Wines I'm Making: 2013 Sangiovese Rosé--First Racking (October 27, 2013)

Yesterday (October 27, 2013) I racked this year's Sangiovese rosé off the gross lees. Moving it from a mostly full 5-gallon carboy to a new 5-gallon carboy, which I then topped off with a couple of bottles of last year's wine. I didn't sulfite the wine as it seems to be still fermenting a little--although not very much. Still, I thought it best to let it go a little longer. Yesterday was day 21 of fermentation, which is on the long side, but I want to be sure it's gone completely dry before sulfiting the wine and cold stabilizing it. Cold stabilization amounts to leaving it out in the cold for a few days. That usually causes a layer of tartaric acid crystals to form over the fine lees that will have settled to the bottom of the carboy, making the final racking very easy with the lees trapped under the tartaric acid crystals. The first photo here shows the murky wine before racking, full of carbon dioxide and yeast. That soupy raspberry colored liquid will be crystal clear in a few weeks through the action of gravity and time. The photo below shows the gross lees left behind after racking.

So far, the wine looks, smells, and tastes good. I think it will be tasty this year. Five gallons will make 25 bottles--a little more than usual because the vines set a lot of fruit. If all goes well, there should be some new rosé ready at Thanksgiving--or by Christmas at the latest.

Meanwhile, the Cabernet continues to ferment in the living room, but it will soon be dry and ready for the addition of malolactic bacteria to begin malolactic fermentation.

Wines I'm Making: Hard Cider--Second Racking (February 25, 2013)

Yesterday, I racked the hard cider I'm making--the second racking ("racking" refers to taking the liquid off the lees and transferring it to a new container, part of the process of using gravity to clear it of sediment). I siphoned the liquid off the rather fluffy deposit at the bottom of the container and into a new, clean container. The first time I racked the cider I had to top up the vessel with nearly a pint of new liquid. I used fresh apple juice, which added sugar back that subsequently began to ferment again. That activity had mostly stopped.

This time, I filled the gap at the top of the container with finished local cider (only a small amount was required). I suspect I will have to rack my cider once more to get it completely clear, but it's mostly there. As the days have been a little warmer recently, I'll be watching for signs of ongoing fermentation, but I think it's mostly finished. After the final racking, I will bottle the cider and dose it with a touch of sugar to induce a final fermentation in the bottle, which should give it a little effervescence. I've never tried in-bottle fermentation before and never closed bottles with crown caps, but I will rely on the good guidance of the people at our local wine, beer, mead, cider, and cheese-making supply store, The Beverage People. Having just harvested about 60 pounds of honey from our (sadly dead) beehive, I may try making mead next.

Wines I'm Making: Cider Racked (February 19, 2013)

My first attempt at making hard cider is coming along nicely. The fermentation had mostly stooped (after 20 days), so I racked the cider off its lees today. There was quite a lot of sediment in the bottom of the container, so I had to top it up after the racking. I used apple juice, fully expecting the new sugar to revive the fermentation a little, but so far there has been no reaction. It may just take time. We'll see what's going on tomorrow. In the photo, taken while siphoning the cider into a clean container, you can see the deep layer of sediment.