After waiting for the grapes to arive from Stagecoach Vineyards in California via New Jersey it was time for the vintners to process their grapes. The first group destemmed Syrah. They were interested in making a bold Syrah. The grapes were in excellent condition having been presorted at the vineyard. The grapes in plastic lugs were dumped onto a sorting table where few MOG were removed. The MOG consisted primarily of leaves, grape tendrils and a rare piece of a vine. Although bees were plentiful, they managed to fly off prior to destemming.
The must was punched down and samples of juice were collected to read the brix level. Dave used a refractrometer to read the brix while Rob used a hydrometer to determine the potential alcohol levels. The group decided on which yeast to use and began mixing the yeast in a bucket. Juice from the fermentation bin was added to the bucket of yeast. This was done to slowly match the temperature of the yeast with the temperature of the must.
Dave instructed the group about acid levels and had them take the pH reading. The reading was 3.72 and Dave intrepreted that reading and discussed how it would change over the different fermentations. View the one-minute video showing the process.
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