HELP- 120 # of siraz grapes!!!

PLEASE HELP!!!! My Portoguese boyfiend showed up today with 120# of fresh siraz grapes to make wine! I have no clue what to do!!!
I have a Victorio Strainer that can be used to separate the juice from the skins and seeds. Do I just remove the juice and let the juice set for 24 hours and then put in the carboy!

I need help today, as the grapes are in 4 cases !

We did just the merlot juice last year and was successful.

Please help me deal with these wonderful grapes to make wine!!

Desperate in Maine!!

Desperate-

Ok, first of all, you do not want to seperate anything. Crush the grapes in a bucket or something. Make sure it's clean, if possible get some sodium or potassium metabisulfate and sanitize. You can purchase this at a brew shop. If you can not get it wash the container out with boiling water, just spash it around it will have to suffice. You have 120 pounds of grapes I assume. I am also assuming you have never done anything like this before and have no equipment, but I might be wrong. Since you know what a carboy is you might get back to me asap and let me know what you have and do not have.

You ferment on the skins. The skins provide color, flavor, tannins, etc. They form the body of the wine. If you want white wine you would press the juice before fermenting. You will not want a white syrah. Trust me. If you happen to have everything you need to do this, take the grapes off the stems and put them in a strainer of some kind and pour sulfite solution over them and then after a min or 2 rinse them off. Then put them in a bucket and with a sanitized 2X4 or a sanitized foot or whatever, crush the grapes, and put them in the primary fermenter. If you have a grain sparge bag (straining bag) put this in the primary and pour it into that, it will make the later steps easier (pressing). After this is all destemmed and crushed (just break the grapes, you dont need to crush the seeds, this would be a bad taste) and in the fermenter, add pectic enzyme if you have it, about 1/2 teaspoon per 5 gal is good enough, test your acid if you have it, and after you stir it up take a specific gravity reading, it might be a little low like 1.085, if it is, add about 1/16th teaspoon per gallon of potassium metabisulfate, stir the crap out of it, and cover it overnight. Keep it covered and away from fruit flies. The next day about 24 hours later, take another reading and if it is above 1.095 - 1.105 then you are good to go, pitch the yeast. If not then add sugar in small amounts until you reach 1.095 and then pitch. It would be good to make a yeast starter. 2 cups water warm (104F) with 2 tablespoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of nutrient. This is per 5 gallons. If you end up with 7 do two packets. I suggest using something like an ICV D-6 or an ex1118 or similier. Let that starter sit for 24 hours and then pitch it. Either way you will prepare it ahead of time, at least re-hydrate the yeast.

Let me know what you have or do not have and we will figure out what you can do with this.

WE have 2 new clean 6.5 gallon buckets with covers that we purchased new today.. Wehave grapes and straining clothes.

Your advice was great! So now what?

Paula & Tom

Why do you use yeast and not naturally occuring yeast?

Why do you mean by pitch the yeast?

Ok. First let me make a correction, as I am at work trying to figure out why some ancient station wagon is stalling out I am writing this. ICV-D47 is the yeast I was referring to first.

You have the buckets, if you can get sulfites from a local brew shop homebrew shop etc locally it would be great. I can not think of another place to look. You do not want to clean the buckets with lemon scented dawn etc, as it will impart a lemon scented dawn flavor to the bouquet of the wine. Get the sulfite if you can. Mix it 3 tablespoons per gallon of water, get a spray bottle, put it in, and spray everything down with it. If you crush with a 2X4 or whatever soak the thing in the sanitizer. I can not stress it enough, you don't have to be sterile, but sanitized. Killing mold, free yeasts, and other nasties is what you want. Brewshop should be able to supply you with enzyme too.

Now if you cant get any of this stuff due to no shop anywhere near you, don't stress. Boil some water and after you scrub out the buckets with some clean water and a brush, towel, etc (I dont recommend scrubbies because they scratch the plastic, we prefer less area for germs etc to live) and then splash the boiling water everywhere. Dont pour it in and let it set it might melt the buckets. Clean the grapes of any leaves etc under running water. Seperate them all from the stems discard any moldy ones. Then crush. I dont care how you do it really. Potato masher in a pitcher. Foot. Whatever, just try to crush them all. Do small amounts at a time, then put them into the buckets. Cover them with a plastic bag with a string around them. If you cover them with a solid lid it will just blow off, and the primary fermentation actually needs oxygen anyway. I hope to god you have real wine yeast. You NEED it. Bread yeast will not do at all. You need a yeast that is good burgandy region or a strong champagne region. The two I mentioned before are good, the ICV-D47 is good because it will bring the fruity bouquet out in the finished wine. The EC1118 is good because the fermentation will not fail, its a very robust yeast, and since it is getting colder I suggest you use that or something similier IE premier curvee etc. You also need to keep the must (that is the juice and grape mixture) warm. At least 65F up to 75F. This is important as it will stop fermenting if it gets too cold or there are major temp fluctuations.
Rehydrate the yeast. If you can get to a homebrew place get nutrient and corn sugar, regular sugar can be used, and do the yeast starter as in the previous post. cover loosely 24 hours in a warm place.
Every day, twice a day, you will push the grape skins which will form a cap (make sure you leave room for it at the top of the buckets) and rise up on the bubbles that form in the fermentation. You need to push these down into the juice. It is super important. You also need to be doing that with something that has been sanitized. Worst case senario wash your hands and arms for like 3 minutes under hot water with soap that is unscented. Then do it with those (the hand). You will need carboys for the latter part of this, so in the meantime get some, you can find them online, I suggest ECKraus.com. You will be transferring it into these in about 7 days. Maybe 10. Keep me posted, I have to work now.

You have been very helpful. I do need to know what you need by pitch the yeast?

We have a beer brew place near us, so I am sure we can find some of the items you mentioned.

I also appreciate you SIMPLE directions for two Maine folks who love wine, but don't have a clue what to do with fresh grapes!! Thanks for taking time out of your job to help us.

Paula & Tom.

Ok.

Pitch the yeast is you putting it into the must, the must is the grape juice and skins that you are going to ferment.

You use yeast because naturally occuring yeast 1. Takes a reallly frickin long time to happen if you are lucky enough to actually have it work. You are in maine, so the chances are pretty slim. There is some yeast on the skin of the grapes, but there is also mold, bacteria, bugs.. you name it. The other reason is because certain strains of yeast have been seperated and have different qualities. The ICV-D-47 has ok alcohol resistance and presents a fruity bouquet. Alcohol resistance means does not die too soon in the waste it produces IE alcohol. The EC1118 is a champagne region yeast and is very very alcohol tolerant, eats everything, is hard to stop which is good because you are in a colder area.

You need from the brewshop:
Sodium Metabisulfate to sanitize.
B-Brite or some other oyxgen cleaner like 1 step. This cleans with 02 bubbles and does not leave a smell.
Pectic Enzyme - this breaks down the fruit pectin to a fermentable sugar, it also aids in flavor/color extraction from the skins.
Carboys- get glass ones to store the wine.
A sparge bag- not necessary, especially if you can rent a press from the shop. Set it up for a week from the start date. (the rental)
Airlocks and bungs for the carboys.
You might want to talk to the brewshop about oak chips. This can be done later, also maybe about bentonite for clearing but you don't actually need it.

More to come. Get the stuff and start the crush- get it into the buckets and get the yeast etc. Sanitize as I said before prior to putting ANYTHING into the must or the must into anything.

I especially like your bulleted list !!! Thanks for the shopping list.

We have carboys and vapor locks for the carboys. We also picked up oak chips at the store we purchased the grape at.

You spoke of 1 step. Do you mean the one step that they sell in the supermarket? Or should you use just baking soda mixed with warm water?

I have another question about using juice in pails.

I have 8 pails of juice from Regina currently fermenting also. Can I just drill a hole and put a tightly fitting vapor lock right into the 6 gallon pail? I saw this done at a local wine shop last year. It seemed like an easy way to let the wine ferment before it has to be racked into the carboy. Your thoughts?

Up to our necks in juice & grapes!

Paula & Tom

You could drill a hole, but hell if you are doing the primary you really don't need to. Just check your specific gravity and when it drops to about 1.010 rack it. Up to that point it is producing so much CO2 it protects itself. Put a plastic bag over it or something. But sure if you want to go ahead, it keeps the flies away, and if you fill the airlock with sanitizer (sulfite solution) it will really keep them out.

No they don't sell one step in the supermarket, but the brew guy can sell some to you, it's just another brand of b-brite etc. If your carboys are clean already don't worry about it, just make sure to sulfite everything before you use it. 3 tblsp sulfite to a gallon. You don't need to fill it and soak it, just put some in there and swish it all over, pour it out and cap the thing for about an hour. The fumes will kill anything that is left.

As far as the grape fermentation goes, plan on racking it after about a week. Rack off the free run juice first by siphon, then sulfite your hands, the press, or the bag, or whatever you use that will touch anything and press the skins. Don't go crazy, get all the juice you can but don't crush all the seeds etc. Rack that into a carboy too. I like to keep one carboy with just free run juice but do whatever. Rack every other month, add sulfite after the first racking at about 1/16- 1/8 teaspoon per gallon and sulfite every other racking. Plan to bottle around may unless you plan to bulk age longer. Be careful when you oak- it is easy to overdo it. I suggest you do one carboy at a time, you have plenty of time for that. The brew guy can probably supply you with a little teabag looking mesh thing to put the oak in. BE PATIENT. Wine from grapes takes a while. After you bottle you may want to wait about 6 months before you try it, but about a year or a year and a half would be better.

Why would you put the free run juice in one carboy and the juice from the press in another carboy?

In regards to using oak, we can get the tea sized bags.

How much oak? 1 tsp per 5 or 6 gallon carboy?

Why does wine from grapes take longer than using the juice that you buy in pails?

Thanks for your advice!

Paula & Tom

Another question-

We have 2 six gallons pails of juice "cooking" with the yeast. We put the yeast in one on Monday night, the other pail Tuesday night. We will faithfully stir it twice a day.

Do we check the specific gravity to decide when next week to rack it? Or do you just rack it in 7 days?

Thanks for the advice.

Paula & Tom

You could check specific grav, its always a good habit to have. Take a sample and look at it too. If you are not getting enough color extraction and the spec grav is still above 1.010 wait it out a little longer.

The reason I like to keep the free run and the press apart is just so I can satisfy my curiosity on how each one tastes. If your pressed juice is horribly tannic you can blend with the free run. If the free run is especially excellent you can bottle some of your own homemade "reserve" for special occations. Lot's of reasons.

As far as oak goes, talk to the person you are getting it from about that. It really depends on how the oak is processed. If it's cubes it takes longer than the dust, the spirals work really well and very fast. Taste it often, and only do one carboy at a time. That way if you overdo one on the oak you can keep one lite and blend it.

We have little pieces of oak barrels in a sealed plastic bag. I want to be on the safe side and don't go overboard with oak the first year.

What would make the pressed juice "tannic"? Do you mean sour?

The mash is bubbling right along. We are quite excited about the process.

Has anyone out these used a Victorio Stainer with a grape spiral and juice screen to separate the pulp from the juice? I have one that we would like to use before we rack. It is a really stick kitchen device that separate the skins and seed from the juice.

Thanks for helping us with the first few steps. You have made the process much easier!!

Paula & Tom

Tannic as in tannic acid from the skins and seeds. That and assorted other weird flavors. I would not use the victorio for the press. Bite the bullet and rent one from the brew shop, usually it's in the ten to fifteen dollar range for a day. Believe me it will save you a lot of time. You don't want to just seperate it, you need to press some flavor from the skins as well. They should press out mostly dry and end up as a firm cake of skins. If you can't get one by all means use the victorio, but if you start it and find that you are coming out with really mashed up skins with cracked and broken seeds in them stop what you are doing or you will regret it.
As far as the oak goes, like I said you don't want to over do it, so get one of the little mesh teabag thingies from that same brew place, suspend it from the bung somehow in the wine, and check it. Also ask the person you got the oak chips from what they recommend as they are probably more familiar with the product.

We put a bit of mash through the Victorio the other day and the skins did come out dry. I didn't pay any attention to the seeds. I just sent away for grape parts for the Victorio, so we will take your advice and do a bit and see what happens. We do not have a brew shop near us (2.5 hours away). I am trying to find an apple cider press.

Another question: What do you mean by adding sulfites to the wine. What is the name of this?

The grapes and juice are really bubbling good.

Paula & Tom

Hey if it works it works. If they already have actual attachments for processing grapes I am sure it would work, just keep the seed thing in mind.

Sounds like it is coming along well.

Mash is made from grain and makes for good distilled alcohol, the stuff you are working with is technically called "Must". I don't really care what you call it but I guess since I am providing info I may as well tell you. I am secretly hoping I don't sound like some wine technocrat snob!

Cheers!

What is the sulfites that we use again?

I think I have found an antique cast iron grape/apple press!!

My son is driving 2.5 hours to check it out!
It is a really beauty.

Go to http://www.unclehenrys.com

put in "apple press" under the category of Collectables, and you can also view it!

Either Sodium Metabisulfite or Potassium Metabisulfite. I prefer thesodium for sanitizing because it's cheaper, but the potassium for using in the wine.

Sanitizing solution is as follows: 3 tablespoons per 1 gallon water. Either kind. If you want to make some really powerful stuff you can add citric acid, but it's not necessary.

Make sure the press has no rust on it and the wood is in very good shape. Keep in mind you can get a decent small press for about 150 dollars new, so unless you are making massave quanities of grape you don't need to do much more than that. As I said if your current setup is practical and doesn't chew the seeds up too much you are ok with that.

Oh and I can't find the apple press on that site. Can you post the actual URL of the page it's on?

Thanks

I have a local spring water company here. They sell new 5 gallon plastic water bottles for $5.50. Definitely less that the glass carboys.

Can I use these new plastic water bottles?

Paula

No. Plastic leaks oxygen. You need glass or stainless steel. Glass is considerably cheaper. The reason you have to rack it out of buckets is not only for the headspace issue (you want to minimize the actual surface area that is exposed hence the carboy shape) but because plastic has microscopic holes that admit air which will spoil the wine. I thought you said you had carboys?

U can use them for primary fermenters tho

We have 4 carboys- 12 gallons of grape mash and 8 six gallon pails of juice! So not enough carboys for what we have perking!!

Now I found on Craigslist today, someone who has 5 gallon stainless steel tanks for $30. This seems like a very good buy and very easy to keep clean. They had a picture of the tanks. The post said they were $125 new. I can believe that.

It under Maine on Craigslist.

Would you rake the wine into these and them put your vapor lock on the stainless steel tank?

Paula

Here is the link for the apple/grape press. My son just picked it up. It does not have any rust and it is great shape.
http://www.unclehenrys.com/Classifieds/Search/ ExhibitDetail.aspx?ExhibitID=-2135620120& ishistoricsearch=N&returnpage=%2fClassifieds% 2fSearch%2fResults.aspx%3fSearchID%3d36706871% 26isHistoricSearch%3dN%23-2135620120

Here is the link for the stainless steel tanks. Can you please look at the photo (of the top) and see if you think these will work for the wine.

Thanks

Paula
http://www.unclehenrys.com/Classifieds/Search/ ExhibitDetail.aspx?ExhibitID=-2135626501& ishistoricsearch=N&returnpage=%2fClassifieds% 2fSearch%2fResults.aspx%3fSearchID%3d36707113% 26isHistoricSearch%3dN%23-2135626501

Those are kegging tanks, I don't think they would work unless you modify them. The tanks I was referring to have a variable capacity, the lids have an inflatable gasket, you float the thing on the top of the wine and inflate therefore eliminating head space. You definitely need more space that is true.

Thanks for this info.

I will also the person if they have an inflatable gasket. Depending on the brand, maybe this can be added. Who knows? I went online to a wine/beer supplier and they had Cornelius kegs for wine that looked similar.

Sunny day here in Maine! Temps in the 60's. Great wine making temps!