine will rest in the carboy for two more weeks.
I received this email from my niece in Virginia. It sounds like a terrific wine festival. Put it on your calendar for next year!
“Just got back from a wonderful music and wine festival in Floyd, Virginia. Many of the wineries from the Roanoke and Blacksburg areas were there, including our favorite, Valhalla winery. Valhalla offered an extra tasting of their reserve wines for $10 which was well worth the price, as they were show-casing their anniversary 1998 wines to prove how well they aged! They have a wonderful selection of reds and whites. Other favorite wineries there were Horton, Am Rhein and Veritas. Additionally, there was winery (“Hot Dawg”) that produced chilli pepper wine, served by guys who could have played for the band ZZ Top!!! They were excellent entertainment (and the wine was a lot of fun to drink, even if it would never be considered a fine wine).
The music was excellent, and the main stage is a beautiful wooden structure set on the top of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It made for a perfect day!!! Hope you will consider going next year.”
When I checked the econolock at 6:00 AM yesterday, there were bubbles. Not rapid bubbles but an occasional bubble. This is a sign that fermentation is taking place. Later during the day, the bubbles were more noticeable.
This morning the bubbling continues. There are bubbles about every three seconds. There was a slight odor. It smelled like a winery, just not as intense. Luckily the morning air was cool enough to open the house windows and doors to air out. The bubbling continued throughout the day at the same 3-second interval. The odor is a bit more intense.
Did you ever start something and had no idea what you were doing? Well today I decided to start making wine using a wine kit my wife gave to me. I’m going to attempt to make a Cabernet Sauvignon wine using juice and a bunch of packets containing various chemicals and oak by a company called Vintners Reserve. According to the directions, just follow directions and everything will turn out all right.
My first task was to sanitize everything. Of course, the supplied video used a different product than the one I had. But the directions on the jar of easy Clean were simple, just mix and wash surfaces. No rinsing was required. However the back label gave a WARNING statement to basically avoid contact with the human body so not rinsing was not something I was comfortable with. Besides the video said to rinse. So I rinsed.
Those were the before you start directions. Next came the Part One directions. The first thing was to pour a half-gallon of hot water into the bottom of the primary fermenter, a big white bucket. That was easy. Next I was instructed to empty the contents of packet one into the water and stir vigorously. Yuk! The packet was bentonite and the mixture looked like very watery cement. The directions did not mention why to add bentonite and if you read about it on the Internet you’ll race back to the directions and see if you misread the directions. Apparently bentonite is used to clarify wine after fermentation. So I’m not sure why I added it first.
The next step was to add the juice and enough water to reach the six-gallon mark. This task was simple enough. Then you withdraw a sample of the juice, place it in a tube, drop the hydrometer into the tube, give it a spin and take a reading. The specific gravity was 1.068. That isn’t a high reading for potential alcohol, somewhere between nine and ten percent.
Finally you add a packet of oak dust and stir it under the juice. Except the oak dust floats on the surface and doesn’t want to go under the liquid. So after apparently getting the dust wet, yeast was added. The last step was to put on the lid. However there is a tiny hole in the lid and nowhere in the directions did it say to plug the hole with the supplied econolock. So I viewed the video and they did not say to do this either, but they showed a primary fermentation bucket with the econolock installed in the lid so I installed it.
Oh well, Part One is over and I have no idea if anything is going to work.
If you haven’t decided what wine to have, try a sparkling wine. Sparkling wines tend to be crisp and refreshing and what could be better on a hot, summer day? In addition pairing becomes very easy when using a sparkling wine as everything seems to pair with it. Are you looking for something to do or somewhere to go? Why not check out a winery in your “own” backyard?
It’s amazing how many people don’t think about visiting wineries in their area. Today I met someone who has wineries near him and he’s never visited them. Instead I met him at a winery about 150 miles from his home.
Cheers!
I just had the opportunity to do my first beer tasting. Okay, so I don’t care all that much for beer. The last time I drank a bottle of beer, the weather had been very hot and I had been helping repair an old barn. One of the things I object to beer is the aroma of the beer. I’d rather notice the fruit and floral notes of wine. However, I enjoy the process of tasting wine and like to carry that over to other things such as tea. So why not beer?
I was surprised to learn that tasting beer is similar to tasting wine. The idea is to swirl the beer so that the oxygen provides more aroma. Taste the beer and notice the flavors. Compare and note the similarities of the different beers you taste. One of the interesting beers I tasted was a Riesling Ale made with Riesling and beer. It was definitely a beer, not a wine and was good. The last tasting I had was a root beer. Wow! That was good! What have your experiences been with tasting beer?
There is a saying I continue to hear as I visit wineries. “Americans talk dry but drink sweet.” Today I read an article which suggests that in other parts of the world, children are provided with watered down wines until they are old enough to drink the wine. In America young children are encouraged to drink milk and then they are provided with sweet drinks including sodas. Would this make a difference and encourage future American adults to drink sweet wines?
While sweet wines do not need to have a food to pair with, I believe that the tasting rooms in America do not offer enough opportunity to pair dry wines with food. A few wineries do an outstanding job but most offer the standard crackers. To taste a dry red wine, I like to visualize a sizzling steak. The visualization and tasting combine to create the impression of what it may be like to have a bottle of that wine on the dinner table. When you visit a tasting room would you rather visualize tasting the wine with food or have a small platter of bite size foods to experiment and pair with wine? Would you be willing to pay more for this type of special tasting? I know I would. This would add to the total experience of visiting a winery.
Winemakers and vineyardists are taking notice of the Finger Lakes as an increasing number of wineries open every year. For the benefit of visitors to the area, more tasting rooms are also offering bistros or restaurants. What better way to show off your wines than have food with which to pair it. According to Joseph Gober at Americana Vineyards & Winery, he put in the Crystal Lake Café in response to people asking, “Where can we go to eat?” At Americana , the culinary focus is on daily specials paired with wines from the winery. At Sheldrake Point Winery, the Simply Red Lakeside Bistro focuses on using foods seasonally and locally available. Check them out when you are in the area.
While you are out and about this weekend, if you happen to be buying supplies for July 4th don’t forget a bottle of wine for your wine enthusiasts. Wine is also appropriate for picnics. White wines are a good choice, just make sure they are chilled. You may even want to freeze grapes, cherries, sliced peaches or one of your favorite fruits and pour the wine over the frozen fruit to keep it cold. It also achieves an attractive presentation. Wines to consider having include Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel or a rosé.
Tip: Don’t keep the wine in a hot car! Put an ice chest in the car trunk.
Yesterday, I emailed wineries in my attempt to discover more recipes for the website www.winetrailtraveler.com. As part of my quest I describe the website and provide a link to it. One response I had was from a New Mexico winery who inquired as to why we did not have New Mexico wineries in our Winery Reviews section. I thought you might be interested in my answer. “We started Wine Trail traveler, LLC in January 2007. Previous to that we visited wineries “just for fun” wherever we happened to be vacationing. Now, as a full time business, we make it a point to visit and write about wineries whenever it is feasible which is why you see many winery reviews on the East Coast. Colorado was recently added due to funding provided by the Colorado Wine Board. We would love to visit and write about wineries in other states. However, economics plays a significant role in our decision as what states and wineries to visit. If you know of wineries that are clustered together, let me know, as it makes visits easier. Also, anyone with funding ideas please let me know.
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