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IN THIS ISSUE:

* The Secrets of Making High Alcohol Wines
    - Being Realistic
    - Increase The Flavor
    - How Do I Track The Alcohol Being Made?
    - Adding Sugar For High Alcohol
    - Example Run-Through
    - Other Little Secrets
* Handy Little Gadget
* Winemaker's Glossary
* Using Oak Chips To Age Your Wine
* Wine Making Quick-Tips

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*THE SECRETS OF MAKING HIGH ALCOHOL WINES*

One of the advantages of making your own wines at home is that you get to make it the way YOU want it. And controlling the alcohol level is no exception.

While we have many customers who like their wines at about 8 to 10 percent alcohol, we have just as many, if not more, who prefer their wines with higher alcohol levels, 13% and higher. Here is some information to help put your fermentations into high gear for achieving maximum alcohol.


-Being Realistic

First of all, when making a high alcohol wine, you have to resign yourself to the fact that you are fighting an uphill battle. This is because wine yeast has been bred for decades to produce wines that are 10 to 13 percent alcohol, just like the wines you'll find at the store. So when you attempt to make wines that are beyond 13%, you must understand that it is necessary to nurture the fermentation along.

You must also have a realistic view of how much alcohol you can expect to make. There have been times on rare occasions when 19 or 20 percent has been obtain, but in reality 15 or 16 percent is closer to the norm and 17 or 18 percent is usually considered a godsend. Also, be prepared for fermentations that just can't do much beyond 13 or 14 percent. Different fruits, mix of nutrients and overall fermentation environment contribute to the unpredictability of a fermentation.


- Increasing The Flavor

The flavor intensity of the wine, whether it comes from grapes, watermelons, blackberries or whatever, needs to be boosted in wines that are intended to have high alcohol. This is to help keep the wine's character in balance.

Higher alcohol levels numb the taste buds more so than normal when these wines are consumed, making a normally flavored wine taste watery through no fault of its own. When making these types of wines use more of the fruit when possible. For example, instead of using 3 or 4 pounds of blackberries for each gallon of wine, try using 5 or 6 pounds instead.


- How Do I Track The Alcohol Being Made?

Using a hydrometer is key to controlling the fermentation and tracking the alcohol that is being made. Trying to make high alcohol wine without a hydrometer is like driving at night without headlights, you will be left in the blind.

While there are usually two or three different scales on a hydrometer, the one we are concerned with - as a high alcohol winemaker - is the "Potential Alcohol" scale found on any wine making hydrometer.

The Potential Alcohol scale is simply a listing of numbers, usually, from 0 to 20. By tracking how much your readings move across the scale throughout the fermentation you can determine how much alcohol has been made.

For example, if you take a reading of 12% on the scale before the wine's fermentation starts and then take another reading at the end of fermentation of 0%, then your wine has 12% alcohol because it moved 12 point across the scale. It's that simple.

For more information on our Sugar Scale Hydrometer which has the Potential Alcohol Scale among others go to:
Sugar Scale Hydrometer


- Adding Sugar For High Alcohol

Many recipes will find for producing high alcohol wines will call for 2 or 3 pounds of sugar per each gallon. And, this is in addition to the sugars that are already being naturally provided by the fruit involved. Adding all this sugar at the beginning of fermentation can result in a big problem.

Sugar is what the yeast turns into alcohol. So it stands to reason that you need a lot of sugar to make a lot of alcohol. But, when all the sugar is added at the beginning of fermentation, the concentration levels can be so high that the sugar can actually inhibit the fermentation. The sugar literally start acting as a preservative.

One easy way around this problem is to feed the sugar throughout the duration of the fermentation. For example, add enough sugar in the beginning to get the fermentation going. Then as the fermentation slows down, feed more sugar to it every few days until all the sugar called for in the recipe has been added. Optionally, you can keep adding sugar to the fermentation until the yeast has reached its limits.

When feeding sugar to a fermentation, the hydrometer can be a big help. When the Potential Alcohol reading gets close to zero, that is your cue to feed more sugar to the fermentation. In turn, the sugar will raise the reading again and the fermentation will again try to ferment towards zero on the scale.

This process can go on for several rounds before the yeast simply quits. But without the hydrometer, feeding sugar can be risky. You may be adding sugar to a wine that already has too much and is just slowing down because the yeast has reached it's limits instead of running out of sugar. The result can be a wine that is sweeter than you like.


- Example Run-Through

1. Lets say you have a starting Potential Alcohol reading of 10%. Eight days later you have a reading of 1%. This means you now have made 9% alcohol, because the fermentation moved nine points across the Potential Alcohol scale.

2. You then add more sugar bringing the hydrometer reading back up to 5%. Two weeks later it reads 1%. Now you have made another 4% on top of the 9% for a total of 13, because the fermentation moved four more points across the scale.

3. Again, you add sugar to the fermentation bring the reading back up to 3%, and the fermentation struggles on for another 3 weeks, but finally gets down to zero bringing your total alcohol level to 16%, which is calculated as follows: 9%+4%+3%.

The whole point here is to maintain lower sugar levels during the fermentation so that the yeast can work more freely without the force of the sugar acting as a preservative. Also, feeding the sugar in this way helps you to be sure that you are not ending up with a wine that is too sweet for your taste. Wines that are considered extremely sweet are still only reading around 3% on the hydrometer's Potential Alcohol scale. A normal sweet wine will be around 1% while dry wines will read around -1%.


- Other Little Secrets

Here are some other tips for producing wines with high alcohol levels.

1. Pre-Start The Yeast. Make a wine yeast starter 1 to 2 days before you start the wine. This allows the yeast to hit the wine with its feet running - so to speak.

A yeast starter is simply a mixture of sugars with a boosted level of nutrients, usually about 1 pint in size for every 5 gallons of wine to be made. Just mix it up, add the yeast, and allow it to do a mini-fermentation. Once the starter's fermentation starts to slow down, it is then ready to be added to the prepared wine batch, usually around 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 days.

We offer a product called Winemaker's Quick Starter which is a mixture of yeast foods and nutrients designed just for making such a starter. We highly recommend using it in situations where high alcohol is desired. For more information about our Winemaker's Quick Starter go to:
Winemaker's Quick Starter

2. Maintain Warmer Fermentation Temperatures. Normally, we recommend 72 degrees Fahrenheit as the optimum temperature for a fermentation. However, in the case of producing higher alcohol wines it would be best to shoot for a range between 74 and 78 degrees Fahrenheit. This slightly warmer temperature range will help to keep the yeast invigorated, particularly when it reaches the end of its ability.

Fermentation temperatures that are cooler will cause the fermentation to be slower and may even stop all together. Fermentation temperatures that are higher can result in off-flavors in the wine, and in extreme cases hinder the fermentation as well.

3. Provide Plenty Of Air. During the primary fermentation, keep the fermentation vessel open to air. Just cover it with a light towel or something similar. This air exposure will help the yeast to multiply more successfully and give it more energy to do the tasked ahead. Once you rack the wine to a secondary fermenter it is then okay to attach an air-lock.


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*HANDY LITTLE GADGETS*

Taking hydrometer readings is something that should be done at the beginning and ending of fermentation for two reasons: 1. To calculate the finished alcohol percentage of the wine. 2. To verify that - in fact - the fermentation is done and not just stuck. Hydrometer readings should also be taken throughout the fermentation to track its progress and determine appropriate times for racking.

In the course of a fermentation you may need to take as many as 5 or 6 readings. And each time there is the fumbling and figuring of how to get the sample, getting an accurate reading and doing it all without making a mess - or worse yet - breaking your hydrometer.

We've ran across a handy little gadget the takes the chore out of taking hydrometer readings. It's called "The Fermentation Sampler". A much needed idea who's beauty lies in its simple design and ease of use.

The Fermentation Sampler is simply a long clear tube, a little over an inch in diameter and about 20 inches long. One end is completely open. The other end has an automatic one-way valve.

Submerge the tube in the liquid to be tested - one-way valve end first. The sample will fill into the tube. Pull the tube up, and the sample is locked in by the one-way valve.

Now here's where it gets good. You can take your hydrometer reading simply by floating the hydrometer right in the Fermentation Sampler. When your done you release the sample back into the original container by depressing the bottom release lever against the side wall of the original vessel. No mess. No loss of your precious wine.

For more information about the Fermentation Sampler, go to:
Fermentation Sampler


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*WINEMAKER'S GLOSSARY*

RACKING:
To transfer wine from one container to another so as to leave behind any sediment that may have occurred. Racking is normally done anywhere from 2 to 4 times during the course of the wine's fermentation and clearing process.

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*USING OAK CHIPS TO AGE YOUR WINE*

It has long been understood that aging red wines in oak casks improves its flavor and character much more so than just aging these wines in glass or plastic. French winemakers have employed this method for centuries, the result being wines of remarkable complexity and flavor.

The insides of these barrels are lightly toasted. This brings out a velvety, sweet character in the wood that through time is captured by the wine that is stored within. The warm texture that is added to these wines is without question an alluring improvement.

While barrel aging is without question the ultimate way to age red wines, there is another option that has close to the same effect. We call them Toasted Oak Chips. They are simply chips of oak that have been evenly toasted to match the toasting of a wine barrel. These chips of wood are the same special type of oak wood that is used to produce wine barrels.

Using the correct type of oak wood is important. Some oak varieties will do more damage than good to a wine. Some release more tannic acid than others, producing a wine with immeasurable harshness and bitterness. It is also important that the oak wood be air-dried for several years so as to become "sap clear".

The Toasted Oak Chips we offer are all of the above. We have them available in both the imported French oak and American oak varieties. They have been dried for several years and are "sap clear". Their affect on a wine is quite astonishing.

Their use is very straight forward. The only preparation necessary is to boil the oak chips in water for about 10 minutes. Once your wine has cleared and is ready for aging, rack it into a clean container and add the Toasted Oak Chips - typically 2 to 4 ounces for every 5 gallons - and allow to age 3 to 9 months.

How much you use and the amount of time it is given to age in the wine varies along with the character of the wine. In general, the fuller or more hearty the wine is the more wood and aging it will required to reach its ultimate flavor and balance. Just sample the wine every 3 to 4 weeks to monitor the wine's aging progress.

For more information about our Oak Chips go to:
Oak Chips


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*WINE MAKING QUICK-TIPS*

- Don't have time to make wine when your fruits are ready? That's okay. Just put your wine making fruits in the freezer. Fruits that have been frozen tend to break down more readily when fermented anyway. This will allow more of the fruits character to be release into your wine.


- Using a Fermentation Bag is a great way to keep pulp under control during a primary fermentation. Just pour your crush fruit into the bag and suspend in the must during the primary fermentation. When its time to rack, simply pull the bag out; allow to drain; and then discard pulp. For more information on our Fermentation Bag go to:
Fermentation Bag


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*ADDITIONAL HOME WINE MAKING INFORMATION*

- If you are new to home wine making and would like more general
information about making wine at home, see the following article

listed on our web site:

 "How To Get Started Making Wine"

- For a listing of our home wine making recipes, go to our

"Home Wine Making Recipe Page"

- Also, for a general overview of the home wine making process
see the article

 "The Seven Easy Steps To Making Wine"


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*VISIT US ON-LINE*

Visit our web site at www.eckraus.com to view the complete line
of products we have to offer. All products are listed with
detailed information so you can learn as you shop. Purchase
products on-line with our completely secure shopping cart. Never
has shopping on the web been more safe.

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*NEWSLETTER ARCHIVES*

If you would like to look through previous issues of this
newsletter go to our:

"Home Wine Making Articles Page"

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* The E. C. Kraus Home Wine Making Newsletter is produced by:

E. C. Kraus
Home Wine & Beer Making Supplies
733 S. Northern Blvd.
Post Office Box 7850
Independence, MO 64054
Phone: 1-800-383-1906
Fax: 1-816-254-7051

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* Copyright(c) 2002, Kraus Sales, L.L.C. All rights reserved.
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