Welch's Grape Juice Wine

Williams 728
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Blacksmith1 said:
If you paste the links inline we can copy/paste them into the browser to get there.
Oh, and I cannot answer any of your questions ;)
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Well, that's the trouble. It won't let me paste a url without it setting off its spam alarm. It literally will *not* let me post it. I'm guessing that's because I'm a brand new forum member and not yet included in the circle of trust.

However, for anyone who wants to read the source material, I think we can work around this by me giving you enough info that by typing it into google it will be the #1 search result. Then just click on that link.
1.
Yeast Treatise - Dough Fermentation & Temperature - The Artisan

and
2. "premier cuvee datasheet"
 
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Have you tried the little chain looking emblem in the post box. the one without the x is to add a link the one with is to remove it. Highlighting text allows one to put the link where you want it.
EDIT: interesting info, and I see what you mean. I believe the difference is that baking requires the dough to rise so they give the best temp to achieve this in the shortest time, whereas with fermenting wine/mead/cider the timeframe is much longer and conditions vary enough that they give the range in which the yeasts stay viable and do not produce unwanted effects. Not sure if there is any data on best temp for this purpose.
 
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I was cleaning up my brewing area the other day, and stumbled across a batch of Welch's white that I made in March 2012, or at least that's when it went into bulk aging. I have to say that it tasted pretty darn good. I did need to add some sweetness, as we tend to favour sweeter Reisling type wines, but still darn good after aging almost seven years.

I'm encouraged to make another batch, as I have a whole bunch of cans of frozen concentrate. This time I think I'll use D47. My recipe will be slightly modified from the original. I might decrease the amount of dextrose by the value of the peach punch... but then again maybe not.

2 cans (11.5 oz) Welch's 100% frozen grape concentrate
1 can (295ml) Minute Maid frozen peach punch
500g dextrose (corn sugar)
1 tsp acid blend
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1 tsp yeast nutrient
water to make 1 gallon
D47 wine yeast
 
ModlrMike said:
I was cleaning up my brewing area the other day, and stumbled across a batch of Welch's white that I made in March 2012, or at least that's when it went into bulk aging. I have to say that it tasted pretty darn good. I did need to add some sweetness, as we tend to favour sweeter Reisling type wines, but still darn good after aging almost seven years.

I'm encouraged to make another batch, as I have a whole bunch of cans of frozen concentrate. This time I think I'll use D47. My recipe will be slightly modified from the original. I might decrease the amount of dextrose by the value of the peach punch... but then again maybe not.

2 cans (11.5 oz) Welch's 100% frozen grape concentrate
1 can (295ml) Minute Maid frozen peach punch
500g dextrose (corn sugar)
1 tsp acid blend
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1 tsp yeast nutrient
water to make 1 gallon
D47 wine yeast
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I'm curious: did you arrive at the 1 tsp acid blend figure as the result of using an acid test kit, or is it instead based on your prior experience?
 
NeverDie said:
I'm curious: did you arrive at the 1 tsp acid blend figure as the result of using an acid test kit, or is it instead based on your prior experience?
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TBH, I'm guessing. I think that the peach is going to be particularly sweet, so the acid is to add some balance. That being said, the punch has Vit C (ascorbic acid), so in the end I may not need to add anything. I'm going to make it without any additional acid, and see where it goes.
 
im going to attemp my first wine tonight but had a question. Can I substitute 1 can of concentrate for some organic 100% grape juice? Ingredients say juice from ripe whole organic concord grapes
 
MiBeerMan said:
im going to attemp my first wine tonight but had a question. Can I substitute 1 can of concentrate for some organic 100% grape juice? Ingredients say juice from ripe whole organic concord grapes
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You're talking about bottled grape juice? That works fine if it has no preservatives (vitamin C is okay.) You'll leave out the water, obviously.
 
yes, that is correct. Just making sure. Brand name is R.W. Knudsen. I added an entire 32 ounce bottle. 1 can of grape concentrate and about 1.5 lbs sugar. I finally got it up to 1.110 for starters. Im going to add the yeast Premier Classique tomorrow. I also did this same recipe but with strawberry concentrate
 
just did a hydro check and its sitting right around 1.024 (10%). Trying to get it down near 13%. But had a sip from the reading and its going to be hard to wait the secondary time.
This is my first attempt at wine. But do people generally not cold crash wine. I noticed people just campden tablet and potassium sorbate it
 
In terms of cost, the frozen juice concentrate from the OP may make it a win. If, on the other hand, you're using bottled grape juice, I'm just now realizing it may actually work out to be less expensive to buy a gallon of Gallo wine (or equivalent). Probably the main reason to do this though is as an introduction to fermentation, and for that the tuition fee is pretty low.
 
IIRC, a gallon of Aldi grape juice is about $5.30. The other ingredient costs are negligible. I don't think there's any wine even close to that price. The closest thing I've seen is 5L box wines at about $18 for decent ones (like Peter Vella burgundy.)
 
OK, I stand corrected. Looking into it, it's about $11 for a 4L bottle of Carlo Rossi, which may (?) be one of the least expensive. I had thought it was closer to $7.
 
Use the cheapest bottled juice that doesn't have preservatives. Reconstituted frozen juice concentrate is okay too. I would not add frozen concentrate (undiluted) to juice to boost the flavor and alcohol, because Concord grape juice has too much flavor already (that's why I cut it with Niagara juice; the first time I was trying to make a rose, but I ended up with a nice red) Add sugar to bring the OG up to (if I remember right) 1.095 or 1.100, and add nutrients. Pitch your yeast. When it looks done but not crystal clear yet, rack to another jug to get rid of the sediment, add whatever the recommended rate of Campden tablet is, and top up the jug with juice or water (or marbles.) You can rack it one more time when it's totally clear, or bottle it at that point.

The Campden is to keep it from oxidizing; you can leave it out but the wine won't age very well without it. I found that out with the first couple of [3 or 4 gallon] batches that I made. If you're going to drink it all within a month or if you're making sparkling wine, don't worry about it. Sorbate is just for sweet wines. I like my wine dry, but not "bone dry", and I get that by not using champagne yeast.
 
z-bob said:
The Campden is to keep it from oxidizing; you can leave it out but the wine won't age very well without it. I found that out with the first couple of [3 or 4 gallon] batches that I made. If you're going to drink it all within a month or if you're making sparkling wine, don't worry about it. Sorbate is just for sweet wines. I like my wine dry, but not "bone dry", and I get that by not using champagne yeast.
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You could also just purge the secondary vessel with CO2 couldn't you?
 
RockyMtnGT said:
You could also just purge the secondary vessel with CO2 couldn't you?
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It's oxidation in the bottles that I'm concerned about. I add the sulfites before then so I get some benefit in the secondary as well.

MiBeerMan said:
z-bob, so what is your favorite recipe you like? I tried googling the Niagara juice but Welchs doesn't sell it here where i live. Any suggestions on this
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They don't sell white grape juice?

NeverDie said:
Which yeast do you use?
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I don't remember. I mostly make beer and cider, and just do wine occasionally. I think I've used Cote des Blancs, D47, and K1V-1116.
 
z-bob said:
They don't sell white grape juice?
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I think the issue may be that not all white grapes are Niagra. Last time I checked, Welsh's was rather coy about naming the grape type it was using in its white grape juice.
 
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MiBeerMan said:
just did a hydro check and its sitting right around 1.024 (10%). Trying to get it down near 13%. But had a sip from the reading and its going to be hard to wait the secondary time.
This is my first attempt at wine. But do people generally not cold crash wine. I noticed people just campden tablet and potassium sorbate it
Click to expand...
Don’t cold crash wine,, to get wine to clear you let it sit or use something like super kleer.
I use potassium metabisulphite and potassium sorbate.
 
For wines you need alcohol fermentation to complete before moving to clarifying steps. Wine makers do cold stabilize, which involves holding the wine at a cold temperature (28-40) for 3 weeks. This will cause Tartaric acids to crystalize and fall out of suspension. It has a minor clarifying effect. It's not something to consider with a fermenting wine. Let it complete, settle and go from there.
 
NeverDie said:
OK, I stand corrected. Looking into it, it's about $11 for a 4L bottle of Carlo Rossi, which may (?) be one of the least expensive. I had thought it was closer to $7.
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I looked at some of that cheap Carlo Rossi in the store today, and guess what? Only 6.5% ABV! No wonder it's inexpensive. And that's for Sangria. Imagine how dilute it will be after fruit and maybe even ice are added.

So, I take it all back. Not really comparable I now think.
 
My 2nd attempt may be going down in flames. Made this on 3-19-19 but used 100% fruit juice instead of concentrate. Used 2-1/2 gallon containers so no water. Stirred the sugar in some warm juice to dissolve the sugar. Added other items and let sit for 1 day then added the yeast stirred into small amount of water and added to the container. BG was 1.099 and just racked it this morning 9 days later and the SG was 1.100. This never did much bubbling ever. So I ask what did I do wrong?
 
shovelheadfreak said:
My 2nd attempt may be going down in flames. Made this on 3-19-19 but used 100% fruit juice instead of concentrate. Used 2-1/2 gallon containers so no water. Stirred the sugar in some warm juice to dissolve the sugar. Added other items and let sit for 1 day then added the yeast stirred into small amount of water and added to the container. BG was 1.099 and just racked it this morning 9 days later and the SG was 1.100. This never did much bubbling ever. So I ask what did I do wrong?
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What kind of fruit juice? Sounds like it had preservatives in it. :(
 
shovelheadfreak said:
Langers Concord Grape Juice. Bottle says no sugar, no colors, no flavors or preservatives. Pasteurized.
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Then I guess your yeast was dead; you can try again rather than dump it. Dump a packet of yeast in about 1/3 cup of 95 to 100 degree water. Give it a few minutes then stir it up. Wait 10 minutes (you should see some activity by now) then add about a half a cup of your juice. Wait another 10 minutes, then stir it into your fermenter.
 
One reason to rehydrate yeast, as z-bob described, is to confirm the yeast is active. You can also build a larger yeast colony by repeating the cycle several time. Say 1/4-1/2 a cup of the wine must every 15 minutes. After several rounds you should have a good indication if the yeast is both viable and able to digest the must.
 
I'm not familiar with RS Premier Rouge, but it is a red wine yeast; should be fine. But I think red wine yeast like warmer temperatures than white wine yeasts. I use whites for everything because even my red wines tend to be "Nouveau" style (not much tannin, drink it young)
 
so if i were to want a more sweet wine compared to a dry wine, what is better to do, cut the primary off around 1.010 or so or let it ferment dry and then backsweeten? I'm going to try another shot at this using aldi Grape juice and frozen concentrate to boost alcohol.
 
IMHO, you ferment it as dry as the yeast will go. Let it clear, add sulfites and preservatives, and sweeten it to taste. (it won't take as much sugar as you think) Wait another week to make sure the yeast doesn't wake up again, and bottle it.
 
Is anyone else having problems sourcing their juice ? I was nosing around the Walmart website (found a great deal on 10 lbs of honey), which has much more than what is available in stores, and it seems all the white grape juice is either a "cocktail" mix, or it has sulfites. They have Welch's, Ocean Spray, and their own brand; but only the concord seems to be available in a useful configuration. The cocktail mix might be "100% juice", but it's like 4-5 different kinds of juice. I only found the white grape with peach to be 100% juice and no sulfites.
 
modelafish said:
Is anyone else having problems sourcing their juice ? I was nosing around the Walmart website (found a great deal on 10 lbs of honey), which has much more than what is available in stores, and it seems all the white grape juice is either a "cocktail" mix, or it has sulfites. They have Welch's, Ocean Spray, and their own brand; but only the concord seems to be available in a useful configuration. The cocktail mix might be "100% juice", but it's like 4-5 different kinds of juice. I only found the white grape with peach to be 100% juice and no sulfites.
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I used the Orchard’s canned Frozen Concord concentrate. I Made a test 3 gallon batch
(Used 6 cans I think)and it came out tasting pretty good.
I back sweeten with 2 cans.
My neighbor and wife love it.
 
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4A2F490E-65CA-4A3A-9828-BCA7C0510A8B.png
 
modelafish said:
Is anyone else having problems sourcing their juice ? I was nosing around the Walmart website (found a great deal on 10 lbs of honey), which has much more than what is available in stores, and it seems all the white grape juice is either a "cocktail" mix, or it has sulfites. They have Welch's, Ocean Spray, and their own brand; but only the concord seems to be available in a useful configuration. The cocktail mix might be "100% juice", but it's like 4-5 different kinds of juice. I only found the white grape with peach to be 100% juice and no sulfites.
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Have you tried frozen?
 
modelafish said:
Is anyone else having problems sourcing their juice ? I was nosing around the Walmart website (found a great deal on 10 lbs of honey), which has much more than what is available in stores, and it seems all the white grape juice is either a "cocktail" mix, or it has sulfites. They have Welch's, Ocean Spray, and their own brand; but only the concord seems to be available in a useful configuration. The cocktail mix might be "100% juice", but it's like 4-5 different kinds of juice. I only found the white grape with peach to be 100% juice and no sulfites.
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Have you looked at Aldi? Their white grape juice works just fine; it's what I blend with purple grape juice.

Sulfite is probably okay.
 
z-bob said:
Have you looked at Aldi? Their white grape juice works just fine; it's what I blend with purple grape juice.

Sulfite is probably okay.
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Their closest store is 700 miles away, so....... no. I just checked Albertsons, so Winco is next.
 

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