Our First Wine - Step III: Stabalizing and Clearing

Our Cabernet is ready for Stage 3! I am super-excited! At the rate we're going, it will have been in bottles for 3 months by Chirstmas, making it "drinkable"...and most certainly "giftable"! Any fearless takers??!

This step is pretty easy, although again, meticulous sterilization practices are (always!) required. All we have to do is add stabilization and sterilization agents...i.e. SULFITES! Sulfites are amazing. They have been added to wine for centuries to help allow for the wine to age, and NOT turn to vinegar!

But first, we taste! WOW- it's so much different than 10 days ago! It isn't effervescent anymore. It tastes like a young, new world cabernet in-the-making! It is definitely clearer, at first glance. (Pic 1: me checkin' it out!). It looks bright and lovely! I thoroughly enjoy "experiencing" our wine between steps II and III. We proceed to add the sulfites (Pic 2: Love the stir motion!) and close-her-up for another week. Can't wait for another taste!

Thanks to all of you who have started sending me ideas for "winery" names. We will have a vote in a few weeks, perhaps. :o) Until then, send me ideas!

Our First Wine - Step II: Secondary Fermentation

Secondary fermentation!!! After a week + a few days, we "racked" the wine... meaning, we transferred it to a fresh container.

This removes the wine from the primary yeast sediment, to avoid "off-qualities", and to assist with clarification.

It was fun! We transferred the wine, and we tasted it. It tastes like real wine! Young wine...but real...and with potential! And since it's still fermenting...it was a little bit fizzy-like! It's going to be fun to document the differences from step-to-step.

I took science class-upon-science-class through high school and into college...and until now, I TOTALLY didn't connect with it. This science experiment is 1000% interesting and applicable to MY interests! See, with a little exploration, we can all be technical! Yay!

So moving on...we decided to wait about 10-ish days until the next step...#3, which focuses on stabilization and clarification, but will not include moving the wine. Can't wait to see how the Cab is after these 10 days! The anticipation is lovely.

Again, if you have winery names to suggest, please do! We need ideas! More soon...
(Written August 21, 2010)
_____________________
-Pic 1: Our Cab after the first transfer!
-Pic 2: The residual sludginess (I guess that's a word!) left in the bucket after the first transfer.

Surprise! Winemaking at Home!

You may know that I'm married to a brewmaster. Besides being a brewmaster, he's also a lovely person who has given me THE BEST birthday gift (Yes, it's taken us a few months to sort it all out!!). It's a great gift because it's a project we can work together, AND he seriously has to make a sacrifice to make it happen...WOW! He researched wine-making, and told me we were going to make a wine using his brewing equipment, and purchase whatever else we need. We evaluated all of the different varietals and blends, and decided to stick with the basics!

(Drumroll, please.......!) Our first wine will be a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon! I am super-thrilled! (Just FYI- I was torn between making a Cab and a Malbec...decided on the Cab for the first go! Didn't even think about doing my other favorite (Pinot Noir)...too finicky). Please admire photos. I will keep you informed as we go. It is so amazing to understand this process FIRSTHAND...such a rich experience!

Now, I need your help with WINERY NAMES!!! Please email me or post suggestions. I need creative help! xo

We did drink a lovely Meritage blend whilst making wine (phase 1/2). I will write my thoughts on this ASAP! Cheers, all!

A Cuban Meal, and a Challenging Pairing

We decided on a Cuban place called Yuca in South Beach, FL for dinner. We ordered a round aperitifs...mojitos (At a Cuban place, what else is there??!!!) Delicious, yet almost too presentable. Does that make sense? When I order a mojito, I want a seriously LARGE quantity of mint...like mint leaves clogging my straw, and all! This was not that...yet, it was decent.

As we sipped drinks and watched South Beach go by, we perused the menu and wine list. I had become respected as a wine aficionada (!!!), and soon had the priveledge of making a selection for tonight's meal. YAY! One slight challenge...I was leaning towards seafood menu options, and dining with someone who chose red meats. Compromising cicumstance...yet with a little thought, easily remedied...

I soon had a bottle of expertly-selected PINOT NOIR: 2006 Hitching Post Winery "Cork Dancer", Santa Barbara, CA (Yessssss, you may recall this name from the movie Sideways!). I would say the best way to describe Cork Dancer is lovely. This is why I adore pinot noirs. They are lovely and special, when you find a good one (reference "Sweet Cheeks" blog from April 2010). I immediately respect a nice pinot noir. This varietal is thin-skinned, fussy, and I'm told that you have to let the vine struggle to produce greatness! The 2006 Cork Dancer was medium-bodied...LUSH, ripe fruit (especially cherries!), loooong finish. Sometimes the California pinot noirs can a bit too big and bold...overdone. Not this one. Instead it was reminiscent of a Northwest (OR/WA) pinot, or a traditional style French Bourgogne (Burgundy). Anyway, just the right choice for our table's gamut of food varieties!

I had the Ceviche Salvaje: Fresh grouper, shrimp, calamari, octopus and lobster forged in ginger-lime marinade and laced with scotch bonnet pepper. I LOVE CEVICHE... what a chemical reaction, baby!

Followed by the Red Snapper: A pan seared fillet of snapper with a crazy avocado rice. Topped with a relish of sweet and hot peppers and chilli-garlic sofrito.

Cuban food- mmmmm. 2006 Hitching Post Cork Dancer Pinot Noir- mmmmm. Would recommend either, and welcome a repeat!

Salud!

(Written May 2010)