Welch's Grape Juice Wine

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Something to add, and I'm sure Yooper will have input on this as well, but I noticed that if you start with juice that already contains ascorbic acid (many do) you should *not* add the 2tsp of acid blend mentioned in the original recipe. If you do, the end result is extremely tart.

Taste the finished wine first, then add acid blend a little at a time until you find a good balance.
I was drinking some Saturday and that was exactly what i was thinking it was a little tart.I was thinking of adding half next time.
 
I am fermenting a gallon now.

It smells like eggs. Hard boiled eggs. Is this normal?

Everyone in the apartment was wandering around trying to figure out where the smell was coming from.

I can say that the yeast had a similar smell, but the beer I have brewed didn't have an eggy smell.
 
I am fermenting a gallon now.

It smells like eggs. Hard boiled eggs. Is this normal?

Everyone in the apartment was wandering around trying to figure out where the smell was coming from.

I can say that the yeast had a similar smell, but the beer I have brewed didn't have an eggy smell.

Not really- it sounds like stressed yeast. If it's not finished fermenting, give the fermenter a stir, to get oxygen in there a little and see if it helps.
 
The fermentation seems strong. Lots of bubbles (in the wine itself).

I wondered when I was making this why it wasn't necessary to agitate it a lot to get the oxygen count higher right before I pitched the yeast..

If I have an air lock, will stirring it help at all?
 
The fermentation seems strong. Lots of bubbles (in the wine itself).

I wondered when I was making this why it wasn't necessary to agitate it a lot to get the oxygen count higher right before I pitched the yeast..

If I have an air lock, will stirring it help at all?

Usually, there is enough bubbling with just the fermentation going on and the napkin cover to give it enough oxygen. There are plenty of fermentables in there, so I haven't really had any issues with stressed yeast. If you have it airlocked, it'll still be fine.
 
awesome. also i want to make 6 gallons, can i simply multiply everything in the recipe by 6 and be good to go?

will i need 2 packs yeast or would that be too much?
 
I'm curious, what does leaving it covered with a napkin for 12 hours before pitching yeast do?

Thanks.
 
I just racked this into a secondary and had a taste.
Not bad.

A couple questions:
I didn't use granulated sugar but Corn sugar given me by my Beer Brewing buddy. Will this significantly chage my final product. As stated It tastes good now and I'm only 30 days in.
I followed the recipe exact except for sugar substitution.
I forgot to take gravity readings when I started.
What range of ABV should I expect from finished product?

Thanks for help

D
 
I just racked this into a secondary and had a taste.
Not bad.

A couple questions:
I didn't use granulated sugar but Corn sugar given me by my Beer Brewing buddy. Will this significantly chage my final product. As stated It tastes good now and I'm only 30 days in.
I followed the recipe exact except for sugar substitution.
I forgot to take gravity readings when I started.
What range of ABV should I expect from finished product?

Thanks for help

D

The corn sugar is fine. As a guess, you could expect about 13% ABV.
 
I just read through this whole thread and didn't find an answer to my question, but I apologize if I missed it. Is it necessary to "stabilize" if you do not add any sugar to sweeten before bottling?
 
No. You can just bottle. If you're going to save it for a while, you might want to add a little sulfite but for early consumption, you can just bottle it.
 
I'd like to try something like this.

I have a 3 gallon carboy that I don't really use in my beer brewing, but I don't have a 3 gallon fermenting bucket. If I did this batch in a bucket that I would use for a 5 gallon batch of beer, would the extra head space be too much? I've heard that this fermentation is highly active, so maybe the extra space would be good, right? Also, since CO2 is heavier than air, wouldn't it simply form a larger protective covering than usual, until it reached the airlock and started pushing CO2 out?

Here's my potential recipe:

3x 96 oz. bottles of grape juice (maybe a blend for different flavor)
4 lbs granulated sugar
No acid blend (don't have any)
No pectic enzyme (don't have any and will use isinglass to clear)
1 tbsp yeast nutrient
water to make 3 gallons
wine yeast

How does that look?

I'm shooting for an OG of 1.100-1.110, right? And an FG of about 1.000-1.010?

Thanks!
 
Also, if I have patience, how long could this wine be aged? I think I could let it go 6 or 8 weeks in primary and another 6 or 8 in secondary before bottling. Would that be ok? Would that improve the wine? Also, if I'm shooting to start drinking this wine in December or so, any suggestions for making it more of a "Winter" wine?

Thanks!
 
I'd like to try something like this.

I have a 3 gallon carboy that I don't really use in my beer brewing, but I don't have a 3 gallon fermenting bucket. If I did this batch in a bucket that I would use for a 5 gallon batch of beer, would the extra head space be too much? I've heard that this fermentation is highly active, so maybe the extra space would be good, right? Also, since CO2 is heavier than air, wouldn't it simply form a larger protective covering than usual, until it reached the airlock and started pushing CO2 out?

Here's my potential recipe:

3x 96 oz. bottles of grape juice (maybe a blend for different flavor)
4 lbs granulated sugar
No acid blend (don't have any)
No pectic enzyme (don't have any and will use isinglass to clear)
1 tbsp yeast nutrient
water to make 3 gallons
wine yeast

How does that look?

I'm shooting for an OG of 1.100-1.110, right? And an FG of about 1.000-1.010?

Thanks!

You can use any size fermenter you'd like for primary, but for secondary you want to reduce headspace so you may want to rack it to the carboy after primary. 1.100 would give you 14.5% alcohol (!) so you may want to shoot for 1.095 or less. FG should be .990-.994ish.

Also, if I have patience, how long could this wine be aged? I think I could let it go 6 or 8 weeks in primary and another 6 or 8 in secondary before bottling. Would that be ok? Would that improve the wine? Also, if I'm shooting to start drinking this wine in December or so, any suggestions for making it more of a "Winter" wine?

Thanks!

If you add some sulfite at bottling, it could last for years. If you want to drink it THIS December, only 4 months away, then don't go over about 1.090 or so.
 
When I made this recipe last night I misread the sugar amount and only added 1 1/4 cups. I realized it before I added the rest of the ingredients, but after I added the concentrate and poured it into the primary. So I poured it back into the pot and added the rest of the sugar. With that batch I only got a OG of 1020, but with the second batch I made, with the correct amount of sugar the first time, I got a OG of 1080.

I'm sure everything will turn out just fine, but does anyone see a problem with what I did?
 
Quick question:

I just started this last night and pitched the yeast this morning. In the directions I noticed you said rack to secondary when clear. Just looking as this it is pretty dark and obviously not clear. Does this lighten up or something? Perhaps I could see a light from the other side when shined through it meaning it is "clear"?

Thanks for the recipe!
 
Quick question:

I just started this last night and pitched the yeast this morning. In the directions I noticed you said rack to secondary when clear. Just looking as this it is pretty dark and obviously not clear. Does this lighten up or something? Perhaps I could see a light from the other side when shined through it meaning it is "clear"?

Thanks for the recipe!

Yes, "clear" means that it actually gets darker, as the yeast and other stuff drops out. When you take a sample (you can use a sanitized turkey baster), it actually looks clear, just like regular red wine. It's dark, but there aren't any suspended particles in it so you can see through the glass when you hold it up to light.
 
I just started a batch of this except I used Welch's Grape/Apple/Cherry blend (it was on sale) and light brown sugar (had it on hand) with Cote des Blancs yeast. I didn't take an SG but it's bubbling away nicely now. I figure for $5.00 total it's a good experiment.
 
Has anyone attempted to make a different version of this? For example adding raisin for additional body or oaking it?
 
What would happen if I were to make this with an ale yeast (WLP 001)? Would I get a sweet wine of sorts. Could I bottle condition to make it sparkling sweet wine?

thanks
 
What would happen if I were to make this with an ale yeast (WLP 001)? Would I get a sweet wine of sorts. Could I bottle condition to make it sparkling sweet wine?

thanks

If you use an ale yeast, it might poop out around 8% ABV. That would make a sweeter wine. You couldn't bottle condition it, though, because the yeast would be at their limit.
 
I liked the idea of a cheap sweet grape wine liked this so I went ahead and made some with some minor adjustments. I used 2 gallons of generic grape juice bought from walmart and 2 lbs of cane sugar with a packet of EC-1118 champagne yeast. Pitched it with no special method or starter. So far so good, it began to ferment within 24 hours and after 3 days still going strong. I plan to stabilize and sweeten if its dry and then age it for a little while after that. I'll let you know how it all turns out.
 
Does this same recipe work with the white grape juice frozen concentrate as well?

I had a pack of K1V-1116, which is supposed to be nice for white wine, sugar, yeast nutrient, acid blend, and pectin enzyme, so I picked up 2 cans of white and made it yesterday......
 
Does this same recipe work with the white grape juice frozen concentrate as well?

I had a pack of K1V-1116, which is supposed to be nice for white wine, sugar, yeast nutrient, acid blend, and pectin enzyme, so I picked up 2 cans of white and made it yesterday......

Yes! The 100% Niagara White Grape by Welch's is great!
 
Does this same recipe work with the white grape juice frozen concentrate as well?

I had a pack of K1V-1116, which is supposed to be nice for white wine, sugar, yeast nutrient, acid blend, and pectin enzyme, so I picked up 2 cans of white and made it yesterday......

I did the same thing except I added golden raisins after the fermentation calmed down. I'm having trouble getting it to clear so I might put it in the fridge for a few days or so.
 
Yes! The 100% Niagara White Grape by Welch's is great!

I did the same thing except I added golden raisins after the fermentation calmed down. I'm having trouble getting it to clear so I might put it in the fridge for a few days or so.

hurray! After being snowed in the last two days, I had to do something - big time cabin fever - and since I could make it to safeway to get the juice, and had everything else, I decided to make it.
 
hurray! After being snowed in the last two days, I had to do something - big time cabin fever - and since I could make it to safeway to get the juice, and had everything else, I decided to make it.

So I bottled this today and gave it a taste mid-way through the bottling and it was intensly sweet. I had already bottled enough that it was pointless for me to add another yeast. Lesson learned- taste before you bottle.

On the other hand, I swear I pitched the yeast :drunk: so I'm not sure what happened. It didn't even taste like there was a slight alcohol bite. I had the bubbling and foaming and it was cloudy then it cleared...

Anyways- I have 3 bottles of this that I'll put away and open on a rainy day- maybe it's just a really really sweet white wine?
 
So I bottled this today and gave it a taste mid-way through the bottling and it was intensly sweet. I had already bottled enough that it was pointless for me to add another yeast. Lesson learned- taste before you bottle.

On the other hand, I swear I pitched the yeast :drunk: so I'm not sure what happened. It didn't even taste like there was a slight alcohol bite. I had the bubbling and foaming and it was cloudy then it cleared...

Anyways- I have 3 bottles of this that I'll put away and open on a rainy day- maybe it's just a really really sweet white wine?

No, this wine is completely dry, very tart in fact, without any sweetening after fermentation.

I'd be worried about bottle bombs. Did you take any hydrometer readings?
 
No, this wine is completely dry, very tart in fact, without any sweetening after fermentation.

I'd be worried about bottle bombs. Did you take any hydrometer readings?

Oops! I forgot to add in that earlier post that it was the same recipe, except with the 100% white grape juice. I've made the red and I completely agree with you.

I did not take any hydrometer readings, I've been pretty bad with the wine :eek: just letting it go for a few months. I checked the containers the juice came in and there were no preservatives, so again, I dunno what happened.

EDIT: It wasn't 100% White Grape Juice and it "contains sulfiting agents" maybe that was my problem right there
 

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