2017 Merlot

This year I have a photo of the very plain and today, very busy grape business, California Wine Grapes on Fort Street in Detroit. They are very busy for 4-6 weeks a year. Not sure what they do the rest of the year.

They have two large refrigerated rooms with wine grapes in them. They one large grape crusher where they crush grapes for customers. The also have a backroom where they ferment wine in barrels and 45 L demijohns. Not sure who that wine is for.

When I got, I walk thru the coolers tasting the candidates. The best tasting grape I found was this Merlot


2017 Merlot Recipe

108 lb Merlot grapes (Colavita, Stockton CA)
4 g pectic enzyme
11 g yeast energizer
Premier Red yeast from Red Star

2017 Zinfandel

As is my tradition, I tasted all the grapes at the place and I choose the Zinfandel (Big Brass)

Zinfandel Recipe

108 lb Zinfandel grapes (DePalma, Ripon CA)
 32 oz cherry juice concentrate (Montmorency Tart from King Orchard, Central Lake MI)
8 oz cranberry juice concentrate
4 g pectic enzyme
11 g yeast energizer
Premier Red yeast from Red Star

The grapes were very sweet at 28.4 Brix, but the cherry concentrate made it sweeter, and the cranberry less so. Still I am at 29.4 Brix which is 15.7% alcohol. Probably stronger than I want.

2017 Moscato

Muscato Wine Recipe

108 lb Moscato wine grapes (Top Brass. Earlimart, California)
471 g sugar
7.5 g pectic enzyme
12 g yeast energizer
1 Pack Red Star Premier Classique (formerly Montrachet)

The juice had a density of 1.09 g/ml, and 21 Brix by refractive index which corresponds to 11% alcohol. The density implies the Brix is actually 23. The average of 22 Brix would give 10.5 which is too low. 

The grapes were very juicy and I am estimating 8 gallons of juice. That is 2 5/8 gallons per 36 lb crate. Juicy grapes are often less sweet. Calculations show that 660 g of sugar should bring this to 12.6% alcohol. I heated this amount of sugar in a quart of juice in the microwave, and was able to dissolve almost all the sugar without too much heat. 

The fermentation went vigorously, and had a creamy top by the next morning.