2010 Muscato 2 -- from Juice

Muscato is such a useful wine because it blends well with other wines that have problems - -and I have a few batches that I am worried about.  If I don't need it for blending, Muscato is drinkable by itself too. Plus my DW likes it. Muscato is also called Muscat or Muscatel.

I bought a pail of refrigerated juice that had been packed in September, so it had partially fermented. In fact it was under pressure since the pressure-relieve valve in the lid wasn't working right.

See my Cabernet Sauvignon post for more about making wine from juice.

Recipe for Muscato Wine from Juice 


20 L of Muscato Juice (Regina)
1 lb (454 g) sugar
2.5 g Yeast Energizer

(Using the wild yeast already in the juice -- no added yeast.)

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I added the sugar by heating the juice on the stove and stirring in the sugar. I added the sugar just to be on the safe side.  The juice just tasted barely sweet and did not seem that alcoholic -- although I am sure it was more alcoholic than it seemed.

This was really easy, and I am not worried about this wine. I am pretty sure that this batch is going to turn out OK.



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Update March 26, 2011
The wine still has not clarified, and never bubbled very hard. It is slightly sweet, but the flavor is good. I am concerned that the wild yeast did not take the fermentation far enough -- nonetheless the fruity flavor of the Muscato will still deliver a good beverage.


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Update September 17, 2011
The wine has improved a great deal. It has a little planty or viney flavor that I don't like much, but it is not objectionable. I think it should be blended with a red wine like the 2010 Zinfandel.

2010 Cabernet Sauvignon 2 from Juice

I had some time on my hands, and I my wine shelf was drying up, so I bought some grape juice.

This was refrigerated juice not sterilized concentrate. Interestingly, pails of juice ferment as they age, and it has been four months. The juice is just barely sweet, and has a noticable alcohol content -- as if I had been fermenting fresh grape juice for about three days at room temp.

Recipe

6 gallons (23 L) of Cabernet Sauvignon juice (Regina)
3L Muscato juice (Regina)
600 g sugar (1.5 lb)
3g Yeast Energizer

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The juice was already fermenting with half an inch of yeast at the bottom. I allowed it to warm. The density was about 1, although it was cooler than room temperature -- either way it was not going to be possible to get a good reading on the original sugar content to project the final alcohol content. I tasted it, and decided to add sugar -- largely because I added it last time I made Cabernet Sauvignon I added sugar.


The lady at the California Wine Grapes Store  insisted that I should just let the wild yeast fermentation finish, and not put new yeast in on top. She said it might be impossible to restart the fermentation once I killed the wild yeast.
I added the yeast Energizer since the batch is fermenting with wild yeast, so it might need "energizing."

I added the Muscato because I find Cab to lack grapy flavor, and the Muscato has plenty of fruitiness. I also needed to top off the demijohn.

As the juice is warming it is continuing to ferment.  I am sure this wine will be drinkable, but I don't know if it going to be the quality that I want.

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March 26, 2011 Update

I just left the wild yeast, and it may not have been the right decision. It has been six weeks and the wine is still sweet. I stirred in a packet of Champagne yeast. I also racked it.

I am worried about this one.

May 13, 2012 Update

The wine fermentation was slow and the wine was not that flavorful. I added a lot of oak chips, some acid-x, to reduce sourness. In the end I blended it with the Muscat from juice, and the result was much fruiter, and pretty good. Currently my favorite summer wine.