Apr-May 2017
Understanding Bentonite, Refractometers vs. Hydrometers, and Mellowing A Big Wine
Most folks I talk to say that sodium bentonite and calcium bentonite are interchangeable in winemaking.
Pinotage in the Spring
Spring is here, and that means a new winemaking season is upon us! A couple of experienced winemakers share the joys that come with making wine from South America and South Africa, as they recall their recent experience making Pinotage wine from South Africa last spring.
Moving Wine with Pumps
Wine is frequently transferred or “racked” into another vessel to leave the byproducts of the process (known as lees) behind. If you make larger batches of wine at home, using a pump can make this process easier.
Balance in the Vineyard
Balance in a vineyard is defined as a vine that has enough leaves to ripen a small to moderate crop load. To achieve that goal, a good vineyard manager needs to pay close attention to what’s happening among the vines this time of year.
Creating Balanced Wine
There are many components in wine that all need to work together to create balance. Find out how to juggle acidity, alcohol, residual sugar, tannins, color, flavor components, and more.
Year in the Life of a Wine: Part IV (Good Fermentations)
In the fourth installment of our year-long series about how homemade wine is made using home-grown grapes in Upstate New York, it’s time to check on finished fermentations and prune the grapevines.
Cellaring Wines
Learn the basics of how and where to age your homemade wines.
Petit Manseng
A long time ago, brave souls looking for an easier route to the Far East set sail west across the Atlantic Ocean. Controversial at the time given the prevailing philosophy was that
