Welch's Grape Juice Wine

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This is my first try at making wine and I've already got two mistakes under my belt.

I started the recipe 5 days ago and added the yeast 4 days ago (12 hours later). For some reason I fitted the airlock right away to my primary which is a 2 gallon bucket and sealed the lid, plus I didn't activate the yeast, just added it dry to the mixed ingredients.

Two days later I realized my mistake and removed the airlock. I'm thinking I'm still OK, the airlock was bubbling away for two days and the mix was foamy on top. Hopefully the extra headspace helped counter the airlock the first two days and it just may take a little longer to ferment?

Should this still ferment OK? I tried to take a hydrometer reading, but my hydrometer is too big and hits the bottom of the bucket (and my secondary carboy too) out before it can get a reading. Thanks.
 
This is my first try at making wine and I've already got two mistakes under my belt.

I started the recipe 5 days ago and added the yeast 4 days ago (12 hours later). For some reason I fitted the airlock right away to my primary which is a 2 gallon bucket and sealed the lid, plus I didn't activate the yeast, just added it dry to the mixed ingredients.

Two days later I realized my mistake and removed the airlock. I'm thinking I'm still OK, the airlock was bubbling away for two days and the mix was foamy on top. Hopefully the extra headspace helped counter the airlock the first two days and it just may take a little longer to ferment?

Should this still ferment OK? I tried to take a hydrometer reading, but my hydrometer is too big and hits the bottom of the bucket (and my secondary carboy too) out before it can get a reading. Thanks.

you should be fine, i ferment with the airlock on often, wine doesn't foam near as actively as beer does so you should be fine with the airlock in. and if you used dry yeast you don't have to activate it, just sprinkle it on top. yeast is hungry and it'll eat.
 
Ok, I know that I made a few mistakes along the way, such as using bread yeast but that is all I had on hand at the time
until I can get to the nearest beer/wine making supply store which is about 15 miles away.

So since I started this welches grape wine I could use some input . I started the wine on Nov 2 and fermentation was good but today it slowed down from a bubble 1 to every 2 seconds too about a bubble every 1 to 2 minutes.
below is a pic of my gravity reading (still unsure of how to read the hydrometer)
It still has a mild grape flavor to it but it has a mild burn as it goes down.

I have already racked it into another jug and I will cap it for now,
So do I just let it set in the jug or should I bottle it.
I have some juice left over can I add that to back sweeten it ???
Thanks for any input...
 
One part of the recipe says: "Add additional water to make one gallon and pour into secondary. Add remaining ingredients except yeast. Cover with napkin fastened with rubber band and set aside 12 hours."

Can somebody please tell me why the bottle gets covered with a rubber band fastened napkin for 12 hours before adding the yeast???? Since making wine or beer is a big chemistry experiment knowing what a certain step in the the process of making that wine or beer does help me to learn the process and then I can help others that are new to this when I have learned a few things. Thanks for your time
 
From reading through the posts I saw you wait 12 hours to let the pectic enzyme do its job better. See post 49. The napkin is because the recipe as written is done in a carboy with little head space and may foam over or clog an air lock.

I have another question. I almost tried white grape juice wine, but saw Welch's white grape juice has many more ingredients than their Concord including sodium bisulfite. Can anyone confirm success with Welch's White grape juice and White with peach? Thanks.
 
THIRD MISTAKE AND A BIG ONE. Just mixed up batch #2, while weighing the sugar( in front of my wife this time) she said there is no way that is 1 1/4 pound. She was right. :eek:

My first batch I started last weekend has 1 1/4 oz sugar (I'm not a baker, I cook inuitively), is there anything I can do to save the first batch? Add the sugar and more yeast or dump it?
 
THIRD MISTAKE AND A BIG ONE. Just mixed up batch #2, while weighing the sugar( in front of my wife this time) she said there is no way that is 1 1/4 pound. She was right. :eek:

My first batch I started last weekend has 1 1/4 oz sugar (I'm not a baker, I cook inuitively), is there anything I can do to save the first batch? Add the sugar and more yeast or dump it?

Nothing is ruined, it'll just have really low ABV, heat a quart of juice up in a pan and add the sugar and heat till it melts and stirs in clear and dissolves, then throw it in the fermenter, you'll be fine.
 
WHITE WINE!

My last batch was mostly white wine concentrate, but two of the of the frozen mixtures were white grape/peach.
This resulted in a very clear albeit slightly yellow wine with a sweet peach component.
Some people call this wine many things and you can find many recipes. I prefer red wine and back sweeten with cranberry juice. The process is so simple really, the first couple batches I made were Great Value concentrate from WalMart, Sugar, water, and a $1 pkg of wine yeast. Pitched the yeast right after it was mixed and let it sit for thirty days in the primary.Done!
The White Wine w/ peach Ifollowed this recipe to the letter and it resulted in a good after dinner White. It was also a big hit at a 50th anniversary party, the seniors loved the no frills, clear,sweet, homemade, farm fresh wine.
The reason I made white is because I wanted the yeast Cake to start my SkeeterPee, which is a Lemon Wine that one makes Hard Lemonaide out of.
That was really good as well, due partially to the peach. Very lemon and great for Summer. Don't fear this process, keep everything sanitized and it's a no brainier, I promise. If you back sweeten be careful you don't make bottle bombs. It will start to referment in the bottles. I think that is why some let it go a month to dry out or deplete the yeast. I have made Champange with this.
 
I'm going to have to try this one out. I'm making a bottle of something similar to this (using HEB store brand) only it's not the concentrate. I just poured a bit out added about 2 cups of sugar and pitched the yeast. It's going to be a present for my Stepmother who will drink just about anything. I think this recipe may work better though.
 
I bottles my batch a week of so ago after sitting for 2 months. I cracked one bottle and it wasn't very good to be honest. Very tangy and sour. I'm going to let the other 4 sit 6 months in the bottle before even thinking about opening them.
 
I'm not sure about sour and letting it sit for 6 months?
I have had wines come out really green tasting from grapes that may have been too green.
 
I made about three batches using 2 cans of frozen concentrate per gallon with various others fruit flavors. These finally mellowed out after about 6 months but were thin or flavor weak. I made 2 batches using 4 cans of frozen concentrate back in May. These have sort of got a brownish look to them and turned out very tart. The one that had pomegranate juice in it is actually pretty bitter now in November. Probably going to dump these two batches, bottling seems like a waste of time. The best results so far using welches concentrate is a batch using 6 pounds of black concord grapes with 1 can of welches concord concentrate. I caught the grapes on sale for 97 cents a pound. The other batch that is showing promise is a single can of frozen concord concentrate with a bout 4 pounds of muscadines. These last two batches are only at three months in and are are 1 gallon batches. They need to wait until February, or March I'm guessing. I have about 4 pounds of blueberries and a pound of blackberries, so I'll probably use them next with 1 can of frozen concord as a base. My take so far on the "straight up" welches isn't good, but is seems to work out fine using the welches as a base to the other fruits.

Been buying a lot of Taylor's Sangria, Stonehaus Davenport which is a foxy concord, and Carlo Rossi like it was kool aid.
 
I'm getting ready to bottle my Welch's Wine after 2 months. Quick question- to stabilize this, I could just put in a Campden tablet right? Crush, stir in, wait a few days and then bottle? Thank you so much, I'm looking forward to tasting this. :)
 
I'm getting ready to bottle my Welch's Wine after 2 months. Quick question- to stabilize this, I could just put in a Campden tablet right? Crush, stir in, wait a few days and then bottle? Thank you so much, I'm looking forward to tasting this. :)

If you're going to be sweetening the wine, you'll want to use sorbate. Campden is a great antioxidant and preservative, but won't stop fermentation.

Normally, you'd rack to a new vessel (off of the lees) onto the crushed/dissolved campden tablet (and sorbate if using).
 
If you're going to be sweetening the wine, you'll want to use sorbate. Campden is a great antioxidant and preservative, but won't stop fermentation.

Normally, you'd rack to a new vessel (off of the lees) onto the crushed/dissolved campden tablet (and sorbate if using).

So if I don't sweeten it, I just rack into another carboy that has Campden in it and then should I wait a few days before bottling or just 24 hours?
 
yoop - I'm giving a similar version of this a try tonight - 3 gallon batch, 6 cans concentrate, 4lbs sugar, 3tsp pectic, 3tsp acid blen, 3tsp dap, motrachet yeast.

might try to oak some for the experimentation, but with my slackerish nature I'll probably just bottle it and drink it as is.
 
As far as leaving out the pectic enzyme, that should be ok it just might not clear as fast.

What does the pectic enzyme actually do? I've read its a good addition when using juice concentrates, but still not sure what it is specifically for. It helps with clearing quickly? I made a batch last night, but didn't have any pectic enzyme. I also held off on the acid blend for now, but do have tartaric acid at home - would this be a okay to use as I believe acid blend contains a certain % of tartaric acid... And I used some DAP for the yeast nutrient.
 
Pectic enzymes helps to break down the fruit's fiber or pulp. This allows more flavor and color to be extracted from whatever fruit is being used during the fermentation. It helps to make sure the wine has a clearer, more translucent, appearance after the fermentation has completed and the wine has had ample time to clear up.

Using perctic enzymes will help eliminate pectic haze.
 
I'm starting a white grape/peach gallon tonight. I'll give updates as I go. I make quite a bit of wine and random booze now. This is as straightforward and easy as it gets. Follow the recipe and you will get wine.

Cheers :mug:
 
Pectic enzymes helps to break down the fruit's fiber or pulp. This allows more flavor and color to be extracted from whatever fruit is being used during the fermentation. It helps to make sure the wine has a clearer, more translucent, appearance after the fermentation has completed and the wine has had ample time to clear up.

Using perctic enzymes will help eliminate pectic haze.

Hmm interesting, thanks for the food for thought. I might try this with my next batch.

:mug:
 
I racked my first batch of white to secondary last night, was pretty dry already. I'll check it after new years. The white/peach sounds very good, that will be next.

My first two batches of concord should be ready to drink mid december.
 
I'm starting a white grape/peach gallon tonight. I'll give updates as I go. I make quite a bit of wine and random booze now. This is as straightforward and easy as it gets. Follow the recipe and you will get wine.

Cheers :mug:

I mixed everything up last night minus the acid blend, put the yeast in this morning. My SG was .100 so hopefully its not too hot. Time will tell!

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photo 2.JPG
 
It's about time for me to bottle my "Strawberry Breeze" flavor concentrate wine.. This one is turning out great so far.
 
Can anyone describe the taste of the final product? I understand it is basically table wine, but does anyone have some good descriptors for the taste?
 
Can anyone describe the taste of the final product? I understand it is basically table wine, but does anyone have some good descriptors for the taste?

Hmmm. Have you ever had Manischewitz concord wine? Our church used to use it for communion when I was a kid. (I have no idea why a Lutheran church used Kosher wine, but that could be a whole 'nother discussion. Knowing the old Germans there, it was probably due to cost). It tastes like that, only dry if you don't sweeten it when it's done. It's a bit tart.

Anyway, it doesn't taste like a wine you'd buy at the store made out of wine grapes. It's definitely a concord grape wine, assuming you do the purple. If you use white grape juice, that's niagara grape juice and it tastes like any dry niagara grape wine. Since that's not common, except in places like the Finger Lakes area of NY, it's hard to explain.
 
Quick question from a beginner. I currently have 4 1/2 gal. of Blueberry wine in the primary. I was wondering if I could make a 5 gal batch of this wine by putting it on top of the old yeast and pulp after moving the blueberry wine into a secondary? Would this give it some added flavor and body? Is there something different I would need to do?
 
Hmmm. Have you ever had Manischewitz concord wine? Our church used to use it for communion when I was a kid. (I have no idea why a Lutheran church used Kosher wine, but that could be a whole 'nother discussion. Knowing the old Germans there, it was probably due to cost). It tastes like that, only dry if you don't sweeten it when it's done. It's a bit tart.

Anyway, it doesn't taste like a wine you'd buy at the store made out of wine grapes. It's definitely a concord grape wine, assuming you do the purple. If you use white grape juice, that's niagara grape juice and it tastes like any dry niagara grape wine. Since that's not common, except in places like the Finger Lakes area of NY, it's hard to explain.

Well, at least it's unique! I'll probably check out your recipes for some country wines.
 
Quick question from a beginner. I currently have 4 1/2 gal. of Blueberry wine in the primary. I was wondering if I could make a 5 gal batch of this wine by putting it on top of the old yeast and pulp after moving the blueberry wine into a secondary? Would this give it some added flavor and body? Is there something different I would need to do?

It should be fine doing this. It would have some of the blueberry taste that would make the final product more complex tasting. I think it sounds like a great idea.
 
Quick question from a beginner. I currently have 4 1/2 gal. of Blueberry wine in the primary. I was wondering if I could make a 5 gal batch of this wine by putting it on top of the old yeast and pulp after moving the blueberry wine into a secondary? Would this give it some added flavor and body? Is there something different I would need to do?

No, don't reuse the yeast from a wine. Wine is pretty high alcohol vs beer, and the yeast will be stressed from the alcohol. Alcohol is poisonous to yeast, and will stress it.
 
No, don't reuse the yeast from a wine. Wine is pretty high alcohol vs beer, and the yeast will be stressed from the alcohol. Alcohol is poisonous to yeast, and will stress it.

Doesn't the skeeter pee recipe call for the use of old yeast? I trust you as you have been doing this a while but what's the difference?
 
Hmmm. Have you ever had Manischewitz concord wine? Our church used to use it for communion when I was a kid. (I have no idea why a Lutheran church used Kosher wine, but that could be a whole 'nother discussion. Knowing the old Germans there, it was probably due to cost). It tastes like that, only dry if you don't sweeten it when it's done. It's a bit tart.

Anyway, it doesn't taste like a wine you'd buy at the store made out of wine grapes. It's definitely a concord grape wine, assuming you do the purple. If you use white grape juice, that's niagara grape juice and it tastes like any dry niagara grape wine. Since that's not common, except in places like the Finger Lakes area of NY, it's hard to explain.

I just tried my first batch over the weekend, unsweetened. I felt silly describing it like that, but that is what I was thinking. I'm Lutheran and my first thought was this is like communion wine, but very dry.
 
Not to be that guy, but I have made Skeeter Pee with used wine yeast many times.

Sure, that's an exception, though. Skeeter Pee requires a massive amount of yeast to overcome the acidity of the lemonade. That doesn't mean that there isn't a flavor impact or some alcohol toxicity of the yeast. Due to the massive overpitching of yeast (not something you'd typically due), it doesn't matter if some yeast are stressed or die off. But that doesn't make it good winemaking practice routinely- particularly when wine is like 59 cents to $1 a package.
 
716 posts... 48 pages... *pant*

I have added this to my to-do list, but I can not leave well enough alone, I am adjusting the recipe a smidge. The local organic market does not sell concentrate, but does sell juice from concentrate... I digress. My recipe:

1 gallon yield
64oz concord grape juice. (concentrate and water)
32oz black cherry juice (concentrate and water)
1# wildflower honey
Red star champagne yeast
Top-off water

I want to check, before I dive in completely, whether or not I should add yeast nutrient? Or would a handful raisins meet those needs? I think that is something from previous posts.

Later on in the process after re-rackings and secondary, and it is all dried out, I am (in theory) going to stabilize and back sweeten. What I would like to find out is can it be stabilized without adding campden and sorbate? Like bottle pasteurizing cider? My wife and I are somewhat contemptuous of chemicals so I prefer to avoid them. Additionally, in skipping the PE will I bottle pasteurize it into boozy jelly?
 
I just did a 6 gal batch of this recipe using apple/cherry juice concentrate. its sitting on the kitchen counter and I don't think I can move it now. LOL I hope the wife doesn't mind cause its goin to be there for at least a week.
 
I racked my white grape/peach over the weekend and I believe we have a winner. It will need a little time, but for what it was made out of, it's not going to be that bad.

I also started regular grape last week. I racked it this weekend and it taste/smells like juice. I used 2 1/2 cans of concentrate and Red Star Cote des Blancs yeast. Its still a bit sweet which is what I was going for since my wife doesn't like dry wines.
 
Ok. My version is in primary.

No PE, no yeast nutrient (pitched whole envelope). And no acid addition. Let's see what happens.

OG is 1.086
 

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