juice and frozen red fruit

4 litres mixed red 100% juice
a package of frozen red berry or red fruit from aldi.
1tsp of precipitated chalk,
1tsp of pectolaze
1tsp wine yeast
nutrient, sugar

1. simmer and cool, add to juice, juice initial gravity = 1050
2. added 500 grams of sugar so 500 grams equals 41 points of sugar, can now assume initial gravity to be 1100 due to the sugar in fruit. so the potential alcohol is at maximally 13%.
3. Added 120 grams sugar later on to increase SG by 10 points and assure alcohol levels at about 13%.
4. After 5 days - strained. Realized had not added anything for the body so chopped up a banana - with 1/3 of its skin and boiled for 10 minutes in the wine, let cool and added to the demijohn in the hope it will add some body and additional tannin. 
5. Strained after a few days - through sieve, SG = 995. Added 120 grams sugar and fermentation stopped as well as a crushed campden tablet 

Very nice! Balanced, with good tannin, more sweet than dry, very pleasant. Not bad body but not perfect yet.

2012.02.21 Bottling

Pear Wine

Primary fermentation in a big bottle

2011.11.19

• 1 Kg ripe pears from Aldi.
• 1 banana, 150 grams raisins
• 1 Kg pears in a jar - 500 grams pears and grape juice.
• pectolaze, yeast nutrient, campden tablet, tartaric acid

1. Chop raisins and the banana, inclusive half of the banana skin. Add to hot water and keep heating.
2. Wash and chop pears without wooden parts. Add to water, add the pears from a jar, chopped with juice.
3. Add chopped peaches with syrup.
4. Add nutrient, acid. Add 300 grams sugar.
5. Simmer for 10 minutes more. Switch off, wait for it to cool. 
6. Add 2 tsp pectolaze. Add campden tablet
7. Wait 2 days.  Put in primary fermenter, measure SG. Add yeast. SG-1048, added 500 grams sugar
8.  5 days afterwards - strain carefully through a sieve or better cloth into a secondary fermenter with airlock. Get the fluid out but try not to include too much solids. I strained it though a straining bag and a sieve. SG=1035
9.  Rack carefully after gravity is about 1005

It is probably best for blending since in itself, there is very little interesting. It is not so far unpleasant but I would not drink it, too boring - water with alcohol. 

Warm Autumn

So far so good, for Autumn that is.

We are getting very close to winter and can only hope it will not be too severe, as the last two winters were.
Until then, though, the weather has been good for us. The mild temperatures, little rain or wind make it a pleasant, maybe not too cosy, Autumn. I heard that it actually should be much worse, at least it used to be like that in Scotland.
For now I and S are enjoying the favorable weather. I took a day off yesterday and S had the brilliant idea to go to the Botanic Gardens. We went by bus and had a lovely walk in the gardens; this was one of the best memories this year, possibly, walking with S, getting some sun even, having a super-tasty sandwiches and hot (warm) tea from the thermos. It is really nice to be married, just to feel good not doing anything special, as long as it is with the other half. You do get stressed, especially if you have a lot of work, or the other person has a lot of work, but it will mostly pass.
We have also recently discovered the tv drama shinya shokudo, good thing we are always eating while watching the series - we would get really jealous otherwise. I especially respect the simple foods - nekomanma, butter rice, tamagoyaki, basically I could eat everything else too, maybe not tarako. Soo tasty and so simple (well, many of the things)
That is also the reason we had Egg and Mayo sandwiches yesterday - good idea picked from the movie.
I will definitely have some nekomanma today (I am currently extremely full and still when I think about this taste, I feel getting hungry, or greedy...)

We eat (from my point of view) extremely good things - S makes wonderful meals. I only cook very occasionally, last week it was Thai Red Curry based on Jamie Oliver and was really good, tomorrow it is going to be Lasagne, made in our new lovely ceramic casserole dish. I do like cooking but I cannot say I cook a lot, considering that S makes like 80% of our food. She is also a much better cook than me, has a great sense of balance and taste. I am and should really be, extremely grateful to her for her time and effort. She even looks tasty herself.

One last thing I cannot let pass unmentioned - it is our nuka-zuke or rice bran. I am extremely glad to have been able to find a decent clay pot (made in Italy even) for our pickling purposes. We have so far tried nuka cucumber (lovely), daikon (great) and carrot - heavenly. Probably it is too salty but the taste is really full bodied and tangy, combined with a mild smell. In other words, so good.

I love Japanese cuisine. Oh by the way, I advanced one level in Japanese food - I had eaten Inago no tsukudani (just one though) so it is + 1 level  of food experience, already dan level, or?