Hi Bill,
I've done 2 grades of blackberry, heavy, using 6lbs of fruit to the gallon, and medium using 3 - 4 lbs per gallon. As you'd expect, the version with more fruit produces a much fuller-bodied wine, which is ready to drink in 9 months. The lighter-bodied one was acid and over-tannined at 9 months, so much so I nearly threw it out, but after 2 years had mellowed extremely nicely.
Both follow the same recipe, except for the amount of fruit used; it's probably worth going for a lower initial SG for the lighter one, maybe 1085-90, to complement its lighter body. I freeze the fruit before making the wine. The recipe lies roughly half way between Jack Keller's and CJJ Berry's.
Just a last visitPeacelover, I admire the loyalty you show to your friend & neighbor. I can only hope my neighbors and friends will someday be so generous. Trevor pays...
Heavy blackberry wine (2 gallons) 12 lbs blackberries 4 lbs of sugar More sugar later 14 pints boiling water Campdens, pectolase, Vit. B, Yeast nutrient
Don't bother unfreezing the berries, just dump them in the primary, pour on 6 pints of boiling water, and mash the fruit. Add 4 lbs of sugar, and the rest of the water, and stir to dissolve. Leave to cool, add 2 Campdens, and 4 level teaspoons of pectolase dissolved in lukewarm water, clamp the lid on, and leave to fester for 2 days.
Saving my red wineYou can add tannin but that will only help with the structure of the wines - it sounds like there are other things missing. I've started with red juice and then moved to grapes...
After 2 days, set a Burgundy yeast starter going. Strain off the pulp and pips, or the wine will end up with way too much tannin. Add yeast nutrient and Vit. B, and add more sugar to bring the SG up to 1105. Pitch the yeast, stir, and cover.
Leave it a week or so, stirring twice daily. About day 4 it'll develop a peculiar smell a bit like H2S, and you'll begin to fret about the loss of your precious blackberries. Relax, and keep stirring; it's just the smell of blackberry wine fermenting. When the fermentation slows a bit, and SG gets down to about 1010 - 1020, rack it in to demi-johns and fit bubblers.
Leave it in a cool place - and very important - protect it from light, which will fade the lovely colour. I put mine in the gloomiest corner of the house, and wrap them in black bin bags. After a month, it will be sparkingly clear, and have dropped an unfeasible amount of nasty-looking lees. Rack again, and leave for 3 months, as dark as possible. Rack again, leave for another 6, or as long as your patience lasts, and then bottle. It will end up about 15.5%.
If you go for the lighter recipe, it will end about 13.5 - 14%.
Good luck!
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