Date: Dec 16-Jan 17
Making White Zinfandel
FREEFunny you ask this question as I’ve just now got three tanks full of 2016 Monterey Pinot Noir rosé fermenting in the winery. White Zinfandel, contrary to what some folks think, is
Red Wine Stabilization and Making White Zinfandel
MEMBERS ONLYOxidation, whether microbial (metabolically), chemical (directly reacting with environmental oxygen), or enzymatic can degrade color and cause less than optimal conditions for the survival
of colored compounds.
Detecting, Measuring, and Preventing Volatile Acidity
MEMBERS ONLYYou’ve worked long and hard to craft that awesome red wine but now, you go down to the cellar to taste a sample out of the carboy or oak barrel to see how the wine is coming along. Oh no! The wine smells of vinegar, and worse yet, it reeks of nail polish remover. What
Fermentation and Aging Containers
FREEFermentation and aging vessels winemakers have to decide between include oak, glass, plastic, and stainless steel. Each has its own pros and cons to be weighed.
Top 100 Wine Kits of 2016
MEMBERS ONLYHere’s the top 100 wine kits from the 2016 WineMaker Magazine International Amateur Wine Competition
Six Essential Winemaking Techniques
MEMBERS ONLYCommercial winemakers and wine industry professionals don’t become experts overnight. It can take many vintages to figure out what works and what doesn’t work in a home or commercial winery. But that doesn’t mean hobby winemaking has to be hard — and it helps to get some pro-level advice to boost your confidence. We spoke with
A Year in a the Life of a Wine: Part II (Grape Processing)
MEMBERS ONLYA look at processing grapes after harvest.
Amarone: A Taste of Valpolicella
MEMBERS ONLYFind out how to replicate the method of making Amarone — the famed red “straw wine” from the Valpolicella zone of Italy’s Veneto province made from grapes partially dried on straw mats to concentrate their juice.
High Acids, Low Tannins: Barbera
FREEBarbera is a favorite among winemakers because its high acidity makes it a useful grape for blending and also a unique varietal wine. Get tips to make your own Barbera wines at home.
Red Wine Stabilization
MEMBERS ONLYEver open a bottle of red wine you’ve lovingly saved for 20 years only to be disappointed as a brick-orange liquid followed by a brownish sludge falls into your glass? The issue of color optimization and retention in red wines is a large and complicated one — I could probably write at least ten articles
Making Mead: Tips from the Pros
MEMBERS ONLYLooking to try something new? How about making mead, also known as honey wine. Meads come in many different forms, from dry to sweet, with added fruit (melomel), malt (braggot), spices (metheglin) and so on. But to get a good foundation for your meadmaking, start at the beginning with traditional mead. Heed the advice from
Making Pear Cider/Perry
FREEHard cider doesn’t have to be made from apples. Try making a pear cider (perry) this summer!
Enzymes for Hobbyists
MEMBERS ONLYWhen pioneers of winemaking like Louis Pasteur or André Tchelistcheff are mentioned, James B. Sumner is often overlooked. Nonetheless, this Nobel-prize-winning chemist (1946) set in motion the entire scientific field for today’s article. In 1926, Sumner successfully crystallized the enzyme urease and performed chemical analysis that demonstrated that urease is a protein. Not at all
Winemaking in the Philippines: Dry Finish
FREEThe Philippines are not known for red wines, but there are a small group of winemakers looking to change that using exotic mountain berries.