Welch's Grape Juice Wine

[kjones]

hey yooper, if i don't feel like bottling this can i just rack into another rossi jug and stick it in the fridge?

 

[Pabst Blue Robot]

Has anyone experimented with using more juice and less water to eliminate the need for adding table sugar?

 

[jay415]

ok I finally have the finished product as per the recipe. I didn't sweeten it at all. It has a very strong concord grape aroma and flavor but it is very sour or should I say tart. Should I add less acid blend next time? will that make it less tart? or will aging make it less tart? Also Yooper I see that you were explaining how to sweeten. do you sweeten yours? how much sugar do you end up adding per gallon? Do you add dextrose or sucrose? Sorry about all the questions. Thanks again

 

[Yooper]

ok I finally have the finished product as per the recipe. I didn't sweeten it at all. It has a very strong concord grape aroma and flavor but it is very sour or should I say tart. Should I add less acid blend next time? will that make it less tart? or will aging make it less tart? Also Yooper I see that you were explaining how to sweeten. do you sweeten yours? how much sugar do you end up adding per gallon? Do you add dextrose or sucrose? Sorry about all the questions. Thanks again

I don't sweeten mine- I like it dry as a table wine. You could add less acid blend (or even none), but I think it's the concord grape flavor that gives it the tartness, or that certain Welch's "tang".

 

[talleymonster]

I just found a bottle the other day of this stuff that I made back in September 07

 

[jay415]

I don't sweeten mine- I like it dry as a table wine. You could add less acid blend (or even none), but I think it's the concord grape flavor that gives it the tartness, or that certain Welch's "tang".

OK thanks so I didn't mess it up. I'll experiment with it.

I just found a bottle the other day of this stuff that I made back in September 07

Report needed when you finally pop it open. I have 5 bottles I am going to age. I'll pop one open every few months.

 

[GNBrews]

Some of the grape juices that I've found in my local frozen food isle have ascorbic acid (vit c) added to 'em. Will the increased acidity prevent them from fermenting?

 

[Yooper]

Some of the grape juices that I've found in my local frozen food isle have ascorbic acid (vit c) added to 'em. Will the increased acidity prevent them from fermenting?

No, that's fine. Most juices do have ascorbic acid added.

 

[ChshreCat]

It's a very small amount that's added mainly as a preservative. I've never heard of anyone having a problem with it in anything.

 

[GNBrews]

Wonderful. Thanks!

 

[Firstnten]

Just started 5 gallons.

5lbs sugar
10 cans of welchs white
5 gallons of water
white labs champagne yeast

OG 1.082

after reading this thread I wish I added more sugar. I'm thinking the SG I wanted should have been 1.100. So much good info here.

 

[Yooper]

Just started 5 gallons.

5lbs sugar
10 cans of welchs white
5 gallons of water
white labs champagne yeast

OG 1.082

after reading this thread I wish I added more sugar. I'm thinking the SG I wanted should have been 1.100. So much good info here.

That OG is ok. It'll give you 12% ABV, so that's fine. It should finish fairly quickly.

 

[Firstnten]

That OG is ok. It'll give you 12% ABV, so that's fine. It should finish fairly quickly.

How quick?

 

[Yooper]

How quick?

When it's done? I don't know. It would depend on the temperature of the room, the health of the yeast, etc, for example. But a 12% ABV would generally finish quicker than a 15% ABV wine.

 

[Firstnten]

When it's done? I don't know. It would depend on the temperature of the room, the health of the yeast, etc, for example. But a 12% ABV would generally finish quicker than a 15% ABV wine.

Nice..That makes sense taking longer to produce more.

The room will stay at 60 but I have a space heater to keep it at a steady 70. I'm keeping it between 66-70 now but I will see after me first electric bill if I'm going to continue using it.

 

[kjones]

i am drinking my last glass of this as i am typing this, it is very good i really liked it. I just racked after thirty days and put it straight into the fridge since i can never wait a long time. I could only imagine how good this wood be after bottling and aging. Anyway i just started 2 more gallons slighty dif from original recipe. I used:

3 cans or grape concentrate
64 oz. of white grape peach juice
2 1/2 cups sugar
and topped up to 2 gallons with water

cant wait till its done might even bottle some this time if it lasts that long

 

[Buildmark]

Here's another way to do it. I have done a couple batches this way with honey. Since you use honey, they are considered meads which is a honey wine.

This uses the premade juice, not the frozen type. My last batch I used a D47 yeast and did not have to back sweeten.

What's nice is the alcohol content is high compared to regular wine and has a decent kick to it.

C & P from a mead site, below;

Ingredients
2 lbs Clover honey
1 oz buckwheat honey
64-oz Welch's Grape Juice with Vitamin C added- Make sure it has no preservatives in ingredients other than Vitamin C added (A.K.A. Absorbic Acid)
Balance water if you need it to make 1 gallon after adding honey mixed in water (don't use too much water in honey mix or you'll end up with more than you bargained for.
Lalvin EC-1118

at racking:
1/2 tsp. potassium sorbate
1/2 campden tablet

Methods/steps
Just finished bottling my first Grape Mead Melomel or Pyment whatever one wishes to call it and it was started on November 4th and is simply wonderful to drink already. It was ready in 5 weeks!
Thought I would share my recipe with you, as it is the youngest best tasting, quick mead I have had thus far. Too bad
It will ferment super fast to dry (about 13% alcohol) because of type of yeast and all the nutrients and natural sugars in Welch's grape juice. It should be to SG =1.000 or less in 14- 21 days max.
Rack to clean carboy over mixture of 6-oz honey, 6-oz Welch's grape juice, 1/2t of Sorbate and 1/2 crushed campden tablet.
It will stabilize and clear fast. Let it clear and set for another 2 weeks and it will be ready to bottle and drink.
It will be medium sweet but smooth and drinkable right away. If you want it semi sweet use 4-oz honey instead of 6-oz / gal.
The only reason I used the Campden (Sulphite) is because my understanding is that using both Potassium Sorbate and Sulphite together will definitely inhibit renewed fermentation and it did for me.
Color is deep red, has nice legs on sides of glass after swirling, good nose and great balanced taste) Just don't tell everybody you used Welch's. I won't. Because the juice is clear to start, clearing is naturally fast, fast, fast.

 

[GNBrews]

Yooper,

What purpose does letting the must stand for 12hrs before pitching the yeast accomplish?

 

[Yooper]

It allows you to add the pectic enzyme, and then add the yeast 12 hours later. The pectic enzyme doesn't work well with yeast, it needs to go in first. It's really not necessary, if you don't have it, but it helps clear the wine so it doesn't form a pectin haze.

 

[GNBrews]

Thanks! I skipped the 12hr lag, so hopefully I pitched enough yeast that there's no detrimental effect. I had airlock activity @ 5hrs, so I think it's ok.

 

[GNBrews]

Another question. Is this wine usually a little sour? I tasted a hydrometer sample today (1.018), and it tastes good but almost like a lambic. I did a 3gal batch, so I added 6tsp of the acid blend. Does that sound right?

 

[Yooper]

Another question. Is this wine usually a little sour? I tasted a hydrometer sample today (1.018), and it tastes good but almost like a lambic. I did a 3gal batch, so I added 6tsp of the acid blend. Does that sound right?

I think 6 tsp of acid blend does sound like a lot, but the wine is a bit tart when finished. At 1.018, though, it shouldn't have been sour- it should be quite sweet at 1.018. That's sweet enough to hurt my teeth!

Was it "tart" or "sour"?

 

[GNBrews]

Tart would be a better description. It is still quite sweet, so it's definitely not finished, but I'm wondering how it's supposed to taste.

 

[Yooper]

Tart would be a better description. It is still quite sweet, so it's definitely not finished, but I'm wondering how it's supposed to taste.

It's very tart when it's finished. Once it's done, you can stabilize with campden tablets and sorbate, and sweeten it if you'd like.

 

[GooBrew]

I also have a 6 gallon batch going. Its my first attempt at fermantation, Ill keep everyone posted

 

[GNBrews]

Another question, sorry it's my first time attempting "wine", but how long does primary fermentation usually last? I used a Lalvin 71b-1122 yeast, and I'm only down to 1.013 from 1.103 after 21 days now. The temp of my fermentation area is ~67-70F.

 

[Yooper]

Another question, sorry it's my first time attempting "wine", but how long does primary fermentation usually last? I used a Lalvin 71b-1122 yeast, and I'm only down to 1.013 from 1.103 after 21 days now. The temp of my fermentation area is ~67-70F.

Usually it lasts about 5-7 days, but it can very greatly. 67 is rather cool for wine yeast, so that's why it's taking so long. It'll be fine, though. My house is cool and I find that I have to move my wine to the warmest place in the house, and sometimes even that isn't very warm!

 

[jay415]

Being that this wine was so tart unsweetened, I opened a bottle sweetened it up with some simple syrup and found I can make a very good sangria with it. The concord grape has very fruity taste which is perfect for a sangria. My wife loved it.

 

[c8h12n4o3]

This recipe reminds me of my Dad's homemade wine, but i'm sure it taste more like wine than my Dads MD 20/20 version. He would use the bottled juice, add 5 lbs of sugar, and bread yeast. Five gallons at a time sure didn't last long, but I wouldn't call it fine wine. If you cut it with some sprite it was really tasty. My dad was also known to add an inch of gin to about five bottle just to boost the alcohol vol. Those special bottle were saved for holidays and football games. Although not especially great, I still find myself missing his old hooch. Thanks for the ideas and recipes guys. Happy Holidays!

 

[kjones]

If i wanted to keg this, but also backsweeten, could i just not use sorbate since the cold temps. in the keg. Plus, the fact that it really wouldn't matter if there was any renewed fermentation since it is in a keg?