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Strawberry wine

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J Dixon

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Jun 27, 2004, 11:12:36 PM6/27/04
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I'm getting ready to make this years Strawberry wine (a huge favorite
request) and I was looking for differing opinions in regards to acid
adjustment. Previously I have used Acid blend, but I was considering the use
of just Tataric Acid to eliminate the possibility of a Malolactic
fermentation. A winemaker I respect indicated that he adds citric acid as
part of his adjustment, but I am conscerned with stability issues with the
citric. Anyone have any imput through experience?
Also, I have considered the addition of a food coloring as I have not
been that pleased with the coloration of my Strawberry wine in the past
which has a yellowish oxidize color.(I know this is typical) Anyone have
any thoughts on this so as to prevent any sediment fallout or other issues
that I need to be concerned with, as I dont have much experience with
tinkering with coloration. Is it a waste of time, or have others had good
results. (typically I filter my Strawberry wine). As a final note does what
favorite yeast do you use that you have been pleased with- I have used
Lavlin D-47 with good results, but have an open mind.
Thanks,
John Dixon


Dar V

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Jun 28, 2004, 8:21:40 AM6/28/04
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John,
Where are you getting your strawberries (pick your own, grocery store)? And
how to extract your color? And do you freeze your berries? The reason I
ask is that I'm in the midst of my third batch of strawberry wine using
Jack's recipe - I don't have any complaints about acid or color. I do add 1
can of frozen 100% Welch's grape juice to the recipe. My strawberries are
picked at a local farm, frozen, and then thawed to make wine. I do use hot
sugar water to extract color, which I know some do not like to do. I'm
currently picking my strawberries for my next batch which I'll make in the
fall.
Darlene
G'town WI
USA

"J Dixon" <jjdi...@nospamadelphia.net> wrote in message
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Rick Vanderwal

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Jun 28, 2004, 8:56:05 AM6/28/04
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I just picked 10-12 lbs of strawberries for a 3 gallon batch.
this will be my third time. My first was better than my second,
my second has a bit of harshness to it, although I was able to get some
strawberry concentrate in a "sample" from a juice supplier...I was tempted
to drink the whole thing without adding it to the wine, it was so
good...thus my second has a more pronounced strawberry flavour. Third
time's the charm? we'll see.

welches....the white? or the purple concord?

Rick


Dar V

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Jun 28, 2004, 12:57:12 PM6/28/04
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I used the concord grape for my most recent batch. But I did use the white
Welch's for my first batch, which was very good. The grape seems to enhance
the color already there. I'm making cranberry now, and I added the grape
Welch's - the color is much deeper than my first batch. I think it adds a
bit more body to the wine.
Darlene

"Rick Vanderwal" <rickbre...@ncats.net> wrote in message
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J Dixon

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Jun 28, 2004, 12:59:04 PM6/28/04
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Dar,
I bought half from a berry farm, and the other half I picked myself and
all are very ripe. I use 5 lbs+ per gallon and put them in a straining bag.
I have used the hot water method in the past with no complaints, but I plan
on using just warm water this time as it seems a bit fruitier. I always try
to freeze the berries first to help break them down and aid extraction. I
think that you have to be cautious not to over press or "grind up" the seeds
on the strawberrries to avoid the bitterness I think Rick is alluding to. So
I just mush up the berries in the bag and give it a kneeding type squeeze
and stir daily until I pull the berries out. Much like my raspberry I dont
wring the bag out, but rather let it drip out for a few hours and then toss
it. As a general rule I make an acid correction on all of my fruit wines to
the area of .65 TA.
In regards to the color- it isn't a problem per se, I just think a
bright red like the raspberry would be more appealing than the off red rusty
color I end up with. It looks as red as could be in the carboy, but in a
glass it just doesn't carry the color as well. Likely I wont add any
artificial coloring, but as always I am interested in other's experiences
with things I haven't tried yet. I haven't seen an appreciable difference in
the color from hot or cold extraction, so I am moving more towards the cold
side for now.
John Dixon


"Dar V" <ask...@aol.com> wrote in message
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Pinky

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Jun 28, 2004, 1:57:41 PM6/28/04
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John
I make a strawberry every year and without going into recipe details ( I
use about 20 lbs for 5 gals Imp). Some years I make it into a dry sparkling
wine with a lot of effort -- and it is eventually very good.
Anyway on to the colour factor.
Two years ago I added a red wine concentrate (oh gosh where are my
records) -- from a 1 gallon wine kit type thingy --- to the must, before I
adjusted the sugar to the level I wanted. The end result in bulk looked a
bit dark but the glass "look" after a year was great -- a slightly darker
than rosé look to it without effecting the flavour at all.
An additional point -- I have always found that the strawberry flavour is
very intense and I have never made strawberry wine in total fruit. I have
also found that my strawberry wines are probably better ( for me anyway)
during their second year after initial fermentation. I always ferment to
total dryness.
When drinking I also prefer to cool the wine rather than to chill it --
about 1/2 to 1 hr in the fridge and without being too cold the strawberry
bouquet is quite delicious -- for me anyway -- my younger son & his wife
disagree ( but they tend to be wine snobs!)

Hope this is useful to you!

--
Trevor A Panther
In South Yorkshire, England
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"J Dixon" <jjdi...@nospamadelphia.net> wrote in message

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Ray

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Jun 28, 2004, 2:40:16 PM6/28/04
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John, You do not by chance bulk age in a lighted area do you? Color in
berry wine is very susseptible to light bleaching. There has been a lot of
discussion in the past and the general opinion is that green bottles may not
stop this.

Ray


J Dixon

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Jun 28, 2004, 4:53:05 PM6/28/04
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No- not directly anyways as I ferment all of my wines in the basement. I'm
not pointing out a fault really as I cant say that I have ever seen a
commercial strawberry wine that was much darker than mine, just being picky.
What I did do last year was bottle the Strawberry in these cool Red bottles
that are coated on the outside, and that looked great. Thx
John Dixon
"Ray" <raycN...@geminisi.com> wrote in message
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Ken Anderson

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Jun 28, 2004, 7:31:44 PM6/28/04
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For what it's worth, I made Lum's strawberry wine recipe two years ago, and I
pureed the raw fruit in a blender, though it says somewhere not to do that.
Anyhow, it presented no problems, and fell perfectly clear. It did have a
thick pale cap during the primary though.
Ken


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