Zinfandel 1.0

Encouraged by the improving flavors of the Milk Jug wine and the improvised cherry wine, this weekend I finally got around to putting together the large batch of Zinfandel that I had bought a number of weeks ago. I pretty much followed the directions on the cans of concentrate and then added 4 extra cups of sugar when the sugar % measurements came out a little lower than I wanted (ha ha, as if I actually know what I want).

Here are the ingredients I dumped into the fermenter:

• 2 cans of Zinfandel Grape Concentrate (Alexander's brand)
• ~11.5 cans of cold water
• 12 cups of sugar (recipe called for 8)
• 3 tsp yeast nutrient powder
• 2 tsp acid blend powder
• 1 pkg Premium Cuvée yeast

I decided to forgo adding any tannin or doing anything else too far out for this first big batch. I want to get something good and drinkable to start and then I'll start experimenting and producing stuff that sucks.

Initial measurements 8/16/08:

• Must: ~5 gallons
• Brix: 23.0
• % Sugar: 12

I think I have decided to go with my wonderful mother-in-law's idea and call the winery Mute Dog Winery. I suppose I need to get going on designing a logo and some labels for it now.