Sparkling Wine or Champagne

[klcramer]

My wife and I recently went to a wedding where she discovered she likes what they were serving and people told her it was Champagne. To me it wasn't anything spectacular. I don't know what the name of it was because at the time I really didn't care. A friend of mine was getting married and I was having a good time with him and wasn't going to get into a brew discussion with people who have never seen a grape let alone made a batch of wine. Needless to say does anyone have a recipe for a sparkling wine that is SWMBO friendly? She likes wines that are dry but have a nice finish Thats the best description I can get from her. From what I had at the wedding I seem to think if I got some white grape juice added some sugar and and raisins with some champagne yeast and bottle carbonated it I would have something very close to what she was drinking. Any thoughts?

 

[Yooper]

Maybe. Maybe not. Wines are very different, and without knowing what kind it was except a "white" or how sweet it was, it'd be hard to guess to a recipe.

Kind of like making beer. If you know sort of the style you're thinking of, it makes it alot easier to guess the sort of recipe that would work. But just saying "beer" isn't really going to get you close to a recipe.

 

[Nikkimaija]

A lot of champagnes (and other sparkling wines) have some grapes in them that are typically used for red wines. I think Chardonnay + Pinot Noir is a pretty common combo. And my understanding is that the color of the wine has more to do with the process, ie, how long you leave the wine sitting on the grapes with skins, than it does with the variety of grape. Lots of companies will sell you bulk grapes or concentrated wine grape juice, which is usually different from grocery store grape juice. I order beer supplies from Northern Brewer, but they also have a devoted winemaking seection. If you use grocery store juice, be prepared for a not-so-balanced wine in terms of acidity, and I've heard that juice & eating grapes tend to give an off flavor in wines that some people describe as "foxy". Without some decent acidity, wines to me just taste a little boring/flabby. You can get adjuncts to add to your wine to balance the tannic/citric/malic acids - you can test for these things and adjust (more technical than I've ever gotten), or rely on someone's recipe (my usual procedure.)
I think many champagnes and sparkling wines are oaked for at least a little while, which can impart some of that nice finish your wife describes. If you don't happen to own an aged French oak barrel, you can purchase tiny oak cubes to drop in the secondary for awhile.
Good luck, sounds like a fun project!

 

[klcramer]

What I'm thinking is taking Ed's Apfelwein recipe but using white grape juice instead. Adding 2 pounds of white raisins in the secondary and a few oak cubes or chips. Then add some priming sugar to carbonate in the bottles. Not sure how long to add the oak for. How does this sound for a simple sparkling white wine?

 

[BeerClaw]

You can make sparkling wine from any wine kit, I would not use grape juice from the store. The only problem is you will have sediment in your wine after refermenting in the bottle for the carbonation. It can be removed by refermenting the bottles upside down so the sediment collects in the neck of the bottle. After the wine has carbonated you need to carefully freeze the wine, opening it up and scoop out the sediment. Then recap and place the bottles upright. It has to be bottled in champagne bottles, or glass or plastic beer bottles. Wine bottles can not take the pressure.