On 1/12/2021 at 9:24 PM, Douglas K said:So, as a former winemaker, I can tell you that malic acid is just another organic acid. If you’re making chocolate, then I can’t see that because the fruit base contained more malic acid, that it would create any flavor issues for you. Malic acid is a less strong tasting acid, so it won’t be cutting through the chocolate as much. In winemaking we’d do malolactic fermentation for two reasons. First for stability in reds, so it happens in barrel or tank rather than in bottle, second mainly for Chardonnays to get the buttery flavor (which I hate) from diacetyl which is a byproduct depending on what bacteria you used. Long term it isn’t an issue in reds since it breaks down over time in the acid environment. Likely too much information, but there you go. Make on and don’t worry.
Douglas, were you in the industry by any chance? My cousin is a CA winemaker, though he left working for the big concerns when consolidation killed any hope of quality (he ran Jekel, until it was bought by bourbon guys and collapsed all capacity into mass-wine).
It’s a shame, I love his wine. Pretty crazy, I used to work for a craft brewery (Goose Island, pre-Bud), and during that time my wife and I won a trip to England, dinner with the late Michael Jackson (all things malt writer, not the King of Pop) in London and a tour of breweries throughout England.
Pretty cool, after tour of Fuller’s in London, in their adjacent shop, lo and behold I see a small mountain of his wines on display. They gushed, I was and am deeply proud of him.
