I made a hodgepodge wine or swill....

So my wife wanted to throw out some table grapes we had that our kids didnt eat. I said "Hold on there, I'm a brave brewer now and I can make something with that."

Lol, so heres what I used:

1. About 4 cups of Red Globe table grapes chopped up (a few stems made it in)
2. 1 cup blueberry preserves (home made)
3. 1 pint concord grape preserves (home made from real grapes)
4. 5 cups of granulated sugar
5. 2 gallons of apple juice
6. 2 cups of left over concord grape juice (store bought)
7. enough water to bring it up to about 4 gallons total
8. Montrachet yeast

My o.g. was 1.063 (not including sugars in the grapes, but that probably isnt much).

Ive never made wine in a carboy (my only other all homeade wine sat in buckets in our crawlspace so I never saw the ferment), so It was interesting to see the grapes at the bottom of it when I first made it, but the next morning they were all at the top and it is bubbling away nicely.

The smell at the airlock is pretty sulphory but I'm assuming it is normal.

So from what I understand, i should wait for the fruit to drop and then rack it and let it sit for a month or so. Does this sound correct?

Also, any ideas from anyone as to whether I made swill or do you think it will be okay? I know, I know, its hard to tell from just the post but you probably have more experience just throwing stuff together.

Well, when I used crush fruit, I usually remove that after about 5 days. Otherwise, you can get some off-flavors. So, if the grapes are just loose in there, I'd rack it in about 5 days or so. The just rack again whenever you have about 1/4 inch of sediment or so, until it's clear. Then check the sg (should be .990 or .992) and either age it or bottle it. I'd find some campden tablets and use one per gallon at every other racking. I'd do that in the next couple of days, in case those grapes had any wild yeasts on them, and then like I said, at every other racking.

I think this actually might be pretty tasty!

Well, it's either gonna be really good or really bad. Either way, it's a fun experiment.

Thanks, it smelled pretty sulphorous the first 48 hours or so, but this morning the airlock has a more fruity smell with just a hint of rhino farts.

its fun to watch the stuff go up and down with the natural fermentation circulation.

thanks for the tip about the campden!

ill post an update soon!

Did you add pectic enzyme? If not, I have my doubts that those preservatives are ever going to clear.

yaeyama said:

Did you add pectic enzyme? If not, I have my doubts that those preservatives are ever going to clear.

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no i did not add pectic enzyme. what preservatives are you talking about?

It's not preservatives that keep wine from clearing (that's what keeps it from fermenting) but alot of times I add 1 tsp of pectic enzyme to fruit juices and fruit to aid in clearing.

You could have added 1 tsp per gallon but it doesn't matter if you didn't. If the wine never clears, you might have a pectin haze that causes some cloudiness. If that happens, you can always add pectic enzyme later. I wouldn't worry about it at all, if it was me. If this comes out drinkable (and I'm betting it will), clarity might not even be an issue for you. If it is, we can deal with it if/when that happens.

First rack today. sg was 1.012 and is cloudy. Very light and smooth tasting. I cannot wait until this finishes. its very good. I bought some campden tablets but have not put any in yet.

Sounds tasty.

sTango said:

no i did not add pectic enzyme. what preservatives are you talking about?

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think he was talking about:

2. 1 cup blueberry preserves (home made)
3. 1 pint concord grape preserves (home made from real grapes)