Wine making Instructions

I am going to start a new series which will entail simple wine making practices. I will use our in-house instructions for making Kamil Juices, however these are best practices that can be applied to ANY wine making, including grape wines (just after the pressing). If you have any questions or anything is unclear, please do not hesitate to ask questions. I would be happy to answer them.

Cheers!

Our friend gelatin, which helps to in the fining process along with kieselsol to make our wines brilliantly clear.
The addition of stabilants and fining agents is done at the first racking, as seen in this photo. Making sure to fully incorporate/mix your sulphites and fining agents to ensure that the additions are well dissolved into all of the wine. For those that are curious about gluten sensitivities and wine making, give this a read. "I'm allergic to gluten. What red wines can I drink?" I think it covers the topic well and also touches on sulphite allergies which very few people actually have. Most suffer from a sensitivity rather than a true allergy. If you or anyone else you know suffers from gluten related allergies, there are many resources on the web to help identify what contains gluten, and what may come into contact with gluten during processing. Very interesting to note that even some flavoured coffee is processed with wheat, however whole bean coffee should be safe. Whoulda thunk it?

Half-way through fermentation of Pinot Blanc in our 11l containers.
Sneak peak of a fermentation of some Valpolicella through the top of our canister.

Isn't this just the loveliest photo? It was taken last year in Germany on Kamil Juices bi yearly grape sourcing trip in the south-west of Germany. I am reminded of how much I love our Gewurztraminer from the supple red rose in the picture. Once the Gewurz has had a chance to cellar for awhile, the lush tropical pineapple and zesty passion fruit is replaced with a nose of roses and lychees enhanced by just a touch of spice. We sold out of our gem, Gewurztraminer last fall, so the twenty or so bottles on my wine rack are that much more precious as I have no idea when we will be able to source it again.

Many German Gewurztraminer's tend to be on the sweeter side, but my favourites are dry or off dry, which I find creates more balance between acidity, alcohol and fruit without the cloying nature of sweeter wines.

If you have any Gewurztraminer left, I would suggest that you pair it with Thai curry, calamari (deep fried or pan seared) or my favourite proscuitto, mild cheese, an artisan baguette and good company.

Salute!