( Saturday, October 7, 2006 -- Making this first entry a week after we started, relying on memory.
060930 - Went Saturday AM, Sep. 30 to Lapides market in the Brooklyn Terminal Market. This is where Bernardo & his winemaking friends have been buying grapes in memory. At 8 AM most of the other customers there seemed to be other home winemakers.
Palettes of different types of grapes outside the building. Walking from palette to palette and pulling individual grapes from the sides of crates we tasted alacante (very juicy), merlot, zinfandel, grenache (unbelievably sweet), and others that I'm not remembering.
Spoke with Mrs. Lapide - I think we had already been leaning toward zinfandel, talked to her about blending and she thought blending with the alacante would save us money and "achieve the same goal", by which I took her to mean having zinfandel wine. The ration she figured would work was 10 cases zinfandel, four alacante bouchet, and that's what we settled on.
The zinfandel grapes were 36 lbs. to the crate, and the alacante 42 lbs. to the crate - that's 528 lbs. of grapes. I think the total cost, with some chemicals, yeast and an odd or end was 490. initial plan was to use existing carboys and jugs, existing poly drum, existing crusher and existing wood barrel.
Got the grapes to 438 11th. Washed them by the 1/2 crate and carried them to the cellar where we crushed them into the poly. When we were just more than half through the grapes we were two thirds full in the poly, so went to fetch a second one from 3rd Street (yes, the drum fits in the back of the Mini) - washed and crushed the remaining grapes into that.
All the barrels and tools and our own hands we washed in a solution of water and potassium metabisulfite - 3 tsp to a gallon. After the initial washings we kept a 5 gallon bucket of the solution on hand for washing our paddles and tools and hands.
The washing of the grapes we did consisted only of hosing them and checking for rot or raisins and removing them. (I subsequently read in the Presque Isle pamphlet that they are not a fan of washing - but to pick for rot & raisins.)
After lunch we dove into the grapes to pull out what stems we could. Bernardo's approach was ernest, but not religious. I'm guessing we removed half the stems.
The yeast we bought was Montrachet yeast. Bernardo had more packets of another Montrechet yeast variety, and he wound up making a mixed batch of both - I need to get the proportions. Yeast was mixed Saturday afternoon, frothed, and poured into the grapes around 8 PM Saturday evening.
At the end of the day the only things we had introduced into the grapes was the yeast and whatever water & potassium metabisulfite might have been left on our hands or the tools.
061001 -
Sunday. About 6:15 AM, first stirring after yeast had been added (about 10 hours prior). No greatly noticeable difference. Grapes floating on juice, bit not obviously giving up their own juice, and little bubbling or fermenting.
That evening the floating grapes were more obviously formed into a cap a few inches thick. Active fermenting had really started.
061002 -
Monday. Have pictures from that morning - cap is 4 inches thick. Foam and fermentation is very active.
Evening - foam and fermentation is now breaking through the cap. Everything is wildly alive. Lots of effervescence - very heady when you get your face into the barrel. The whole house now smells of something between grape and wine. The juice is quite warm.
Bernardo, on advice from the master, Bernard, judges this is a good time to add something to help the structure (huh?) of the wine. This is practice in the group, not based on measurement. So, in goes the tartaric acid. Need to check with Bernardo re the quantity we added.
When the cap was fully broken up and the juice stirred the foam from fermentation was vivid in color and almost taffy or meringue-like in volume and glossiness and volume.
061003 & 060104 -
Tuesday and Wednesday. The cap crests at about 6 inches. Lots of deepening nose, lots of effervescence. Fermentation still very active, but does not approach again the witches' cauldron of Monday evening. Moisture collects o the underside of the plastic we cover the drums with. A sense that the grapes are further desiccating. Continue breaking up the cap and stirring twice a day. No other chemicals are added.
I pick up a thermometer for the cellar. Bernardo had been concerned, I think, that we were too warm. We installed a little venting fan earlier in the week to cool & help get some of the gasses out. But the Presque Isle pamphlet and subsequent reading calls for red wine first fermentation at 75 to 80 F. We're between 70 & 75 now. But will likely go warmer as the furnace kicks in and it cools outside. Might want to replace the venting fan with the original pane of glass.
061005 & 060106
Thursday and Friday. Fermentation seems to be tailing off. The cap is decreasing, less structure each time we stir. Bubbling from fermentation is finer, and all bubbles dissipate within a minute or two of breaking up the cap. Still effervescence above the juice. The color of the juice is deep purple, and it's very opaque.
Friday evening we prepare the carboys for the first racking on Sunday, washing them with plain water.
061007 -
Saturday. Much like Friday evening. Deep color. Very little structure to the cap. Foam all dissolves within a minute or two of beginning to stir.
061008
Sunday - Am reading in Jon Iverson's Home Winemaking, Step by Stepre potassium metabisulfite -
Some people are allergic to sulfites and asthmatics are are particularly sensitive to it...
Duh. Likely the reason I often feel a small asthmatic episode starting when I have my fist sips of red wine. Also may be why I had one when I dipped my head into the barrel a few days ago when stirring. Thought I might have been winded from schlepping the carboys around, but maybe not.
Pressing day. Started clearing space in the cellar around 7:30. Gathered the press and odds & ends over to 11th Street. The press had a section of railroad rail as the top cross to it's frame - all heavy as hell. Managed to get everything into the cellar, sulfite washed & ready to rock still early.
Poured grapes from both poly drums in equal amounts so that all of the carboys will have pretty much the same blend of alicante and zinfandel.
Ran the press once and thought we would run it just a second time, but started thinking it would be awfully full and we would not get as much juice as three presses. Wound up filling 8 carboys plus 1 3 liter jug plus one 2 liter jug plus (for yucks) two wine bottles. Used a mix of intestine style and inverted jelly jar style gas gismos (which must have some more common name. Bernardo carried off the skins and stems for compost.
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