Adding body to my wine

[kAM]

I have made a few wines form the Vinters Reserve wine kits. I have been very happy with each one. I started to filter my wine and of course that really improved my last batch. I am curious if the finishing agents will improve my wines also. I don't want to add it if it wont help much.

P.S. the white Bordeaux I made is 6 months old and better then any I have ever bought at a store. It was filtered.

[grapeadmin]

If you are happy with the wines I would not bother with the finishing formula. If you told me you were unhappy with the body of the wine (too thin) then I would suggest it.

john
g and g

[KO]

And if you weren't happy with the body (too thin), what would you do?

[grapeadmin]

I would suggest:

1) add a small amount of finishing formula (glycerine)
2) move from the 'reserve' line to the 'select'' , 'Estate' or 'En Primeur' line
3) Sweeten the wine (sugar adds body)
4) oak barrel aging (condenses the wine).

john

[Ken]

Interesting, thanks. By "sugar" do you mean fresh fruit (berries, currants, raisins) and if so in what volume? You don't mean granualted sugar...? I don't want sweet wine but dry and fuller. And glycerine is new to me, can you describe the process and when and exactly what you add? As for Reserve vs. pricier blends, that is probably on the 'you get what you pay for' category. I will try that as well.

[grapeadmin]

Interesting, thanks. By "sugar" do you mean fresh fruit (berries, currants, raisins) and if so in what volume? You don't mean granualted sugar...? I don't want sweet wine but dry and fuller. And glycerine is new to me, can you describe the process and when and exactly what you add? As for Reserve vs. pricier blends, that is probably on the 'you get what you pay for' category. I will try that as well.

By sugar I mean table sugar. It would make a sweeter wine though. It would be done to taste.

Glycerine is a by product of yeast fermentation and is produced in some amount. It increases the body and mouthfeel of the wine. I would add it just prior to bottling. Add it to taste (perhaps starting with about 1 oz per 5 gallons).

As you say, you do get what you pay for.

john

[scottethomas]

I'm interested in adding some body to my wine by using an oak barrel.
I have a 5 gallon American oak barrel I have used in the past.
It imparted oak flavor but I don't think I achieved the condensing I wanted. I had topped off my barrel before using finished wine but this tends to just replace the wine I'm making with another wine.

I know large wineries allow considerable evaporation over a period of years to achieve a highly concentrated wine, but they are constantly topping off their barrels with the same wine therefore achieving consistency.
If I allow too much evaporation in my barrel will I run the risk of over oxidizing the wine or allowing something else undesirable to happen?

How much evaporation can I allow without replacement before bottling and not risk damaging my batch? 5% or more?

[grapeadmin]

I'm interested in adding some body to my wine by using an oak barrel.
I have a 5 gallon American oak barrel I have used in the past.
It imparted oak flavor but I don't think I achieved the condensing I wanted. I had topped off my barrel before using finished wine but this tends to just replace the wine I'm making with another wine.

I know large wineries allow considerable evaporation over a period of years to achieve a highly concentrated wine, but they are constantly topping off their barrels with the same wine therefore achieving consistency.
If I allow too much evaporation in my barrel will I run the risk of over oxidizing the wine or allowing something else undesirable to happen?

How much evaporation can I allow without replacement before bottling and not risk damaging my batch? 5% or more?

If you are making wine from a wine kit, it probably makes 6 us gallons. Put 5 gallons in the barrel for aging and put the remaining one gallon in a jug or collapsible bag to keep out the air. Every two weeks or so, pull the bung in the barrel (which creates a seal and keeps air out) and top up the barrel. Repeat this process of topping-up every week or two until you are satisifed with the flavor and body of the wine in the barrel. If it begins to get too oaky, you may need to remove the wine even if you are not satisfied with the body.

It is possible that you may use up all the topping wine and you have condensed 6 gallons into five. Don't use the barrel if it was previously used for wine made from fresh grapes.

john

[scottethomas]

I had followed that procedure in the past.
My only concern is, I'm evaporating one gallon and then diluting it again by replacing it with another gallon of unoaked, uncondensed wine. Won't that give me the same consistency although I will still have imparted oak?
I would rather leave my condensed wine as is and bottle it without topping off before I run the risk of consequences from over-oxidation etc.
How long can I keep the wine in the barrel with an air space or how far can I let it evaporate before safely bottling?
Is there a rule of thumb i.e. it's ok to leave it for less than 30 days?
I guess experimentation is he only real way to discover this.
However, I hate to ruin a whole batch just to find out.
Any experience out there on this??

[Curt]

Scott,
The common wisdom is that you keep your barrel as full as is practical to reduce oxidation. I top up and taste test once a week. If you continue to top up with your extra gallon of wine until it is gone you will have 5 gallons of wine that formerly was 6 gallons of wine and 1 gallon of water will have evaporated leaving you with a wine that is 1/6 more concentrated than the original was. The tasting part is important so that you don't impart too much oak flavor in the wine. It's OK to over oak just a bit as the taste will diminish slightly over the next two or three years as it integrates more fully with the other aspects of the flavor.

[scottethomas]

Ok,
I guess that's the best advice I can get.

Thanks.

[Curt]

The short hard answer to your original question is none. Any headspace invites oxidation.

[scottethomas]

I understand a certain amount of oxidation is desirable since it does occur naturaly during the aging process while in the barrel since it "breathes" through the wood, hence the evaporation.
I know there are some techniques and new technologies to speed the oxidation process in wine such as Micro-oxygenation and the use of metals etc.
I was hoping to find out if allowing a certain % to evaporate over time without making up the ullage had any discernable detrimental effects to the wine.
I guess experimention is the only way to find out.
If I allow one gallon to evaporate without mak-up then I've concentrated the wine by 20%. In the amount of time it takes to do this it may not overoxidate the wine that much.
I'm no expert but I'll let you know how it goes.

[grapeadmin]

Just be sure that you seal the barrel with a good barrel bung. I use a solid rubber stopper that fits tight in the barrel bung. If you have a good seal you should hear quite a noise when the stopper is removed (when the wine has been in the barrel several months). This shows that a vaccum was created inside the barrel and I think this helps keep oxidation at a minimum. The noise is quite loud with larger size barrels (e.g. 60 gal).

john
g and g

[scottethomas]

Thanks,
I'll take your advice on that.