http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/ The first wine blog on the net, ever, was this home winemaking blog by the grand champion of home winemaking, Jack Keller. en-us Jack Keller's WineBlog, Copyright (©) 2003-2012 by Jack B. Keller, Jr. All print and electronic publication rights reserved. Don't mess with Texas.... Tue, 15 May 2012 12:55:12 CST http://www.rssfeedssubmit.com/rss-generator/ http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/WineBlog.gif http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/ 140 31 http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051512A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051512A While the nation mourned the passing of Dick Clark last month, the passing of Levon Helm the next day was far more significant to me. The legendary drummer and lead tenor of "The Band" moved my soul many, many times. Dick Clark never did. Levon was the winner of three Grammys for his own albums (2008, 2010, 2011), inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with "The Band" (1994), awarded the AMA Lifetime Achievement Award for Performing (2003), the AMA Artist of the Year (2008), and in 2008 "Rolling Stone" ranked Helm #91 in their list the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051512B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051512B Many years ago I made a list of things I have not yet made wine with. The list was not inclusive and no matter how many times I updated it I could always think of another candidate for wine. One item on that list was corn silk. It was not tackled early on simply because I had no idea how to approach it. Two years ago I gave it a whirl, guessing at every step of the way. It didn't turn out bad at all. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051512C http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051512C I have twice been asked about corn stalk wine but never really had the interest or knowledge to pursue it. Recently, reading Patrick E. McGovern's fascinating book, "Uncorking the Past: The Quest for Wine, Beer, and Other Alcoholic Beverages", I came upon his discussion of corn stalk wine. He says we know from evidence that corn was domesticated approximately 6,000 years ago, but stable isotope analysis of ancient human bones reveals that maize (what we call corn# was not consumed as a food until around 3,000 years ago. So what the heck were the ancient Americans doing with that corn for 3,000 years? The answer is making and drinking corn "chicha", or corn wine. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051112A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051112A I rarely ever do this, but I'm lifting the following entry wholesale from an email I received from Nicole Schnitzler of "The Thomas Collective". It just sings to me and might just sing to you, too, if you like Malbec and sausage. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051112B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#051112B Wisteria, especially Chinese Wisteria ("Wisteria sinensis"), is a very hardy and fast-growing vine. It can grow in fairly poor-quality soils, but prefers fertile, moist, well-drained soil in full sun. Wisteria can best be propagated from hardwood and softwood cuttings. They can climb 60 feet and completely cover a tree. Because of their sheer bulk, they can grow so heavy that they break lesser branches. The American wisteria ("Wisteria frutescens"), especially, is considered invasive. But the flowers, well, can you spell w-i-n-e? Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#050412A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#050412A Tangerines are a wonderful citrus fruit, great for snacking. They peel very easily and the sections separate easily too. I've read there is a seedless variety, but I've never encountered it. The seeds are the only drawback. When eating, if my teeth happen to crack one I spit it out, usually with a few others. Otherwise, I generally swallow them because spitting was always frowned upon by my mother. They make no difference when making tangerine wine, so ignore them. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#101511B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#101511B I've received three inquiries in two months about aging wines with mesquite, so have decided to address it here. I've done so before, but people seem unwilling to dig through the "WineBlog's Archives." Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#101311A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#101311A A winemaker from Travelers Rest, South Carolina asked me about oak. His wife loves the "oaky, ashy tastes – full deep body, good flavor but on the dry side." She has good taste. He asked how best to obtain that flavor from oak. I relayed to him some of my own experiences. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#041312A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#041312A This entry is about a song and the first time one makes a wine from scratch. The song first. I love to follow the odyssey of particular songs. Recently I fell in love all over again with "The First Time (Ever I Saw Your Face)", what I consider to be one of the best love songs of the 20th century. However, I knew nothing of its origins until I dug a bit. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#041312B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#041312B Many of my wine recipes include the phrase, "Sweeten to taste," meaning to sweeten the wine to suit your own taste. But how does one go about doing this? If one blindly adds sugar it would be real easy to over-sweeten it. If one adds just a little bit of sugar and tastes it, then adds a little bit more, one could be at it all day. Here is a practical way to go about it. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#041312C http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#041312C A gentleman wrote to me about making wine from Santa Claus melons. I had to admit I have not made wine with this melon, although my records show I once tried. That was before I discovered how to successfully overcome the problems inherent in making wine from many melons, especially watermelons and related cousins. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#040912A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#040912A Random thoughts and occurances you may or may not find interesting. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#040912B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#040912B I have been trying to get rid of some dewberry plants that became invasive. Nothing works except digging up the soil, running it through a sieve, and discarding any and all roots discovered. But we are well beyond that, as they cover too large an area, so I do the next best thing; I cut the growing tips several times during the growing season in an attempt to deny them any new energy to store away for additional growth. They are slowly declining and no longer spreading so I am encouraged. I hate to waste things, and all the cut growing tips are a perfect example. I do two things with them. I dry most for bramble tip tea throughout the year and I make bramble tip wine. The latter is definitely worth the effort. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#033912A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#033912A The area around Ensenada in the State of Baja California supports dozens of wineries and produces 90% of all the wines of Mexico. Three wineries have established facilities in Ensenada itself as well as in their grape growing locales north and south of the city. The valleys in this area – Calafia, San Antonio de las Minas, Guadalupe, Palmas, Santo Tomás and San Vicente Ferrer – are blessed with the right soil, climate, weather, altitude, and watershed favorable to "the vine," and thus have supported vineyards since 1791. Our time was limited and so we chose to visit the Bodegas de Santo Tomás, whose vineyards boast the oldest cultivated vines in Baja and whose winemaker produces some of the finest wines in Mexico. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#033912B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#033912B At the last meeting of the San Antonio Regional Wine Guild, at our home in Pleasanton, Texas, I prepared and served a whole brisket as I always do. I made some changes to the recipe and trimmed the cut more than I usually do, but the result was exceptional, so much so that not a scrap was leftover for later enjoyment. Even every drop of the gravy was consumed. I have decided to share the recipe that blessed us last Sunday. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#030712A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#030712A The San Antonio Regional Wine Guild's judging sheet begins with Aroma and Bouquet. They were consciously moved up from farther down on the form for a reason. A wine's aroma will remain constant throughout the judging, but bouquet is often very short-lived. If one waited until they got down to its former position on the judging sheet to evaluate bouquet, the chances are very good that whatever bouquet was in the glass would have dissipated into the atmosphere within a minute of the wine being poured. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#030712B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#030712B Dandelion wine is one of my favorite white wines, bar none, and the flowers are already appearing here in Texas. I don't know anyone who doesn't recognize the bright yellow, many-rayed flowers of "Taraxacum officinale" at first glance. Most think of them as a weed but others look upon them differently. My wife actually planted dandelions in one of our flower beds, and the result was quite stunning when they bloomed "en mass". Others look upon their leaves as salad or greens, and indeed they are quite edible raw or steamed until the flower appears, at which time its greenery becomes bitter. But for the winemaker, the dandelion simply makes the best flower wine there is. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022812A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022812A I mentioned eating toasted sourdough with my black cherry-clementine-walnut marmalade. Well, I recently saw blood oranges at the market and picked up a few. Winter is their season and they are great for upside down cake and marmalade. Some varieties are sweet (Tarocco, Sanguinello and Cara Cara) and others are tart (Moro, for example). All varieties make good marmalade, especially when combined with port wine and hickory nut pieces or port wine and mango, but the tart varieties are better in marmalade. Howver, the tartness can be added with lemons. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022812B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022812B If you have ever eaten parsnip and ginger soup, parsnip and ginger pakoras, parsnip and ginger cake or muffins, or parsnip and ginger anything you know how well the flavors combine. The nutty sweetness of parsnips and the warming spiciness of ginger just go well together. Parsnips and ginger wine is a real treat in the cooler months of the year and adds a little "je ne sais quoi" to any meal. Make it once and you will be glad you did. Because this wine takes so long to make, start a batch every 3 months and you will be very thankful you did. Finally, the parsnips can be recycled to make a great side dish to any meal (recipe included). Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022412A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022412A Here is a recipe I will share, for I think with this one the measures are somewhat important. This began as a simple recipe from Good Housekeeping and Delish.com (see photo) and evolved significantly in my kitchen. But it is tasty, filling and especially good on a cold night. I made a similar dish when I lived in Colorado but served the sausages whole. That one took a little more work. This one is easy and delicious. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022412B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022412B I received a request a year ago for a fruit wine you can make in the winter, other than apple, that you would be proud to serve year-round. I almost didn't reply because the answer is so obvious – dried fruit wine. I looked in my pantry and there were two pounds of dried Turkish apricots I picked up from Whole Foods. The wine just sort of made itself. I tasted it last night and drank half a bottle before I realized what I was doing. Need I say it? Fabulous! Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022012A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022012A I want to thank all of you who contacted me regarding my February 13th entry on Photo Cropping the Alhambra. Every single response was positive, and several asked for more "before and after" examples. I do not want to overdo my presentations, but do not mind doing one more entry with three examples. Cropping results in final differences that range from profound to slight. You must judge if the shots were improved. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022012B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#022012B A very kind visitor of "The Winemaking Home Page" wrote me some time back about some wild grape vines on his property that turned out to be Vitis riparia (first described by André Michaux), a grape once prolific in Texas but now believed to be extinct here. Well, my website visitor recently contacted me through Facebook for a mailing address and today I planted 8 rooted V. riparia cuttings. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#021612A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#021612A As I mentioned in the introduction, while looking back through my notes on the orange-chocolate port I discovered a second page and saw that I made two versions. As you can see on the label, it is a "Dark Orange-Chocolate Port" – the "dark" color is from red grape concentrate. I made it twice – 2007 and 2008 – and the 2007 is what Martin served us. There are two ways to make the "Dark" and I will mention both. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#021612B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#021612B If you drink red wine, sooner or later you're going to spill some on something you wish you hadn't. My wife spilled some Merlot on a yellow cotton blouse and did the wrong thing. We're going to explore the right ways to do it so you'll know what to do when it happens. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#021312A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#021312A .This has nothing to do with wine but everything to do with preserving memories. The Alhambra at Granada, Spain is a unique, monumental and exquisite complex of military functionality, palatial grandeur and aesthetic splendor. Rising with the topography of the hill called La Sabica, it dominates the city below while hiding its own magnificence from the outside world. Today it is owned by the nation of Spain and anyone can visit it and the Generalife (pronounced 'he·ne·rah·lee·fay'), an adjacent series of perfumed gardens and serene galleries which, collectively, make a statement that literally overwhelms the senses. If the Alhambra is not on your list of places to visit before you die you should seriously consider putting it there. Every person would be enriched by visiting it at least once. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#021312B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#021312B Some years back I gave Lesley Lunt and Martin Benke a bottle of my Orange-Chocolate Port. At a recent meeting of the San Antonio Regional Wine Guild at their party house on Lake Corpus Christi, following a fantastic meal of battered shrimp, oysters and white bass with at least a dozen and a half side dishes and desserts, Martin broke out that 5-year old gift and we sat back, stuffed and satiated, and enjoyed it immensely. Having just received another supply of dark Dutched cocoa, I decided to make some more. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#020512A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#020512A I smelled them the moment I walked into the supermarket because the display of strawberries was just inside and to the right. I looked at them and felt the saliva flowing. I raced through Produce and collected just the items on my list and then set a speed record to the fruit section of the frozen foods. I looked and looked, but the only frozen sliced strawberries they had were in tiny, 8-oz cartons which, ounce for ounce, cost about 60% more than the fresh. Back to produce. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#020512B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#020512B If you have shopped for cocoa powder in any sizeable supermarket, you probably know there are choices. But if your choices are between Baker's, Hershey's and Nestle's, you might consider looking for a larger supermarket. Even then, your choices may be limited but could open up a couple more brands. Why is this important? Because all cocoa powder is not the same, and if you are making a base-chocolate wine, you want the right kind. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#020212A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#020212A Late yesterday I received news of the passing this past Monday of someone I thought of as a friend, although we'd never met. We began exchanging emails in 2003 after the publication of his book, "The Grape Grower", a masterful work detailing every aspect of grape growing I wanted to know and some I did not. Most importantly, he opened my eyes to the actual science of grape breeding, the deliberate cross-pollination of two species in an attempt to improve the pollen recipient by injecting one or more traits from the pollen donor. Of course I knew the mechanics from reading some of the 19th century American pioneers. Lon Rombough made it truly understandable to even me. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#013012A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#013012A Last year when we were busy getting things settled so we could leave without anxiety on our trip to Spain, I received quite a few emails I wish I had time then to answer but simply didn't. Oh, I answered some, but I always receive more email than I can answer and during that period I was especially frugal with my time. Answering them now would be pointless as their time has past, but one has nagged me because answering it would not have taken that long but it was a topic I could easily have gotten lost in for half a day. It had to do with making elderberry wine. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#013012B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#013012B The original question I was asked is if I have ever published a recipe for spiced elderberry wine. I have not but have been meaning to. I have made this wine twice, using two different formulas. The second batch was so "right on" that I'm not sure I can improve upon it. Here it is, built upon the dried elderberry wine recipe just discussed. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#012512A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#012512A I was looking out at a winter lawn the other day and noticed a couple of green spots floating on a sea of mostly brown grass. I went out to investigate and discovered my old friend, chickweed. I pinched off several arms of several plants and washed them in the kitchen. There wasn't nearly enough for wine yet, but what I had would go nicely in a salad. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#012512B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#012512B At some point in the past I reminisced on this "WineBlog" about hickory pie. A very gracious reader wrote me and said I had done so much for his winemaking that the least he could do in return is send me some hickory nuts from his grandmother's tree. The nuts had already dropped when he wrote, so I had to wait until they dropped in 2011. And sure enough, about the middle of October a 13-pound box arrived from Etna, Pennsylvania loaded with hickory nuts. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#012012A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#012012A I was out among my vines, trying to decide if it is much too early to prune or just a little too early. I judge this not by the calendar but by the dormant buds along the canes. Small, tight, totally dormant buds tell me it is too early. But when the buds begin to "loosen up" and swell ever so slightly, I pay attention. I prune when the buds begin to swell to about twice their dormant size. So I was checking out the buds and looked down. That's when I noticed the growing carpet of bluebonnet plants among my vines. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#011312A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#011312A Roger King, up in Michigan, has done me proud. He has taken my award-winning Praline Dessert Wine and overlaid it with coffee wine to come up with a completely new entity. I've not made it yet but the recipe is sound. Since I recently restocked my dwindling supply of Savannah Southern Praline Mix, I'll be making it soon. I might also try the other variation Roger came up with. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#011312B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#011312B A fellow winemaker wrote about a problem he had with a muscadine wine after bottling it. After stabilizing, he said the wine was crystal clear so he sweetened, waited two weeks, bottled, and stored in a cold garage. "When I opened the small bottle after a month or so, the bottom of the jug contained what looked like trash...[But] for a very young wine it tasted great...." My immediate thought was it could be one of two things, and it was. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#010912A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#010912A It has been many years since I posted this recipe in my Visitor-Submitted Recipes section and over three years since I post posted it here. I am amazed by how many requests I get for it, usually with a preface similar to, "I found a recipe on your web site once for a 30-day wine and now cannot find it." There are seven places I post recipes but when really looking for something most people miss a few or are just too lazy to really look. They go to "Requested Recipes," don't see it, and then write to me instead of going to Google. I'm reposting the recipe here, with a tweak, but first I want to tell you where the several hundred recipes on my site are located. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#010912B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#010912B I get a lot of email – mostly questions – about my local wild grape. This entry answers several and I hope won't bore the rest of you. The mustang grows all over Texas and into Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, and curiously, in Alabama but not Mississippi. It is the most awful tasting grape I've ever eaten, but it can be coaxed, with practice, into a damned good wine. It is extremely acidic, so much so that destemming them by hand without rubber gloves is almost certain to burn the hands. If you don't eat the skins they are edible, but too many will burn the mouth. Ahhhh, but the wine. My 2003 Mustang (right) won a gold medal at the 2005 WineMaker's International Competition. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#010312A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#010312A Acetaldehyde is an intermediate product of yeast fermentation and is thus present at one time or another in all wines. The sensory threshold for acetaldehyde is 100-125 mg/L. In trace amounts below the threshold it adds complexity to wines and, as Martha Stewart would say, "it's a good thing." However, it is more commonly associated with ethanol oxidation or as a byproduct of acetic acid production by bacteria where it can exceed threshold amounts. In amounts greater than threshold it imparts a sherry type character to the wine which can also be described as green apple, sour and metallic. If barely detectable it is a defect, a flaw. If obvious, it is a fault. But there is more to acetaldehyde you should know about. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#010312B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#010312B When my wife and I visited the Kaua'i Coffee Plantation and tasted their flavored ground coffees, we fell in love. I loaded my carry-on with bags of Chocolate Macadamia Nut Coffee and Coconut Caramel [Macadamia] Crunch Coffee. It was not until I was down to two bags of coffee that I decided to make coffee wine from each, and what wine it was! Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#123011A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#123011A I received another request for loganberry wine, the third in two months. Both requests cited having frozen Loganberries and desiring a recipe. Since Loganberries ripen in early summer, they would have to be frozen or canned to be available at this time of the year. But fresh, frozen or canned, they make a truly fantastic wine. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#122611A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#122611A It is the day after Christmas so I went to my local supermarket to buy 8 boxes of chocolate covered cherries on sale. It's that time of year to make chocolate covered cherry wine and they are always on sale today. Only they weren't on sale. I had a choice. Either go to the Dollar General store and buy Zachary Cordial Cherries in Milk Chocolate, which are not as good as Queen Anne Cordial Cherries in Milk Chocolate or try to talk the manager into a sale. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#122411A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#122411A On this Christmas eve, I wish to thank all the soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines, Coast Guardsmen, and Border Patrol agents who put their lives at risk to guarantee my security. I am going to enjoy a peaceful, relaxing Christmas with loved ones because they do their duty 24/7 for you and for me. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#122011A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#122011A This has nothing whatsoever to do with wine, but it's my blog and so.... A friend sent me an email with a video link to a short clip of Brodie Smith doing a frisbee throw off a bridge in Australia and then a speedboat comes by and a guy leaps off it and catches the frisbee before it hits the water. While the whole stunt was impressive, I give the speedboat driver and the catcher more credit for pulling this one off than I do Brodie Smith. Brodie is a two-time national champion and Florida Ultimate player with legendary skills and I found some better videos to show them off. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#122011B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#122011B I decided to rotate the contents of my chest freezer, knowing full well I would find things on the bottom layer I didn't know were there. Boy was I ever right. Among the buried surprises was a plastic container containing 6 1/4 pounds of dewberries picked several years ago near Leming, Texas. They were badly freezer burned but still viable for wine, so I started a gallon. It should be ready to drink next Christmas. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#121011A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#121011A Every year around this time I get a flood of emails asking for a recipe for a mulled wine for Christmas. One can buy mulling spices readily about now, so making a mulled wine satisfies the need to create more than anything else. But, here we will look at three recipes for mulled wine – two very old ones that merely mull (spice) a finished wine and one that you start now, from scratch, to enjoy at Christmas next year. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#113011A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#113011A A reader wrote to me about a particularly stubborn cloudy wine problem. Because of the things he mentioned, I offered him a 3-step method to solve his problem. I am certain this will work. It should also serve as a regimen for many others with similar symptoms. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#113011B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#113011B Roger was kind enough to share his recipe with me when I asked. He left out two ingredients (sugar and water) but after I added them in it sure looks sound to me. I will be trying this myself next year. Makes 5 gallons. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#112411A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#112411A I'm not sure where Mishawaka, Indiana is, but a fellow there made it a lot closer through email. He is making his first ever "wine from scratch" and chose to make pear wine from Bartlett pears. He did not use a nylon straining bag to contain the fruit and ended up with excessive gross lees in the primary and then again in the secondary. He had not read my blog entry on dealing with excessive lees and ended up with about a gallon of gross lees in each instance. Instead of downsizing to a smaller carboy, which I'm sure he didn't have, he topped up each time with a gallon of spring water and the wine's flavor suffered considerably. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#112411B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#112411B Pears make a wonderful wine, although some people just don't care for it. I suspect they haven't tasted a really good one, but I could be wrong. Pears also make a great mead called Perry. The problem with pear wine (or perry) recipes is that different pear varieties vary a great deal. Generally, however, there are cooking, canning and eating pears. If you know what your particular pear is most often used for, you will be ahead of the game. But to be perfectly honest, each variety requires its own recipe due to inherent variations in hardness, texture, sweetness, acidity, tannin, and susceptibility to browning. Nonetheless, I will stick my neck out and offer a generic recipe. Tweak it as you see fit. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#112211A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#112211A I recently received an email from a gentleman in Illinois who has a Chambourcin that fermented very quickly and displays a tartness consistent with a measured acidity of 7 g/L. He maintained the wine in his basement at 65-67° F. for 65 days. He wondered if a malolactic fermentation was still possible at this late date. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#112211B http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#112211B I was just waiting for someone to ask. Mary in Topeka, Kansas, Lynda in Flower Mound, Texas and Ronald in Druid Hills, Georgia all asked for the recipe for the "crumpet pancakes" I mentioned in the last WineBlog entry. If you have a friendship bread or sourdough starter, this recipe will be a Godsend. Read more.... http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#111811A http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/wineblognew.asp#111811A Rob, up in Dillon, Montana has asked some good questions regarding apparent contravening needs to both aerate the must while preventing premature oxidation. Must requires aeration initially to provide the oxygen yeast need to get a strong start. Most of the time, however, we try to minimize oxygen exposure to the must and wine as oxygen is the enemy of wine. But Rob pointed out two times when we apparently throw caution to the wind and aerate like mad. I understand this can be confusing, so I promised Rob I would discuss it here. Read more....