After months of trying not to think about my wine, which was easy, really, because I have been so busy, I just couldn’t wait any longer. I took a bottle over to Sarah’s house (Of Eat Grow Think) and we drank it over a great home cooked meal.
It was really good, though, as Sarah pointed out, it did have some yeast flavors to it. Take it or leave it, the yeast wasn’t too strong, nor detracted from the rest of the wine. As I understand it, letting the wine sit on the lees early on is a stylistic choice often pursued outside of France. Overall the wine really reminded me of a rough Burgundy style wine. Some of the choices I made early on paid off. For example I knew I wasn’t going to age it in oak (at a couple of gallons, it just wasn’t possible) so I crushed the grapes with some of the stems to add in some acid that the wine would need. Also, since I was making such a small amount, I knew the wine wasn’t going to mature in “bulk”, so I only racked it once, kept it nice and sealed up, and then let it sit on the lees. All in hopes of flushing out the flavors quickly and protecting it from oxygen.
The results was a very buttery complete wine. Luckily, all the malic acid I picked up from the stems went to lactic acid thorough malolactic fermentation. It was lucky because I didn’t induce it, occurring naturally. The tannic acid also held up along with some good berry notes and lots of floral aroma.
I got totally lucky, you might say, but that is how it happens at home. If I were to try this again exactly the same way, it would turn out totally different. All-in-all, I am absolutely stoked to enjoy a few bottles of Little House Viozinho, knowing I made it from scratch, and because it is so drinkbale. Cheers!
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