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Vintage 2003

Going back through my extensive archival notes on theis year, there was a few different ones made.
The list is Plums- garden
Semillon- souurce Stratford grapes
Shiraz- sourced Stratford again

Chardonnay Semillon 2003

Shared with Harry H. 21 kg Chardonnay and 9 kg Semillon from a local Stratford supplier, March 20 2003

 20 March Smallish berries on the clusters of chardonnay, large on the Semillon. Grower said the Ch. Was 12.1 baume and the Sem. Was 10 baume.
Crushing,  Divided fruit into two, so had equivalent of 10 and 4.5 kg of each. Harry had stripped his good chard berries off the stalks, I took his discarded stalks and berries and crushed them too, juice separated from stalks and skins by sieve as crushing. Pressed berries as soon as. Ended up with 12-13 litres. Added 2.5 Camden tablets. SG 1.092, added squirt of pectinade.

21 march added RC12 yeast and pectinase.

 22 march Nothing happening

24 march racked juice off sediment, transferred to 15 litre fermenter

 25 march still no action, brought inside

 26 march still no action, add 2 teaspoons nutrient, still not working, make up a special yeast starter, added to it from best vat after small show. Added 200 ml at a time every so often. Started.

 1 April Tuesday Still fermenting.

 2 May Sunday Racked off. Very nice.

 29 October Thursday  Racked off. Very nice.

 27 November Bottled in CHARDONAY bottles.  Pinkish tinge, thin, not much to it really. (1/2 gallon jar anyway). Slightly cloudy. Nine bottles and a carafe (wasted as dirty- bummer, had to finish it off, dinner)

Cabernet Sauvignon 2003

Provenance Bought 30 kg April 10 2003 from the Bensons, Stratford, through Harry Hof.

Crushing, April 10 Thursday Got 24 litres (vol) Sweet. 1.094g, ph 3.8

Added 6 Camden tablets to 35L vat, evening  (added later to notes on 30 Mar 2004—DAP or yeast nutrient was probably added, not enough?)

Pitch yeast April 11
Made up a starter with 1 lemon, pitched yeast evening.
Added acid blend: 1:1:2:4:8 tannic, Ascorbic, citric, malic and tartaric, as per CC Berry’s book, at 6 teaspoons.

April 12    Went off! Tastes all right as well. Added a headboard, care of Harry. Made of Blackwood, buried the skins completely. Excellent addition to the equipment list.

May 4 Sunday  Rack off and press lees and skin-  got 16.5 litres

8 October Wednesday  Rack off again, tasting better, still a sulphury smell, slight tingle on the tongue…
Added 300ml grape juice left in fridge from harvest time to reduce dryness a fraction, and racked again to mix it in. Topped up with 200 ml water.

29 January 2004 Racked to 14.5 litre oak cask, left over bottled

17 February Wednesday
Ended up with 17-1/2 bottles. Tastes pretty good. Will leave for a few months before opening one for a trial with Harry’s.

Notes  Added later :

30 Mar 2004 =9%A/V, slightly effervescent- Bob Tucker thinks Malolactic in bottle, said nice, bit of blackberry.

27 April pH- 3.35-3.45

Plums 2003

11 kg Plums from home

Crushing, 5 March

Washed and crushed in the Crusher, did not stone the fruit, soaked for three days with Camden tablets in new 35 litre primary fermenter.

12 March

Added 2 teaspoons of Tannic, Ascorbic, tartaric and citrus acid with plenty of speedase and others. Added 6 kg of sugar to bring up sg of must from 1.0250 to 1.1.

Start 14 March

Used two bags of yeast sprinkled Lalvin RC 12 on top over two days to get going.

Added 2 teaspoons yeast Nutrient

16 march

Transferred to 30 litre fermenter. Ph 3.3

 23 march
moved inside- warmer, still not vigorous.

 26 march
sg 1.12. Sweet, slightly alcoholic. Will add three teaspoons nutrient? No.1

2 April
Moved outside the day before, still going.

6 April Sunday

Racked off. Pressed pomace. Made 20 litres. Added 5 litres water. Sg 1.08 and 9% alcohol. Had to add the water. Respectable 1.065 and 4%. Very Sweet! And not too bad.

4 May Sunday

Still fermenting, add 5 crushed campden tablets and 20 g of stabiliser

 28 October Wednesday

Rack off again, tasting better. Plenty of sludge, racked a few times more to add a bit of oxygen and rid sulphurous smell and small taste of. Added 300ml grape juice left in fridge from harvest time to reduce dryness a fraction, and racked again to mix it in. Topped up with 300ml water and 1.5 litres cab sav left over.

 27 November

Racked off again to lessen H2S smell.

9 March 2004

Racked off again to lessen H2S smell. Not too bad, plummy even?

 22 march

Add oak stick

 8 April

added 16ml of MaloLactic bacteria culture

 13 May 2004

Racked  and settled for 5 hours Bottled and got 33.76 botttle. Tastes okay at first, but then after three drinks the sugar taste definitely comes in and spoils the rest of the glass. If -want to, adding a apricot breeze type ups it somewhat.
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Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz Strawberry 2003

 (97% 2% 5%)

Provenance

Bought 60 kg March 15 2003 at the Royal Showgrounds Melbourne. Smallish berries on the clusters.

 “Strawberry” or 146 Fitzroy St Garage grapes (identified after five years as table grapes and too foxy for wine making by them selves…). Used by Italian winemakers for Flagrento/Fragrento(?) type wines.

Shiraz from one bush (out of six!) from the Shed Vineyard, 146 Fitzroy St.

Crushing, 16 March

Got 32 and 18 litres (vol), separate containers, Vats  1 and 2 

18 march Picked 1.5 kg of my Shiraz from The Shed Vine, crushed and added these and Camden tablets to musts. Took 1 litre bottle of juice for just in case.

19 march

Put in another container- now have three Vats

Made up three 1118 yeast packets into one bottle as a starter with juice lemon and sugar. Added juice to the starter and then split it after a while into the three vats.

21 march

Not working in Vat 1 and 3, make up a special yeast starter, added to it from best vat, vat 2. Added 200 ml must at a time every so often.

Added the starter to vat 2. Worked.

22 march

Added volume from vat 2 to vat 1 and 3 to help start them off

24 march

After small show in 1 and 3, spilt 3 into vat 2 and 1 as they were going off, punching down cap every so often

25 march

Both going off.

26 March Thursday 03

Vat 1 very good now; vat 2 deep burgundy already 1.06 sg

 1 April Tuesday

Pressed lees and racked and sieved to 34 litre jug and one bottle, with a little spillage, with Harry.

Taste is not bad, pretty sulphury.

 

 

7 April Monday

SG 0.98, Alcohol 10+%.

Still Sulphury. Light bouquet so far. Taste is not bad, light, apart from sulphury. Good after taste.

Added juice to top up 34L instead out of the small bottle of left over.

 11 April

   

Added acid blend: 1:1:2:4:8 tannic, Ascorbic, citric, malic and tartaric, as per CC Berry’s book, at 6 teaspoons. 

4 May Sunday

Rack off again, tasting better, may rack to oak barrel at some stage.

Lost 9 litres to over racking to floor.

 

28 October Wednesday

Rack off again, tasting better. Racked a few times more to add a bit of oxygen and rid sulphurous smell and small taste of.

Added 300ml grape juice left in fridge from harvest time to reduce dryness a fraction, and racked again to mix it in.

Topped up with 300ml water and 1.5 litres cab sav left over.

27 November

Racked off again to lessen H2S smell.

 

9 March 2004

Racked off again to lessen H2S smell.

Tastes not too bad, another racking before vintage I think.

 

22 march

Add oak stick

8 April

Added 16ml of MaloLactic bacteria culture

 

Tony Ford. Copyright © April 2000, 2004, 2009, 2010 . All rights reserved. Site Revised: Jul2010, Jan2011, march2011, Jan 2012, sep12