I want to start off with an apology to anyone who is insulted by the name of this wine, it is not intended to be an ethnic slur. Being an Italian American myself I have nothing but the highest regards for people with Italian heritage. I take no offense – I hope that you don’t either. It is a thing to enjoy!
This photo is not of me it was supplied by army.arch from Flickr.
I enjoyed the sites as a child to watch my grandfather make his magical wine in his basement. The smell, that slight chill to the air and the sound of wine being racked. These elements plus the screaming of Italian men, while eating cheese and prosuttio is what family was to me. The wine seemed to tie it all together. I would concentrate on my grandfather’s hand while he was pouring that wine from the jug. Seeing out of focus faces laughing and carrying on in the background. It was the lifeblood of those times. That wine was referred to as “Dego Red.”
There isn’t any particular recipe for "Dago Red." The name merely refers to any red wine made in an Italian style outside Italy. It is probably the most requested recipe, usually after the passing of an older family member who didn’t teach anyone how to craft his wine or, no one was interested in helping and learning at the time. More often than not this idiom is used by friends of Italian families that want to brag what they had at dinnertime with the family of 24 down the street.
Truth be told, you really need to know where the departed got their grapes, as the wine referred to can only be made in the same way if they use the identical grapes. Since this is usually information not on hand, simply whipping up a batch of red wine is the accustomed alternative.
Here is a basic recipe and procedure:
Classic “Dago Red” Wine – Yields: 5-6 gallons of finished wine
Once bottled it is best to have this sit for at least a year to give it that authentic flavor, but if you need to… you can enjoy a glass now! No harm done.
Salute! Chindun!
Reverse osmosis is a more economical operation for concentrating food liquids (such as fruit juices) than conventional heat-treatment processes. Research has been done on concentration of orange juice and tomato juice. Its advantages include a low operating cost and the ability to avoid heat treatment processes, which makes it suitable for heat-sensitive substances like the protein and enzymes found in most food products.
Reverse osmosis is extensively used in the dairy industry for the production of whey protein powders and for the concentration of milk to reduce shipping costs. In whey applications, the whey (liquid remaining after cheese manufacture) is pre-concentrated with RO from 6% total solids to 10-20% total solids before UF (ultrafiltration) processing. The UF retentate can then be used to make various whey powders including WPI (whey protein isolate) used in bodybuilding formulations. Additionally, the UF permeate, which contains lactose, is concentrated by RO from 5% total solids to 18–22% total solids to reduce crystallization and drying costs of the lactose powder.
Although use of the process was once frowned upon in the wine industry, it is now widely understood and used. An estimated 60 reverse osmosis machines were in use in Bordeaux, France in 2002. Known users include many of the elite classed growths (Kramer) such as Château Léoville-Las Cases in Bordeaux.
Reverse osmosis is used globally throughout the wine industry for many practices including wine and juice concentration, taint removal; such as acetic acid, smoke taint and brettanomyces taint; and alcohol removal. The patent holder for these processes, Vinovation, Inc., claims to have served over 1000 wineries worldwide, either directly or through one if its licensed partners, in the last 15 years. Its use has become so widely accepted that patent infringers have sprung up on several continents.
There aren’t too many audio shows or Podcasts out there for winemakers, but I did happen to come across a good one today. WineMaking Radio. Seems to cover a lot of good bases and is great to listen to while you are performing your hobby with friends. It helps to strike up good conversation points (which should already be underway already!)
From the site:
WineMaking Radio was formed out of a love for audio programs (entertainment before people had televisions in their homes) and a very special hobby called winemaking. Robert Linder, the co-founder of Clear Data and the producer of WineMaking Radio, has been a beer homebrewer for fifteen years and an amateur winemaker for eight years. His love for all things wine, especially the people who support the hobby, has led him to this opportunity to create audio programs that inform, entertain and inspire us to be better winemakers.
Back when I first started using the internet newsgroups were a great way to gather information. This was before forums and blogs, but they still hold some good information. I thought I would share a few links to help get you started on Google Groups. If you prefer to use a third party newsgroup application – just add these links to your reader. Otherwise just click on the links below to go to these specific groups.
rec.crafts.winemaking – dedicated to the discussion of the process, recipes, tips, storage, techniques and general exchange of lore on the process, methods and history of wine making. This group is to be general enough to encompass both traditional grape wines as well as wines which are generally described as country wines, sparkling wines, and champagnes. In general, the appropriateness of a particular beverage will be determined by the process involved in its making. Essentially, if the process used is that of winemaking, then the discussion is considered appropriate. This may include such beverages as cider or mead. It is recognized that there are topics, which are of interest to both wine makers and brewers, and posting and cross posting of such topics, is considered both appropriate and desirable. Personal stories and experiences shall be welcome as long as they pertain to the craft of wine making.
alt.food.wine – welcomes all questions relating to wine (in relation to consumption and food pairing), though questions
concerning winemaking might get more responses in the related newsgroup
rec.crafts.winemaking.
