10.17.16 Day 7 of fermentation. At 7:00 AM Brix was down to 3 and temperature was 69.3F. Getting close to finishing. Likely tomorrow I will add malolactic culture to begin MLF.
Tartaric acid is nearly exclusive to grapes and is found in few instances elsewhere. Its use is principally to adjust acid levels in must and wine. Wine that has the proper amount of tartaric acid will taste better and last longer.
10.15.16 Day 5 of fermentation. At 7:00 AM Brix was down to 8 and temperature now starting to drop. Temp this morning was 70.4F.
10.12.16 Checked this morning to see if the yeast mixture has become active and thankfully it has. I was concerned because when I checked last night 12 hours after inoculcating with the yeast there was no sign of fermentation starting.
Making Chardonnay from Sonoma County California
Go-Ferm
10.13.16 Fermentation is underway. Brix starting to go down, juice temp starting to rise, and the smell of alcohol is present. At 7:00 AM Brix was 22, temperature was 70.5F. At 7:00 PM Brix was 17 and temperature was at 72.2F. I added 6g of Fermaid K yeast nutrient.
10.19.16 Day 9 of fermentation. Fermentation has really slowed the past few days. This morning the Brix is at 1.
Burgundy isolate for barrel fermentation of Chardonnay. Short lag time, alcohol tolerant to 15% and optimum expression at 59 to 77 degrees F. Somewhat nutrient sensitive, it can be slow to finish in low nutrient wines if not fed correctly. But it is worth making the effort: pineapple and floral notes are quickly joined by the development of fresh butter, toasted bread, honey, hazelnut and almond when aged on the lees. This along with contributing a rich and full mouthfeel. CY3079 is lovely as is for that "classic" white Burgundy, or it can serve as a great foundation for a blend.
Oak Powder.
Go-Ferm Protect is a natural yeast nutrient that is added to the yeast hydration water before adding your selected yeast strain. Its complex formula provides your yeast with the proper sterols, unsaturated fatty acids and micronutrients needed to begin fermentation in optimal shape. The great thing about Go-Ferm Protect is that the proper nutrients and vitamins are introduced BEFORE the yeast is added to the must. This way 100% of the nutrients are available to your selected yeast strain and won't be stolen away by any indigenous yeast or bacteria that may be present in the must before your yeast can become established.
Fermaid K - A complex formula that provides DAP, free amino acids, yeast hulls, unsaturared fatty acids, sterols, and micronutrients such as magnesium sulfate, thiamin, folic acid, biotin, calcium pantothenate, and other vitamins and minerals. Yeast use Nitrogen for protein synthesis and to maintain cellular growth. Nitrogen from the alpha amino acids contained in Fermaid K is utilized much more efficiently than from the ammonia salts. The unsaturated fatty acids and sterols available in Fermaid K are important survival factors needed to maintain alcohol resistance. They also help keep volatile acidity levels low. The cell wall fractions, available through the included yeast hulls, absorb medium chain fatty acids that are toxic to the yeast. They also provide nucleation sites to help keep the yeast in suspension.
Products used in this vintage.
10.11.16 This morning I measured the brix, pH, and TA. Brix and pH were in good ranges but the TA was low. To raise the TA from 4.1g/L to 6.1g/L I added 45g tartaric acid (3.8g per gallon will raise TA by 1g/l).
I created a yeast starter consisting of 9g Go-Ferm mixed into warm water and 1 pack of CY3079 yeast. Once the yeast became active I added the mixture into the juice.
I like to get an early start on imparting oak flavor into the wine so I add oak powder to the primary fermentation. To this wine I added 4.5 oz light toast American oak powder and 1.5 oz medium toast French oak powder.
Vino fatto con la famiglia e gli amici.
Roccograndi wine
Micro Essentials nutrient for malo-lactic bacteria. Use 1 gram per 5 gallons of wine. MicroEssentials Oenos is a complex nutrient formulated for growth and survival of malolactic bacteria. Unlike yeast, bacteria cannot store, nor synthesize all essential amino acids, so complex nutrients are necessary for supplementation. Newly fermented wine can often be deficient or void of nutrients due to yeast utilization, especially Saccharomyces bayanus. Nutritional depletion can cause sluggish or even stall malolactic fermentations. Due to the complex nutritional requirements of malolactic bacteria and the relatively harsh medium for growth, minimizing nutritional stress is important. In addition to amino acids and peptides, which are the most influential nitrogen sources required for malolactic growth, B-complex vitamins and trace minerals are especially important. MicroEssentials Oenos was developed specifically for Oenococcus oeni. It contains a diverse blend of organic protein sources (no inorganic nitrogen sources, since bacteria cannot utilize it), vitamins and trace minerals. In most cases, MicroEssentials Oenos will provide a 20 to 40% faster malolactic fermentation.
Oakmore is a commercial preparation of granular white oak. It is used to impart an oak flavor and some tannin to wine without the difficulty or expense of working with a barrel. Due to its composition, it is a finely ground material, about the consistency of sawdust.
10.20.16 Day 10 of fermentation. Fermentation is finished. Brix at 7:00 AM showed 0. Temperature of the wine in 67F, same as the room temperature. I added the malolactic culture and micro-essentials nutrient. Next steps are to transfer to a carboy and add oak balls.
10.18.16 Day 8 of fermentation. Getting close to finishing the primary fermentation. At 7:00 AM Brix was down to 1.5. Temperature was 69F. I still need to wait until the brix get to 0 before adding malolactic culture to begin MLF.
10.14.16 Day 4 of fermentation. At 7:00 AM Brix was 13 and temperature was 72.6F.
Wyeast ML Culture is a Malo-lactic Culture package that contain a live liquid suspension of Oenococcus oenii grown in a sterile organic juice based nutrient medium. Malic acid reduction will balance and soften wine while enhancing flavor and aroma characteristics including vanilla and buttery notes. 4007 Blend (blend of ER1A and EY2d cultures) will provide rapid and complete malic acid reduction in wine over a broad spectrum of conditions. ER1A, an excellent choice for red wines, has been isolated for it’s tolerance to low pH coditions. Ey2D has been selected for it tolerance to low cellar temperatures. Malo-lactic conversion is generally completed within 1-3 months.a commercial preparation of granular white oak. It is used to impart an oak flavor and some tannin to wine without the difficulty or expense of working with a barrel. Due to its composition, it is a finely ground material, about the consistency of sawdust.
2016 Fall Vintage - Sonoma county
10.10.16 Sam and I picked up our premium Chardonnay juice from Sonoma County California. It will be interesting comparing the Sonoma wine to the Washington State wine.
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