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Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies

Caramel chocolate chip cookies are a treat definite to make you swoon. The best part? This can be a quick, easy recipe so you’ll be enjoying these sweet treats in no time!

Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies

First, you’ll need the ingredients!

2 cups of all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon of cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of butter

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1/2 cup of granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 & 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

1 cup of chocolate chips (I usually use milk chocolate, but you have the freedom to pick which chocolate you like more!)

1 cup of caramel chips

1-2 Tablespoons of sea salt (coarse)

Next, combine and bake!

Firstly, in a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt. Secondly, beat the butter and sugars together in a separate bowl. You can use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or a handheld mixer on low speed until combined. Thirdly, Beat the eggs and vanilla in a small bowl until combined and then stir into the flour mixture until well blended. Fourthly, Add chocolate and caramel chips, preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and place cookie dough onto a baking sheet spaced two inches apart. You can use a tablespoon or small ice cream scoop to measure out the side of each cookie. Press sea salt on the tops of each cookie. Finally, bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned and allow to cool.

Wait, nothing is complete without a glass of wine…

Have you ever made Port before? It pairs perfectly with these cookies! The rich textures, fresh fruit factors, hints of chocolate, and sweet profile of Ruby Port makes it a no-brainer for pairing with many kinds of caramel, milk, and dark chocolate choices.

How to Make Port Wine:

You can make port from existing wine by adding grain alcohol, everclear, or brandy. First, determine the alcohol level you want your port to be. Second, use Pearson’s Square to determine how much brandy you need to add. Third, add that amount of brandy and sugar adjustment to the wine.

Want to dive deeper? Learn How to Make Port Wine Step by Step with this Video from MWG’s online learning program WinemakingInstructions.com.

Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp

Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp

Calling all shrimp lovers! We’ve got a recipe ready to knock your tastebuds out of the park. Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp. Oh yeah – we went there. Pair with Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, or Pinot Noir.

How to make it:

If you don’t have an air fryer then what are you doing? Go get one and hop on this recipe ASAP! Air frying allows you to have the experience of oh-so-good friend seafood without all the grease and deep frying. Shrimp can be delicate and you may be skeptical about using your air fryer to cook them, but we haven’t had any issues with it cooking them to anything less than perfect.

We personally love crunchy shrimp, so this recipe will call for these to yield crunchy shrimp. You can reduce the amount of ingredients to your discretion if you prefer them less crunchy! We’ll be using flour, eggs, panko breadcrumbs, and shredded coconut to bread the shrimp.

Firstly, preheat your air fryer to 390 degrees Fahrenheit and set up your ingredients in multiple bowls. You should have a bowl for your flour, beaten eggs, and panko flour mixed with shredded coconut.  We also use fresh, raw shrimp because there’s no need to wait for defrosting and we also believe it cooks better than if you were using already cooked shrimp. Using already cooked shrimp could cause them to shrink and dehydrate.

Secondly, dip each piece of shrimp in your bowls in the following order: First the flour, then the egg, and then the panko and shredded coconut mixture.

Now, lightly spray the basket with non-stick cooking spray or line with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Line up your shrimp in the basket in a single layer, they will cook evenly this way opposed to on top of each other. Spray a small amount of oil on the shrimp and cook for 4 minutes. After 4 minutes, reopen the air fryer and flip the shrimp, spraying another small amount of oil on the flipped side of the shrimp to ensure even cooking. Close the air fryer and continue to cook for about 4-5 more minutes. Once finished, serve with sweet chili sauce for the ultimate flavorbomb! This Panda Express Chili Sauce you can find at Target is pretty good!

Interested in Making Your Own Wine? Give us a call (877-812-1137) or email us (sales@juicegrape.com) and we will help you get started!

Peach Prosecco Popsicles

peach prosecco popsicle

Peach Prosecco Popsicles

One of our all-time favorite summer treats is popsicles. You can make popsicles from pretty much anything, and they are perfect to cool down on a hot summer night! Not to mention, throwing in some fresh fruit and wine into a popsicle is one of the most genius inventions. We’ve got an easy peach prosecco popsicle recipe waiting for you, so keep reading!

Peach bellinis are a favorite cocktail! If you like them as well, you’re in luck because these popsicles are basically peach bellinis on a stick.

What you need and what to do:

You’ll need to buy some peach puree or make some yourself, which isn’t difficult at all. To make your own, grab 3 ripe peaches. Bring a pot of water to a boil, and place the peaches inside for about 1 minute. After about a minute, immediately remove the peaches from the boiling water and place into a bowl of ice water. Let the peaches sit in the cold water for about a minute or so, and you’ll be able to peel the skins off with your fingers. You can also use a knife if that’s your thing. Once you have removed the skins, you can begin to slice the peaches and remove the flesh off of the pits. Next, you’ll place the peach slices into a food processer or blender and blend until smooth. An easy alternative would also be to buy a bag of frozen sliced peaches if you want to skip the boiling and peeling. If your peaches are not sweet to your standards, feel free to add some sweetener to give it a boost. Mix your puree with Prosecco and pour it into popsicle molds. You can freeze overnight, or if you prep in the morning they can be ready for the late-afternoon.

Enjoy with family, friends, or a good quarantine movie night.

Want to make your own wine?

Musto Wine Grape Company is here to provide everything you need to make the wine of your dreams, and the support along the way to ensure your success! Give us a call at (877) 812 – 1137 to speak with a member of Musto’s crush crew to get you started!

 

 

How to Avoid Winemaking Faults & Flaws Class – Saturday February 8th, 2020

Have you ever had a funky smelling wine?

Not sure what caused that smell?

Come to Musto Wine Grape’s Faults & Flaws class and learn how to counteract and avoid those funky smells in your wines.

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It’s only $5.99 to attend this class! (a major steal) Click HERE to secure your seat in class. Seating will be limited to 25 people.

Faults & Flaws Class will be held at our store in Hartford, CT (101 Reserve Rd, Hartford, CT 06114) on Saturday February 8th at 10:00AM.

Please email cmusto@juicegrape.com if you have any questions.

Hope to see you there!

Ozone – The New Industry Standard for Wine Barrel Care

Why Ozone your wine barrel?

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As a winemaker you know that sanitization is a key factor in successful winemaking. The cleaner your cellar and winemaking practices, the better the wine. Ozone can help keep your wine barrel in the cleanest state that science will allow. Winemakers battle with high energy costs due to cleaning, hot water not fully blasting away harmful microbes, and the consistent cost of purchasing new oak barrels. Using Ozone will help retain oak character within your used  barrels and extend their life in the cellar. Ozone treatments, paired with solid winemaking practices, will help create a consistent and microbe-resistant oak barrel – one that’s only infusions will be adding delicious oak characteristics and soft micro-oxidative qualities to your wines.

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Ozone Facts:

  • Ozone is a stand-alone organic sanitizer which simplifies sanitation, is safe to use, saves water and energy, and is environmentally friendly.
  • Ozone is produced as needed on site, dissipates after use and minimizes the purchase, storage, mixing and disposal of chemicals.
  • Ozone is a cold sanitizer which saves energy and extends barrel flavors
  • Ozone kills a much broader spectrum bacteria, fungus and molds, yeasts, spores and cysts Organisms Killed by Ozone from 10 to 5000 times faster than halogenated chemicals (chorine, iodine, etc.).
  • Ozone was approved by a FDA Expert Panel as GRAS (generally recognized as safe) for use as a sanitizer in 1997 and was approved by FDA for use with fruits, vegetables, meat, poultry, etc. in June 2001 (food additive petition).
  • Ozone was approved under USDA Organic Rule in 2000.
  • Ozone reverts to molecular oxygen, leaving no by-products or residual contaminants.
  • Ozone unlike halogenated chemicals (i.e. chlorine, iodine, etc.) ozone does not generate TCA precursors or dangerous halogenated hydrocarbon byproducts, such as THM’s.
  • Ozone destroys objectionable taste and odor causing compounds.
  • Ozone is pH neutral, (does not change the acid/alkaline balance).

Musto Wine Grape Company, LLC. uses ozone protocols to eliminate and prevent the return of microbial spoilage organisms (i.e. Brettanomyces, Acetobacter, malolactic and lactobacillus, etc.) in barrels. No rinsing after the sanitation is required which reduces sanitation times and water usage.

We use gaseous ozone to maintain barrel and wooden upright health during storage eliminating the use of sulfur and sulfur dioxide. Every used barrel that is delivered to MWG is ozoned before it reaches any perspective customers.

Ozone has become a single source organic sanitizer at Musto Wine Grape Company, LLC.. Its use allows us to produce a better product through the control of spoilage organisms, mold, and mildew in our used barrels for our customers. We hope you attend our upcoming Barrel Care Class and see how Ozone (in addition to other barrel care and maintenance techniques) can help you maintain and increase your wine’s quality. All class attendees will be able to bring in their own barrel and we will treat it with ozone after the class at no charge.

 

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The Winemaker’s Think Tank: Vol 37 – “How do I make Rose?”

What’s the Winemaker’s Think Tank?
Every Thursday we will post about a few frequently asked questions that our winemaker has answered. If you have a winemaking question you would like to have answered, please email us at support@juicegrape.com and we will try to get into next week’s post. Cheers! 🙂

Many glasses of rose wine at wine tasting. Concept of rose wine and variety. White background. Top view, flat lay design. Natural light.

How do I make Rose?

There are a few different approaches to making rose wines. The most traditional way is to crush red grapes, leave the juice in contact with the skins for a limited amount of time, then press off the juice rather quickly (within a few hours) to yield a deep pink colored juice. Once this juice is fermented, it will yield a rose wine. The best grapes to use for this type of production would be any red varietal with a higher acidity. Early picked red grapes or a very fruit forward varietal tend to make the best roses. Some varietals that we have worked with successfully to make beautiful roses are Barbera, Grenache, Gamay, Chambourcin, and Pinot Noir.

Another approach would be to take a white wine and to add a small portion of red wine to it, predominantly for body and color. A very small amount of red wine will provide adequate color to change a white wine into a rose color. A small amount of prep work needs to be done before the blend is created. If the red wine was put through malolactic fermentation, the MLF must be complete before the wine is added into the white wine. If the red wine has not completed MLF, it cannot be used to blend as the bacteria will begin to metabolize the malic acid within the white wine. To prevent this, first make sure that the wine has completed MLF, then add Lysozyme to prevent the further proliferation of bacteria. It is always imperative to make sure that the wines have also been adequately sulfited prior to blending as well. It is very important to do bench trials of the blends before the addition of the red wine to ensure the desired results. A small amount (5-10%) of the red wine will add a nice touch of color and body to a white wine, creating a beautifully blended rose.

 

We hope this information helps with your winemaking. If you have any follow up questions or winemaking questions in general, please email us at support@juicegrape.com.

The Winemaker’s Think Tank: Vol 32 – “What do I do if I have a stuck fermentation?”

What’s the Winemaker’s Think Tank?

Every Thursday we will post about a few frequently asked questions that our winemaker has answered. If you have a winemaking question you would like to have answered, please email us at support@juicegrape.com and we will try to get into next week’s post. Cheers! 🙂

Closeup of early 30's man having some wine in the middle of the day and thinking about his relationship problem. Somewhere at the bottom of the glass there is a meaning of everything that bothers him right now.

What do I do if I have a stuck fermentation?

                  Sometimes, even though we take great care as winemakers to avoid it, we can get caught with a stuck fermentation. Yeast are incredible creatures, capable of very rapid reproduction, but they do have their limiting factors. It is very important to know the limitations of the certain yeast strain that you are using for your wine. Evaluate your must’s pH to ensure that it is above 3.2, the lower pH environmental threshold for most yeast strains. Take into consideration the alcohol tolerance of the yeast that you selected. If you take the initial Brix level and multiply it by .55, you will have a pretty close estimate of your ending alcohol by volume. Make sure that you haven’t put in a yeast that is unable to handle the rising alcohol levels of the must. Another important factor to consider is the temperature of the must. All yeast strains have a preferred temperature window in which they like to work and reproduce. Because fermentation is an exothermic reaction, check your temperatures (if making reds always take a measurement under the cap) and be sure they haven’t gotten so warm that the yeast may be dying off. The opposite is also true, ensuring that your juice or must have warmed up enough to allow the yeast to begin their processing. Lastly, another important factor to  consider in the health of your fermentation is the nutrition of your yeast. Aside from the sugar that they consume, yeast also need proteins, vitamins, and minerals to complete a healthy fermentation. Using a nutrient, such as Fermaid, will give the yeast the other elements needed to properly process the juice.

                  After the careful evaluation of these factors, you may need to add a small amount of water, nutrients, or heat or cool the must/juice. A winemaker at Musto Wine Grape is happy to help you with the amounts and timing of these additions. If all of these factors have been evaluated and adjusted for, prior to fermentation, and you still have a stuck fermentation, you will need to restart the fermentation. Please contact support@juicegrape.com and a trained winemaker can help you with a restart procedure.

We hope this information helps with your winemaking. If you have any follow up questions or winemaking questions in general, please email us at support@juicegrape.com.

The Winemaker’s Think Tank: Vol 30 – How do I test for pH?

 

What’s the Winemaker’s Think Tank?

Every Thursday we will post about a few frequently asked questions that our winemaker has answered. If you have a winemaking question you would like to have answered, please email us at support@juicegrape.com and we will try to get into next week’s post. Cheers! 🙂

pH scale diagram with corresponding acidic or alcaline values for common substances, food, household chemicals . Litmus paper color chart. Colorful vector illustration in flat style isolated on white background.

How do I test for pH?

Testing for pH is a reasonably simple process for your wine. Based on your budget, you can obtain a variety of pH measuring implements. There are pH test strips that will give you an approximate level of pH in your wine. They give a color reaction that when compared to a chart, indicates the pH of the wine. The next level up in sophistication as well as price is a basic pH meter. Musto wine grape offers a simple handheld pH meter that can be calibrated in a matter of minutes and gives precise and accurate pH readings. The probe must be stored properly in a storage solution to ensure that it does not dry out. The probe lasts from 12-18 months, depending on its care and must be purged after this time frame. With the most basic model, you throw out the entire unit and buy a new one. With the more sophisticated models of pH meters, the probe is replaced separately from the unit (which should last indefinitely).

We hope this information helps with your winemaking. If you have any follow up questions or winemaking questions in general, please email us at support@juicegrape.com.