Batch #1 – Black Cherry Pinot Noir (Part 1)

On January 13th, 2007 my handy sidekick-wife, KT, and I decided to tackle the first step of the home wine-making process. My initial plan was to wait until the day my daughter is born and spend a few hours that night mixing up the must. I decided it would be a better idea to start it beforehand – in the same month instead. Yes…sappy – a wine dedicated to my first child…

Anyways—

The first step was to inventory the equipment I have and identify what is used and when. A lot of the equipment looked very foreign to me and I was not sure exactly how they should be used. I had done a little research on the process, but never really delved into the specifics of how each tool was used.

Using the directions that came with the kit, I identified the tools for the first step.

• Water – easy enough – from the sink if not too contaminated – i.e. Sulfur smelling
  


• K-Meta Powder – Also known as Potassium Metabisulfate – bacteria killer extraordinaire!
  


• Bentonite – a gray grainy substance that is really a form of Clay (yes, like soil)
  


• 23-Liter plastic fermenting bucket – huge bucket with a lid and level-markers for total volume
  


• Grape Concentrate – a gooey rich red liquid in a clear plastic bag with a plastic cap
  


• Thermometer – floats in the must and tells you things…
  


• Wine Thief – neat little tube that you stick in the must and it takes a sample using a one-way valve
  


• Hydrometer – drops into the wine-thief to measure the specific gravity
  


• Yeast – a small pack – not sure if it is “wine-yeast,” “bread-yeast,” or some other form

STEP 1:

The first step was to clean everything with a cleaning solution. I had read that this part is a pain because it is laborious and lacks any immediate reward – all it does is keep your wine from going bad….you know…moot things like that.

I mixed the k-meta with some water and rubbed everything down. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to rinse with water or not – so I did thinking it couldn’t hurt. Reading through some forums afterwards, it looks like that is not required; air drying will do the job too.

A lot of people make the solution in a spray bottle (i.e. Windex) and spray everything and let it sit – I LOVE THE IDEA! After making a huge mess in my kitchen trying to wash a 23-liter bucket, I think it’d be easier with the spray bottle. I just need to do some research on what the proportion would be for a bottle that size. I believe I used a 1 tablespoon to 1 gallon proportion – but I’ll double check.

STEP 2:

Now that the equipment has been cleaned, it was time to start making them dirty again! First thing is to pour 2 gallons of water (16 cups per gallon if using a standard kitchen measuring cup!) into the bucket and mix the bentonite thoroughly. The water will look dirty at this point – not very appetizing. You then add the entire bag of grape concentrate. Careful when pouring this in – it can splash and stain, especially if it’s a dark wine like Pinot Noir! To get the rest out of the bag, just put some hot water from the sink into the bag and shake it around a little, then pour. It should get the residual concentrate. Then fill to the 6 gallon mark with water and stir profusely.

STEP 3:

Now you have a heavy plastic bucket of purplish-red must. Congrats! The next step would be to add the yeast and close the lid, but I would recommend moving it to where you would like to store it before you add the yeast. The directions say that you shouldn’t shake it up once the yeast has been added – not really sure why at this point. Regardless, set the bucket where you want, sprinkle the yeast on the surface and close the lid. In the lid I received, there is a rubber gasket hole called a “Bung” that you must place the airlock. Jam the pointy end down through the hole, take the top off and fill it half-way with water, and replace the airlock-lid. In the coming 48 hours, you should see bubbles in the airlock indicating that the fermentation process is occurring – if it doesn’t start happening, I guess something might be wrong….I believe the bubbles are caused by Carbon Dioxide escaping while the yeast eat sugars – leaving behind alcohol as its byproduct

STEP 4:

Let it sit for 2 weeks – according to my directions. From what I have read, it looks like there is a lot of discrepancy on how long the primary fermentation process takes. I’ve seen anywhere from 4 days to 3 months – so I’ll just follow my directions.

NOW – some things I noticed:

I initially used the plastic bucket with the spigot as described above. This ended up being a problem for me because when I picked up the bucket, the plastic bent slightly and some of the liquid squeezed through the Spigot hole. When I attached the Spigot, there is a plastic washer that gets screwed on from the inside. My guess is that it was not screwed on tight enough and some liquid was able to slip through. But, once the liquids have been added, I wasn’t about to reach my full arm into 6 gallons of must…

To fix the problem, I drained the entire contents into the glass carboy that was initially going to be used in the second phase. I was told it makes no difference. Going forward, I like using the glass better anyways – you can see what’s going on through the glass, there is only one exit point in the top (which is corked), and it looks much cooler than a big plastic bucket….

Every couple days I go down to the basement where I am storing the wine and look to see if everything is alright. I’m checking the airlock (which is now placed in the stopper) and the liquid to see if there is any mold floating on top. I do not stir and I have not been letting air into the wine. Some of the forums indicate that during the first phase, it is okay, maybe even beneficial to have air getting into the must to help with the fermentation.

I’m not, but so far – so good.

Now I’m in the waiting game for a few more days (January 27th) before I start phase 2 – yikes!