Wine Making "Muscadine"

[lockandloaded]

Ok I've looked at this for several years and always been to nervous to try. Well its time so I ordered my starters kit today which will be here by Monday. That was the easy part lol. Looks like I'm getting most that I need to get started.
Talked to midsouth malts here in Memphis today. He assured me he had all the yeast and other stuff I will need. He also said he would help me with recipes. Which is great I need all the help I can get.
So I am coming here knowing several members make wine. Hoping for some other ideas, words of caution, personal experiences, and just good Ole fashion experienced advice.
I have 30 pounds of miscadines. Any help would be great.

 

[dralarms]

Which type of muscadines?

 

[chunkandwind]

Listen to Mike at Mid South Malts. He's a great guy and will help you out. Just follow good directions and be careful with your sanitation and you'll be fine.

 

[lockandloaded]

I'm not to sure of the exact kind. I know he called them blacks. Some look just like a wild muscadine. Others look the same but big. Then he gave me skepernogs (spelling) I'm making jelly with. All together I ended up with 42.5 pounds of black and 10 pounds of bronze skepernogs.

Thanks chunkandwind that's good to know. I'll be there this Saturday to buy all the different additives. I did go ahead and put 30 pounds In the freezer. I told the wife I'll be following directions to a T the first several times until I figure out things. And will be sanatizing everything thoroughly.
How many bottle and I looking at with 5 gallons?

 

[dralarms]

With muscadines, after freezing, always bust every one open, and for flavor and color leave on the skins an extra couple of days

 

[BamaProud]

Wine making is easy, don't sweat it. I've done blackberry, peach, pear, strawberry & honey(mede), all are fantastic.

I've always followed Jack Kellers recipes. This link is for his muscadine wines:

http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/reques15.asp

The biggest tip I have is to use pectic enzyme to help break down your fruit(freezing helps too).
30 pounds of muscadines should be enough for 5 gallons of wine...42 pounds would make 7 gals.

They are all for 1 gallon batches but can easily be scaled up. The only ingredient to not scale up is the yeast...1 pack of yeast is plenty for up to 10 gallons.

Here's 2 gallons of mede(honey wine) I started about 4 weeks apart. The one on the left should be ready in a a couple more weeks.

 

[BamaProud]

I'm in Bartlett, let me know if I can help.

 

[lockandloaded]

Thanks for all the help. After doing a search on the forum for wine I was hoping both of you would chime in.
BamaProud I read all about your strawberry wine and showed the wife last night and she is wanting to go get strawberries now. Lol I said let me do one first before you start requesting others. Thanks for the offer for help I might have some questions and take you up on that.

 

[BamaProud]

Out of all the wine I have made, pretty much everyone who has tried them say the Strawberry is the best. ...I made a double batch (~12 gal) this year.

 

[dralarms]

I make all kinds also. Glad to share any help I can.

 

[chunkandwind]

Need to find some elderberries. Best homemade wine I've had.

One that surprises folks is persimmon. When ripe they make excellent wine.

Edit. Almost missed the question about bottles. If you use the regular 750ml wine bottles it will take about 25 bottles. Also if you are going to be doing this long term, by a floor corker. It will make corking so much easier.

 

[BamaProud]

For sanitizing I highly recommend Star San. Its a non toxic-acid based sanitizer. I keep a gallon mixed for dunking smaller items and more in a spray bottle. I use it for everything, brewing, cooking and for everyday cleaning. A 16 oz bottle costs only ~$15.00 makes 80(yes eighty) gallons.

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/star-san.html

 

[lockandloaded]

Thanks guys.
I started my primary fementation Thursday night and it has started very well. I am considering going and buying strawberries today and some yeast. That way I can start a second batch. Once the fermentation started I was hooked lol.

I have been mixing a gallon of sanitizer at a time using it then dumping it out. If I put in a pitcher with a lid can I use the same gallon over a couple days? After I stir or anything I normally rinse off with tap water before I resanitize.

 

[BamaProud]

Star San lasts a long time. It turns cloudy when it loses its effectiveness. I think I have only had to dump a batch once. I keep a gal in an empty apple juice jug and more in a spray bottle. I even reuse any that I just soak smaller items like corks or caps or airlocks etc... in.

Here's a very easy and delicious Apple Cider recipe that you have to try. I make this about every 3 months or so.

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=14860

 

[dralarms]

Another good site is www.winemakingtalk.Com

If you need recipes there are all kinds all over the net.

One of my most popular is a "wild berry apple" it's a blend of apple juice and a berry blend.

 

[chunkandwind]

We make the same cider recipe that BamaProud linked to. We use the Musselmans brand as it has no preservatives in it. I really like to use the Safale-05 or Red Star Champagne yeast for it depending on the ABV I want. The Champagne giving a higher ABV as it tolerates alcohol better.

Oh and I 2nd the use of StarSan. We love it and sell a lot of it.

 

[BamaProud]

I like the Cider recipe with 2 gals of Cranberry instead of all Apple.

 

[Swampster]

I've seen more wild Muscadines this year than ever before. Soft mast in general seems heavier this year. One thing I don't see is any fruit on the pawpaws. Lots of plants, good bloom, but no fruit.

 

[chunkandwind]

I like the Cider recipe with 2 gals of Cranberry instead of all Apple.

That sounds good. Will have to try that. I have had good luck with tart cherry juice also but have to back sweeten it a little.

 

[dralarms]

I'm picking muscadines next Tuesday. Owner said they are ready now, I usually get 5 or 6 5 gallon buckets. Yields about 72 bottles.

 

[TraumaSlave]

I'm picking muscadines next Tuesday. Owner said they are ready now, I usually get 5 or 6 5 gallon buckets. Yields about 72 bottles.

Tsali Notch? Love that place. I live real close and walk down a couple times a year with the kids to pick. Their wine is what keeps my wife sane :smash: . Big weekend coming up for them with Muscadine Fest. Looking forward to balloon glow, as long as the weather cooperates.

 

[Mike Belt]

I haven't made wine in several years but for a while I was trying every fruit I could get my hands on. Muscadines make great wine. My best overall was always blackberry. Oddly enough the most consistent stoutest wine I made came from plums. Good elderberry wine is hard to beat (and the easiest to find everywhere along the roadside) but for some reason I could never master making it right.

 

[dralarms]

I'm picking muscadines next Tuesday. Owner said they are ready now, I usually get 5 or 6 5 gallon buckets. Yields about 72 bottles.

Tsali Notch? Love that place. I live real close and walk down a couple times a year with the kids to pick. Their wine is what keeps my wife sane :smash: . Big weekend coming up for them with Muscadine Fest. Looking forward to balloon glow, as long as the weather cooperates.

Nope, man in Englewood.

 

[lockandloaded]

I would like to try elderberry wine everyone says it's hard to beat. Guess I'll have to stock up next year.

Well I mess up a little. When I racked off the primary I forgot I had a 6.5gallon carboy. Oops and topped my 5 gallon batch to 6.5gallons. Tasted fine right after that. Well 3 days later watered down. I had to add grape concentrate, sugar, and some yeast nutrient. Today marks 3 days after I noticed the taste was off and luckily it's not bad at all now. Before bottling I plan to take about 5-7 pounds pounds of muscadines and juice them. Then warm the juice and dissolve sugar to make a simple syrup to backsweeten. Hoping the juice will bring some of that muscadine flavor back.

Meantime I started 5 gallons of strawberry yesterda . I pitched the yeast today. Fingers crossed. The sg is 1.112

 

[dralarms]

Elderberry is good stuff. If you want to make wine and try different flavors then www.homewinery.Com is the ticket. They sell 64oz bottles of concentrate that makes 5 gallons. I've got about 20 of their 64oz bottles in the freezer right now.

Just a suggestion though, throw their directions away and add the acid up front and add sugar to 1.090 to 1.095, let it ferment to dry, add potassium sorbate and kmeta at the end and then sweeten to your tastes. If you follow their directions it will end up too sweet.

You can contact me if you would like advice

 

[dralarms]

That strawberry will be HOT. I suggest getting some more and dropping the sg down to at least 1.100 (still hot but will be good)

 

[lockandloaded]

At what point do yall rack the wine out of the primary and in to a carboy?

Also my muscadine has been in a carboy for a week now. After I racked into the carboy 24 hours later I reracked to get off the lees. Was this right? The sg of it is now .995 should I just make sure it is topped up and leave it under airlock now for a few weeks then rack it and repeat? Or do I need to add campden tablets and then let it age?

 

[dralarms]

At .995 it's finished, how much head space do you have? If not much I'd keep an airlock on it and let it sit a bit and clear, if you have a bunch of head space you may want to get a smaller carboy. But at this point it needs to clear, after its clear you can add potassium sorbate to stop any yeast left from reproducing, and kmeta as a preservative. Then you can backsweeten to taste. Once all the co2 is gone then you can bottle

 

[lockandloaded]

It's right at the neck of the carboy now.

The question about what sg yall rack to your secondary was for my strawberry wine.

 

[dralarms]

Sorry, anything below 1 .010 normally.