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chilean wine juices

How to Make Wine from Chilean Winemaking Juice

So how can you start making your own wine from Chilean juices? Follow these 10 Easy Steps (for fresh juice) and you’ll be on your way!

how to make wine from juice

  1. Choose a Chilean variety that speaks to you.
  2. Come to Musto Wine Grape and pick up your pail of juice.
  3. Bring it home, pop open that lid, and add 1/4 tsp potassium metabisulfite to it. Add pectic enzyme if you’re going to (5 drops per gallon of juice). Give it a stir.
    1. Why pectic enzyme?
  4. Allow it to come up to room temperature – we’re talking 60 degrees or so.
  5. Choose your fermentation vessel: will you keep it in pails or ferment in a carboy or demijohn? Make sure everything is clean and sanitized. *Be sure there is enough room to account for fermentation foaming*
  6. If you are going to add fermentation tannins or additives (like oak dust, Booster Rouge, Booster Blanc) you can add that now. *Note: do not add tannins such as FT Rouge within 8 hours of adding enzyme*
  7. Pitch the yeast once the temperature has reached at least 60F. Yeast strain choices will vary depending on the juice you choose – ask a winemaker at Musto Wine Grape for a strain recommendation for the varietal you’re making. Follow the yeast starter directions explicitly. Be very careful of temperatures, never adding yeast if there is more than a 18 degree difference between the yeast starter liquid and the juice.
  8. Carefully monitor the fermentation by checking Brix levels daily. Add yeast nutrients as needed if you choose to do so.
  9. If you are adding malolactic cultures to your wine, you may also chose to do this at 1/3 Brix depletion. If using a malolactic nutrient (Opti-Malo Plus) with the bacterial culture, hydrate the nutrient in a separate container from the bacteria and add to the must directly before the addition of the bacteria. Follow all directions on the bacteria and nutrient packets explicitly.
  10. When the fermentation is complete, rack off the lees and continue aging. Many Chilean wines are aged with oak – if you choose to do this, you can do so in oak barrels or with oak alternatives (such as chips or staves).

Want to read more about making wine from Fresh Juice? Check out this blog post.

Can I make my own? Musto Wine Grape Company is here to help you make the wine of your dreams! The Spring Chilean winemaking season starts in late April, early May. Secure your winemaking grapes or juices and give us a call at (877) 812-1137 to speak with one of our Musto Crush Crew members. We can get you set up with everything you need and provide customer support along the way to ensure your success!

2020 Spring Harves is Right Around the Corner!

As the Holiday season starts to wind down we can’t help but get excited for the coming Spring wine season. We will have more updates in the coming weeks, but why not check out a video from the 2019 Chilean Wine Grape Harvest?

Arriving:

End of April, beginning of May

Grape Varieties:

  • Carmenere
  • Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Cabernet Franc
  • Malbec
  • Merlot
  • Petite Verdot
  • Pinot Noir
  • Syrah
  • Chardonnay
  • Pinot Grigio
  • Sauvignon Blanc
  • Viognier

Juice Varieties:

  • Carmenere
  • Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Cabernet Franc
  • Cabernet/Merlot Blend
  • Malbec
  • Merlot
  • Petite Verdot
  • Pinot Noir
  • Syrah
  • Chardonnay
  • Pinot Grigio
  • Sauvignon Blanc
  • Viognier

Fresco Juice Varieties:

  • Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Carmenere
  • Merlot
  • Malbec
  • Chardonnay
  • Sauvignon Blanc
  • Viognier
  • Chardonnay/Semillon Blend

Yeast Suggestions:

  •  Cabernet: CSM – New Yeast Coming to Musto Wine Grape in the Spring!, Keep an eye for a blog post about in on Thursday’s Winemaker Think Tank!
  •  Malbec: D254: Brings out bright fruit flavors and complexity such as berry, plum, and mild spice.
  • Carmenere: D254: Brings out bright fruit flavors and complexity such as berry, plum, and mild spice or BDX: Promotes soft tannins, secures color, and ferments at low heat.
  • Chardonnay: QA23: Promotes apple and pear notes or VIN13: Heightens pineapple and tropical notes
  • Sauvignon Blanc: R2: Promotes fruity and floral notes or 71B: Brings out grapefruit notes and other tropical fruits or QA23: Promotes apple and pear notes or VIN13: Heightens pineapple and tropical notes

So pour yourself a glass of wine and give us a call or shoot us an email to secure your Pre-Order Today!