In several earlier posts, we introduced a few home winemaking terms that you may or may not be familiar with. There are many terms to learn in home winemaking, and this post, like all the previous posts, gives you a short introduction to a few of them to help you get started, or perhaps brush up on some of the home winemaking terms you may not have seen in a while.
- Zork Corks: Starting off today’s list is something you may not be as familiar with called the Zork Cork. These are alternatives to traditional corks, and provide you with an easy option to closing all those wine bottles you’ve been working hard to create. Zork Corks can be inserted into any standard wine bottle without a corker, though depending upon how many bottles you have to close, you may want to use a rubber mallet or something similar to hammer them in just in case your fingers start getting tired. Zork Corks are made with a plastic grip top, and a professional finish, so it’s easy to insert and remove from wine bottles and makes a great presentation.
- Cut: No, we don’t mean what happens when you’ve sliced yourself on a sharp object. Cut is a winemaking term that describes a blending process in winemaking where a wine with one distinct characteristic is blending with another wine with a different distinct characteristic. An example of a cut would be to blend a wine that’s highly acidic into a wine that is very low in acidity, thereby creating a wine with the desired level of acidity when finished. Some also use the term “cut” when referring to the blending process of a red wine and a white wine to make a rosé, but this isn’t as common a practice as other rosé winemaking methods.
- Maillard Reactions: Maillard reactions are very complex chemical interactions between the amino acids and the sugar in wines or grapes. Maillard reactions are known for concentrating the flavors of the grape during many different styles of winemaking.
- Saccarometer: A saccarometer is also known as a hydrometer. It is a piece of winemaking equipment that is easy to use, inexpensive, and extremely helpful during the winemaking process. A saccarometer is basically a tool to measure the fermentation process, so you can more carefully monitor the fermentation process and know exactly when it’s time to stop and bottle. The saccarometer measures several characteristics of your fermenting wine, including specific gravity, potential alcohol level, and temperature. Get multiple readings at once to save you time and money, as well as the confirmation to know when it’s the right time to bottle.
Here is a list of other post about home winemaking terms: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 |