Vino fatto con la famiglia e gli amici.
Roccograndi wine
Chardonnay with oak balls
Chardonnay @ 0 Brix
10.09.16 Busy day today. .Sauvignon Blanc at 0 Brix and Chardonnay at -1 Brix. Transferred both wines to carboys. Added 50 ppm SO2 to the Sauvignion Blanc, up to to this point I have not added any SO2 to the Sauvignon Blanc. For the Chardonnay I added 15 oak balls (American oak). I did not add any SO2 as the Chardonnay is undergoing Malolactic Fermentation (MLF).
Chardonnay undergoing MLF
Chardonnay @ -1 Brix
Sauvignon Blanc @15 Brix
Making Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc from Washington State
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.
10.04.16 Fermentation underway. The yeast I used is a slow starter. 12 hours ago I added the rehydrated yeast. This morning I checked the wine, you can see small bubbles in the juice and already start to smell the alcohol. A pleasant aroma and no off odors. When the sugar to alcohol conversion is about 1/3, that means when the brix is around 16, I'll add some yeast nutrient.
Chardonnay lees and oak powder
For Sauvignon Blanc ICV D47 - Complex white with citrus and floral notes. Lees contact gives ripe spicy aromas with tropical and citrus tones developing. Adds volume/mouthfeel. Barrel fermentation and lees aging recommended. Good single-strain or as a blending component. Fermentations are characterized by a short lag phase followed by a regular fermentation. Will tolerate a fermentation temperature range of 15-20°C (59-68°F).
Sauvignon Blanc
10.02.16 Sam and I picked up our premium Washington State Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay juice.
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.
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.
2016 Fall Vintage - Washington state
3g Fermaid K dissolved in juice.
Sauvignon Blanc
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.
10.05.16 One third of the way through fermentation. Fermentation is well underway. The Sauvignon Blanc fermentation temp is at 76F and Brix is at 15. The Chardonnay fermentation temp is at 77F and the Brix are down to 13. This morning I added 3 grams of Fermaid K yeast nutrient to each wine.
The Chardonnay will undergo MLF and Oak treatment. To get a jump start on the oak, I added 1.5 oz of American Oak light toast powder and 1. oz French Oak medium toast.
Sauvignon Blanc @ 0 Brix
10.03.16 Took initial readings. A little light on tartaric acid so that needed to be adjusted. I added 17 g Tartaric Acid to bring TA up by 1.5g/L.15% from 5.1g/L to 6.7g/L. I used ICV D47 Yeast with 7.5 grams of Go-Ferm added to yeast at rehydration. I had intended to use BAII for the Sauvignon blanc and CY3079 for the Chardonnay, unfortunately the juice arrived before my yeast.
10.07.16 Today is day 4 of the fermentation. Such beautiful aromas developing. The Sauvignon Blanc Brix is down to 5 so I added 3g Fermaid K to help ensure the yeast has enough energy to finish. The Chardonnay Brix is down to 2. It's amazing to see the Chardonnay color starting to lighten up.
Sauvignon Blanc @ 2 Brix
10.06.16 The Sauvignon Blanc fermentation temp is starting to drop signally a slow down of fermentation. Temp is at 73.4F and Brix dropped 3 over the past day to 12. The Chardonnay fermentation temp decreased to 74.7F and the Brix are down to 7. Time to feed the Chardonnay yeast with 3 grams of Fermaid K yeast nutrient.
Products used in this vintage.
Chardonnay @13 Brix
Sauvignon Blanc @12 Brix
For Chardonnay - Complex white with citrus, dried apricot, pineapple and floral notes. Lees contact gives ripe spicy aromas with tropical and citrus tones developing, along with nuts. Adds volume/mouthfeel. Barrel fermentation and lees aging recommended. Good single-strain or as a blending component, Fermentations are characterized by a short lag phase followed by a regular fermentation. Will tolerate a fermentation temperature range of 15-20°C (59-68°F).
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.
Chardonnay @ 7 Brix
Sauvignon Blanc @ 5 Brix
10.08.16 Today is day 5 of the fermentation. Sauvignon Blanc down to 2 brix with a little foaming, still very active. Chardonnay down to 0 Brix. The Sauvignon Blanc has initial aromas of citrus, which is characteristic of Washington State but there is also a tangy pineapple poking through, interesting. I can pick up on some of the oak in the Chardonnay from the oak powder I used during the primary fermentation but the aromas will change when MLF is completed.
Started MLF in the Chardonnay using Wyeast ML 4007 Blend with Microessentials nutrient. Wine temp was 69.4F, pH 2.9. I added 2 oz of the ML culture along with 1g microessential nutrient.
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.
Sauvignon Blanc lees
Chardonnay @ 2 Brix
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