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 Welcome
to our column. We hope that you will return to
learn interesting notes on wine, and related
subjects. Wine is a great gift from God to be used
for the enjoyment of man. It is a food, and should
be treated as such. It is meant to lift up the body
and lighten the soul. 10/1/04 Barry Scarborough sent me an e mail with a question of pH. Acid in wine is the amount of acid in the wine, while pH is the strength of the acid in the wine. Most white grapes should be harvested with a pH of 3.10 to 3.20, and reads at 3.30 to 3.40. The pH is the test for ripeness of the grapes. Calcium Carbonate is used to reduce acidity of wine. You should not try to reduce the acid more than 0.4 % by using this item. It will produce a by-produce Calcium malate. This will take about six months to precipitate out of the wine. Temperature will not have an effect on the time it takes. When using Calcium Carbonate, 2.5 grams/gallon will reduce the acidity by 0.1% When working with chemicals and wine, always run a test batch of a small amount to see the effect on the wine. A last item this month…Do not get locked into a type or style of wine. Keep an open mind and enjoy many different wines. The ones made by friends, and the ones found in the store. Now I have this bottle of wine that a friend made….shall we go and enjoy it?
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