Troubleshooting

Article

Pressing Rosé, Creamy Chardonnay, & Oak Origins

Technique

Chaptalization — How Far Can You Go?

Adding sugar to bring up the Brix is necessary in parts of the world, especially during vintages with heavy rain. A Virginia winery did a st

Article

Over-Oaked Chardonnay, Choosing Yeast, Hard Water, & Stuck Ferments

Always start small with additions — it’s much easier to add more than to take something out later. That said, the Wine Wizard shares adv

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Curing an over-oaked Chardonnay

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Dealing With Hard Water

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Stuck Syrah Fermentation

Article

Performing Benchtop Trials

When changes to aroma or structure are desired to achieve a more balanced, pleasing wine, you should always start with benchtop trials to di

Article

Maximizing Color Extraction, Wine Aging Temps, a Need for Decating, & Taming Tannins

The Wiz offers advice on maximizing color extraction and shares the impact temperature plays in it. Plus: How cold is too cold to age wine,

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Red Wine Lost Its Color

I have an Australian Cabernet that is now clear (see photos)! All the color deposited on the bottom of the bottle.

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Dealing With Bottle Shock

Article

Taming Tartness, Adding Body, & Non-Alcoholic Wine

The Wine Wiz offers her wizdom to bring a tart wine into balance, as well as ways to add body to a wine and why non-alcoholic wine productio

Article

Racking in Moonlight, Acetobacter, Fermenting “dry,” and White Winemaking

While there are a lot of urban myths surrounding winemaking, the one about racking under a full moon isn’t totally hogwash. Plus, what to

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Acetobacter Infections

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Browning in Red Wines

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Will Alcohol Kill Mycoderma?

Article

It’s Always a Good Time to Assess Your Wine

Making small adjustments to a wine the moment they are needed, as opposed to one large adjustment prior to bottling, will result in a more c

Article

Understanding and Controlling Brettanomyces

It is both a spoilage yeast and the heart of many great wines of Bordeaux. We share what you need to understand about Brettanomyces, the com

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Reducing Bitterness in Citrus Wine

Article

Causes and Treatments for Volatile Acidity

Winemakers always need to pay special attention to the possibility of rising volatile acidity and ways to stem its effects.

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Troubleshooting a Blueberry Wine

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Strategies for a Chaptalization Mistake

Article

Whose Fault Was It?

Phil Plummer was one of the experienced judges at the 2022 WineMaker International Amateur Wine Competition. After three days of judging he

Technique

Balancing Wine’s Structure: Techniques to add and remove tannins

Tannins are a big piece of the large puzzle when balancing many styles of wine. It’s important to understand ways to increase or decrease

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Troubleshooting Malolactic Fermentation

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Cures To An Oversulfited Wine