Simple Tips On How to Make Carignan Grape Wine
How to make grape wine? Did you know that in France, the most widely-planted red wine grape is Carignan. This started in the 1960s upon the attainment of independence of Algeria, which then became an inexpensive source of ripe grapes and from where France get its bulk supply.
So on how to make grape wine, the good thing about Carignan grapes is that it takes a bit longer to ripen and requires a long season. This way, it therefore avoids being prone to spring frosts. It is however, sensitive to powdery and downy mildew. This is why it is very important to choose your grapes carefully to avoid those that have already been hit by mildew. Take note of this very important information as it will help you in learning how to make grape wine.
Carignan does not hold the popularity like what Cabernet Sauvignon has. This is because it produces wines not just with high acidity, but with high levels of color and tannin as well without displaying much character, flavor or personality. This makes it inexpensive as compared to other varietals. Carignan is best for everyday consumption.
On how to make grape wine such as the Carignan, you can follow the very basic method like that of Merlot wine making. The following are just additional wine making instructions you have to take note of when learning how to make grape wine such as the Carignan.
Choosing Carignan grapes is very crucial. They should be picked ripe in order for the texture and mouthfeel to be at its best. Flavors would also be more complex and richer as compared to those picked at lower levels of ripeness. Also, you have to take the time in sorting out the grapes before you actually begin making wine at home. Aren’t you finding this easy? Are you having fun learning about how to make grape wine so far?
Based on long lived tradition of wine making, uncrushed Carignan grapes respond well to fermentation. Crushed fruits whose stems and twigs were taken out will produce earthy/ smoky/ meaty aromas while whole fruit will yield sweeter and more berry-like aromas.
In learning how to make grape wine like the Carignan, you will learn that it has the capacity to give soft, fruity, earthy drinking wines as long as the fermentation is cool and short. What you do is you can put the fermenter in the sun or use heating pads or punch down the cap as many times in a day as is practical, perhaps at least twice in a day. This will also benefit from long macerations; but it’s important to protect the wine from spoilage as CO2 production falls off. In terms of time consumed, the smaller the wine lot, the shorter the whole vinification process should be. Furthermore, you can make delicious wine from very small quantities of fruit if you shorten everything up: rack soon, don’t try to introduce oak flavor just because Chateau Woodstone Hills Creek does it, be paranoid about oxidation, and bottle early.
Knowing how to make grape wine like the Carignan is so much fun. It is the kind of wine that does not need new wood when it comes to aging especially if you are just making homemade wine that is less than 10 gallons. You can simply use a glass or stainless steel vessel instead. If you want it to have some oak character, you simply just drop in few pieces of medium-toast oak chips per five gallon carboy.
