Date: Oct-Nov 2017
Bench Trials: Tips from the Pros
MEMBERS ONLYGet tips on performing bench trials at home from three pros who utilize bench trials at their day jobs.
Dealing With High Brix Grapes
FREEYou definitely want to water down that high-sugar juice before you pitch your yeast. High Brixes lead to high alcohols, which lead to yeast that just can’t complete a fermentation. Stuck fermentations
Is Potassium Sorbate In A Port Necessary?
MEMBERS ONLYI’m with you. If I was making a Port-style wine and it was 20% alcohol and 100–150 g/L residual sugar (10–15%) I would forgo the potassium sorbate altogether. I am not a fan of potassium sorbate because I think it makes wines taste funny and seems to be a holdover from an earlier era when
First-Time Barrel Soaking, Wine Flower and High Brix Grapes
MEMBERS ONLYIt is entirely normal for the first soaking of a barrel to produce a dark-colored water.
Birthday Planning for a Winemaker
MEMBERS ONLYA Texas winemaker wanted to indulge a friend who has always wanted to make his own wine by buying a wine kit as a birthday gift. But little did she know all the choices she would need to make before settling on the right one!
Home Winemaking Quality Control
MEMBERS ONLYWhen the editors at WineMaker suggested quality control (QC) for a story, I was delighted to take it on. I have a long personal and professional history with QC and it infuses most of my activities — including my fermentation hobbies. Before joining the world of winemaking, I put my chemistry degree to work in
Orange is the New White
MEMBERS ONLYYou may have noticed the “orange wines” that have been popping up on trendy wine lists lately. These are white wines that are purposely exposed to skin contact and oxidized to produce wines that are quite orange in appearance.
Skin Contact Decisions
MEMBERS ONLYWinemakers have to decide how long to macerate their grapes to make the best wine. But how? Too little skin contact and the wines can lack color or body; too much contact and you wind up with wines that are too bitter or astringent. Learn more about skin contact to make an informed decision.
Essential Winemaking Advice: Tips from Kenwood Vineyards’ Chief Winemaker
MEMBERS ONLYPat Henderson, Chief Winemaker at Sonoma County, California’s famed Kenwood Vineyards, shares some universal winemaking advice that he has learned over the course of his more than 35 commercial vintages, and from his early years as a hobby winemaker.
Traminette: Little Gewürztraminer grows up
MEMBERS ONLYIt is so wonderful to have such friends and colleagues at WineMaker magazine who keep inviting me back to speak at the annual conference (and I am looking forward to San Diego, California next May and hope to see you there as well). As I reflect back on this past year’s conference in Ithaca, New
First-Time Oak Barrel Soaking
MEMBERS ONLYYour pictures of the barrel you made are very impressive and I applaud both your ambition and skill! The artistry it takes to cut, shape, curve, and toast wood so it will hold liquid is not easy to acquire. Bravo to you. To answer your question, it’s possible that some iron filings (from grinding the
Understanding Brix Readings
FREEOne of the most important measurements a winemaker must stay on top of from the time grapes begin to mature in the vineyard through the end of fermentation is degrees Brix. Brix,
Birthday Planning: Dry Finish
FREEAs many Texans can attest, wine is not something that tourists have historically flocked to Texas for in the past. Yet, with the recent expansion of Texas vineyards, this has recently begun
Wine Flower
MEMBERS ONLYI agree with your local winery supply store employee; it’s most likely a surface yeast or “flor” yeast of some kind, forming a floating plaque on top of your wine. Sometimes referred to as “wine flower” (or the Spanish word, flor), these yeast aren’t turning sugar into alcohol, they’re actually eating alcohol and oxidizing it
Wine Grape Cold Soaking Success
MEMBERS ONLYIf you have ever researched how to make Pinot Noir, you have no doubt come across the term “pre-fermentation cold maceration” or simply “cold soak.” Although a cold soak is used on other grape varietals, lowering the temperatures prior to fermentation is primarily done to coax more color out of Pinot Noir, which tends to