Fermentation on the homestead v2 (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 7/16/2025 4:39:06 PM EDT
|
My original thread was archived because I took too long replying. :( I'm not going to add everything into this thread, but I will copy over the first couple of posts for the easy reference. If this thread ends up archived, I'll likely let someone else start another one. I am still drinking the peach wine from last August and it is still awesome. Even better with age actually! Lets talk about fermentation on the homestead. My goal here is to really focus on winemaking but we can talk about pretty much anything that ferments as far as I’m concerned. Maybe I’ll share my current attempt to make my own apple cider vinegar in here too. I’ve been sharing my progress off and on in the Homestead Hangout thread for a bit. I've been asked to start a thread about it so here it is. I have been making my own hard cider/wine for about 9 years now though and have learned a few things along the way. I'll happily share anything I can with y'all and help where I can. Of course, I'll also share my process and how I go about it. I won't claim to be an expert at wine making by any stretch of the imagination. First, what is fermenting? To steal it from Wikipedia: The process of fermentation in winemaking turns grape juice into an alcoholic beverage. During fermentation, yeasts transform sugars present in the juice into ethanol and carbon dioxide (as a by-product). More sugar in the batch to be fermented results in higher levels of ethanol in the finished product. Many factors play into the ethanol content as well, such as ethanol tolerance of the yeast. At some point, the yeast will stop fermenting because it can’t tolerate more than a certain level of ethanol based on the strain of yeast being used. This is why you have to distill ethanol to get hard liquors. Most guides will tell you to measure the specific gravity and rack at a certain point. I never have and personally love the result. I just let the initial fermentation run until it is done. Then about 4 days after the bubbles stop I rack the wine for another couple of months under airlock. To “rack” is just to move it to another container without the sediment. So siphon off the fermented must into a clean and sanitary carboy. My start was in a small kitchen in Va Beach. There with a handful of 1/2 gallon glass jugs I started making hard cider.  This was apple juice and yeast mixed in a bowl and then funneled into the jugs. I think I used champagne yeast for this batch. No sugar added or anything like that, just yeast in this first batch. To sanitize back then, I boiled everything. You should use an actual airlock to prevent outside debris, bacteria, molds, bugs and such from getting to your product. Making wine attracts bugs with the off gasses.  For me, the other main factor is I want to control every aspect of my winemaking process to create a consistent wine that is the exact way I intended. I know people have used balloons and such for an airlock, don’t be cheap, you can get a 6 pack for about $10 on Amazon. The fluid that goes into the airlock should be sanitary, personally I use vodka. You can use sanitizer solution too. I’ve only ever had the fluid from the airlock pull back into the batch once and I’ve done countless batches at this point. So whatever you use, it should be safe to drink in case it does. Another side note, I hate those S type airlocks and have replaced all of them with the three piece airlocks. They are so much easier to clean, sanitize and maintain. After my initial hard cider batch turned out pretty good, my mom bought me a winemaking equipment kit similar to this one as a gift and then a wine ingredient kit to go with it so I could make her a batch of the wine of her choice. My equipment kit came damaged in shipping so I called to get the one broken part replaced and they sent me a whole second kit. Carboy, bucket and all the other goodies. Funny thing, I never use the part that was broken, the hydrometer. Since that batch for my mom I started making my own apple wine using apple juice from the store. For my last duty station in the Navy, I was the cookie cop (Messdeck Master-At-Arms) of the galley so I learned about food prep and the difference between cleaned and sanitized. This is huge when making wine because you want to control what is causing the fermentation. You don’t want the wrong yeast in there, it can/will ruin the batch. I make 6 gallon batches and it takes months, so I’m near OCD levels of stringent about cleaning and sanitizing everything in the process. This includes the must itself. Do not skimp on the sanitizing. I use Star San for the equipment personally because it works great and doesn’t have to be rinsed off. Another point of caution, sanitize the surface/rack you put your freshly sanitized equipment on when you let them drip off the excess. I’m going to post the guide I followed for making apple wine in the next post. If you read the guide there it walks you through the basic process. My wife and I do like sweet wine, so I back sweeten the wine once it is done with racking. Not all wine I make is from store bought juice, but the bulk of it is. Two years ago I was able to make peach wine that was insanely good from juiced peaches bought locally (throw offs that had to be cut up). The process is still mostly the same. You have to kill any yeast in the processed peaches (fruit) to ensure it doesn’t ferment with the wrong yeast. To ensure the must doesn’t have the wrong yeasts running wild in it, I sanitize the must. Sanitizing wine prevents the growth of bacteria and yeast. The Campden Tablets accomplish this by creating an inhospitable environment for wild yeast. The biggest thing I’ve had to learn with this whole thing is patients. It just takes time and there is no rushing it. Some recommendations on equipment to get other than what was mentioned above already: Floor corker. If you are going to be bottling a 6 gallon batch it ends up being about 33 corks you have to set (for 750ml bottles). The dual-lever one in the kit sucks. Synthetic corks. To each their own, but I prefer the synthetic over real cork for a multitude of reasons. One word of caution, if you send a corkscrew all the way through and then try to reuse the cork the hole does not close in and will leak. So don’t send the corkscrew all the way through if you are going to have leftovers from the bottle you will want to save for later. Good cleaning brushes. I really like this set and it does a pretty good job cleaning the bottom of the bottles. I still have the old set that came in my kit and they have started rusting. These new brushes are way better. Mixing paddle for drill. This is a Godsend when mixing 6 gallons of anything with six pounds of sugar and the other ingredients used in wine prep. Carboy caps. No more rigid bungs that don’t seal well on the carboy for racking. These have been a huge blessing for the process. You can open one port and not have the chance for your airlock to pull the fluid into your batch either. Carboy drainer. For years I struggled with getting the carboy to be upright for full drainage after cleaning/sanitizing until I finally looked for a solution. Here you go, took me years to realize how much I needed this little bit of plastic. Mortar and Pestle. I have one similar to this. Primarily used for the Campden Tablets and easily cleaned and sanitized. FastRack bottle drying rack. This is huge for properly draining the wine bottles once you've washed, rinsed and sanitized them. They sell catch trays too if you don't have a drain pan already. I’ll try to keep this post updated with other product recommendations so as new people find the thread they have an easy reference. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
This was a double tap, but I'll edit it to talk about additives and such instead. Glad I ended up with the double tap now. Yeast Nutrient Pectic Enzyme "These enzymes break down pectin present in fruit cell walls leading to efficient juice extraction and a clearer final product with minimal residual pectin debris. Pectin breakdown allows for maximum fruit and grape juice extraction while yielding more flavors, colors, and aroma from ingredients also accelerating clarification during primary fermentation itself— reducing sedimentation issues later on." Acid Blend Wine Tannin Ascorbic Acid Campden Tablet (Potassium Metaphite) Per Wikipedia: Campden tablets (potassium or sodium metabisulfite) are a sulphur-based product that are used primarily to sterilize wine, cider and in beer making to kill bacteria and to inhibit the growth of most wild yeast. They are also used to eliminate both free chlorine and the more stable form, chloramine, from water solutions (e.g., drinking water from municipal sources). Campden tablets allow the amateur brewer to easily measure small quantities of sodium metabisulfite, so they can be used to protect against wild yeast and bacteria without affecting flavour. Untreated cider must frequently suffers from acetobacter contamination causing vinegar spoilage. Yeasts are resistant to the tablets but the acetobacter are easily killed off, hence treatment is important in cider production. Wine Yeast (Lalvin EC-1118) I grabbed the Technical Data Sheet from here (mirrored in case they take it down). Potassium Sorbate Per Wikipedia: Also known as "wine stabilizer", potassium sorbate produces sorbic acid when added to wine. It serves two purposes. When active fermentation has ceased and the wine is racked for the final time after clearing, potassium sorbate renders any surviving yeast incapable of multiplying. Yeast living at that moment can continue fermenting any residual sugar into CO2 and alcohol, but when they die, no new yeast will be present to cause future fermentation. When a wine is sweetened before bottling, potassium sorbate is used to prevent refermentation when used in conjunction with potassium metabisulfite. It is primarily used with sweet wines, sparkling wines, and some hard ciders, but may be added to table wines, which exhibit difficulty in maintaining clarity after fining. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
I'm about to start another batch and came to update my original thread only to discover the archive thing bit me. So if you're interested in my past posts, please check the archived thread. I walked through the process of turning a Gorilla cart full of peaches into 10 gallons of peach wine. On top of that, my normal apple wine that is my normal wine produced here at my homestead. I've finally started getting some real production from my Scuppernong vine so I'm planning to add that into my apple wine in the future, though maybe not this batch. My Alblemarle vine still hasn't produced much, but I have a few grapes on it. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
I'm gathering my supplies to make my next batch of apple wine now. I pulled out a bottle of peach wine I made last year and it looks amazing! I'll tell you, it also tasted amazing! |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
| I have not forgotten to do my next batch of apple wine. I just haven't been able to actually get to it lately. Everything seems to have stepped in front of it as a project. Hopefully I'll get to it next weekend. I'm nursing (likely) broken ribs right now, so picking up 7 gallon buckets of juice isn't high on my list either right now. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Originally Posted By turtle2472: I have not forgotten to do my next batch of apple wine. I just haven't been able to actually get to it lately. Everything seems to have stepped in front of it as a project. Hopefully I'll get to it next weekend. I'm nursing (likely) broken ribs right now, so picking up 7 gallon buckets of juice isn't high on my list either right now. What yeast do you use? I do back to back batches of hard cider 1 gallon at a time and lately I've been using the Juicy Juice Cherry as a base along with SafCider yeast. |
an event "of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,"
|
Originally Posted By Brundoggie: What yeast do you use? I do back to back batches of hard cider 1 gallon at a time and lately I've been using the Juicy Juice Cherry as a base along with SafCider yeast. I always use Lalvin EC-1118 for my wine. I've used 1116 in the past, but likely stick with 1118 for the foreseeable future. I haven't put much thought into doing smaller batches though I really should. I got those two 1.5 gal fermenting jugs too. Maybe I'll have play on the smaller scale some this fall/winter. We do have some Scuppernong grapes on the vine this year, but not enough for even half a gallon. The vines are pretty young still. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
I make my own Natto fermenting it for 18-20 hours. ( Fermented soy beans with a lot of nattokinase and vit K2 mk7, claims are made it helps reverse heart disease plaque) I also make my own L. Returi yogurt fermenting it 24 - 36 hours. Lots of health claims on this one. I used to ferment ginger beer, but gave up drinking. Interruption over, back to wine making |
|
Originally Posted By Mach: I make my own Natto fermenting it for 18-20 hours. ( Fermented soy beans with a lot of nattokinase and vit K2 mk7, claims are made it helps reverse heart disease plaque) I also make my own L. Returi yogurt fermenting it 24 - 36 hours. Lots of health claims on this one. I used to ferment ginger beer, but gave up drinking. Interruption over, back to wine making When I did the original thread, and even recreating it with this one, I had in mind to talk about more than fermenting for wine. I want to get into everything from vinegar (Apple Cider Vinegar), pickling, yogurt even. Please feel free to share some of the details on the process. I'm willing to try to ferment all the things we might do on a homestead. I was raise a military brat so I didn't get to do any of these things. After getting out of the Navy myself I'm finally ready to try some of these things. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Originally Posted By turtle2472: I always use Lalvin EC-1118 for my wine. I've used 1116 in the past, but likely stick with 1118 for the foreseeable future. I haven't put much thought into doing smaller batches though I really should. I got those two 1.5 gal fermenting jugs too. Maybe I'll have play on the smaller scale some this fall/winter. We do have some Scuppernong grapes on the vine this year, but not enough for even half a gallon. The vines are pretty young still. Honestly, I use 2-gallon plastic paint buckets from Lowes. I recently bought a food grade mini pump to transfer from primary to secondary and it works great for bottling as well and it runs off USB power. Very handy and easier than other transfer methods I used in the past (e.g. siphons). I'll post a pic of it later. |
an event "of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,"
|
Originally Posted By Mach: I make my own Natto fermenting it for 18-20 hours. ( Fermented soy beans with a lot of nattokinase and vit K2 mk7, claims are made it helps reverse heart disease plaque) I also make my own L. Returi yogurt fermenting it 24 - 36 hours. Lots of health claims on this one. I used to ferment ginger beer, but gave up drinking. Interruption over, back to wine making Ever done sauerkraut? That's something I'd like to try. |
an event "of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,"
| I did some saurkraut this year along with my pickles. I found the 3-4% salt by weight recommended by many recipes to yield a very salty end product, pretty much inedible. I tried a batch at 2% figuring it would probably mold before the lactobacillus could get going, but it worked really well. The result is pretty close to a classic German style, just salt and cabbage. I packed it into a half gallon mason jar and used one of the plastic lids that isn't air tight. I did innoculate with a tablespoon or so of brine from a finished jar of fermented pickles. |
Born with a low tolerance for bullshit
Joined:
Feb 2007
Posts:
53278
EE: 0% (0)
KY, USA
|
Originally Posted By HYomG7: I did some saurkraut this year along with my pickles. I found the 3-4% salt by weight recommended by many recipes to yield a very salty end product, pretty much inedible. I tried a batch at 2% figuring it would probably mold before the lactobacillus could get going, but it worked really well. The result is pretty close to a classic German style, just salt and cabbage. I packed it into a half gallon mason jar and used one of the plastic lids that isn't air tight. I did innoculate with a tablespoon or so of brine from a finished jar of fermented pickles. I'm very interested in this. I had started to learn fermenting but life interrupted everything this year, even the garden. (the cattle panels are hanging full of rotting tomatoes.  ) So I'm going to begin again this fall winter as I can.If you ferment something, will you put it here so we can see? 
|
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
|
I will try to remember to take some pictures of the process next time. For the pickles I use a 4% brine solution. You want to use an iodine free salt; I use kosher salt. I use this same brine to ferment other vegetables as well. Cauliflower and baby carrots work well. My only complaint is that the end product isn’t really considered self-stable and canning them wouldn’t be safe and would also destroy any beneficial bacteria or enzymes present in the ferment. I have been leaving some pickles on the self to save fridge space. They continue to ferment, so you can overshoot your desired flavor profile, but they are still good even months later. The kraut goes in the fridge when I’m happy with the flavor. This year I had a ton of cucumbers, so I made some thin sliced pickles and then dehydrated them and powdered them in the food processor. It made an awesome super concentrated powder that is fantastic on popcorn and French fries. |
I haven't stopped to clean my dishes yet and they are piling up on me. Maybe I'll get them done today. My reserves are also getting really low now.  I feel like I'm finally over the broken ribs. Moving around doesn't hurt and I really only notice my ribs when I put direct pressure on them now. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
Born with a low tolerance for bullshit
Joined:
Feb 2007
Posts:
53331
EE: 0% (0)
KY, USA
|
Originally Posted By Mach: I make my own Natto fermenting it for 18-20 hours. ( Fermented soy beans with a lot of nattokinase and vit K2 mk7, claims are made it helps reverse heart disease plaque) I also make my own L. Returi yogurt fermenting it 24 - 36 hours. Lots of health claims on this one. I used to ferment ginger beer, but gave up drinking. Interruption over, back to wine making @Mach It's not an interruption in my view. OP will be the judge of what fits in his thread but I'm very interested in all fermentation. We buy A2-A2 raw milk from a guy through a herd share, and after a year I still haven't managed to make anything of the clabber except one batch of really bad ricotta.  Fermenting is a broad art and a useful skill, and no two ferments are exactly alike as far as I can tell. The more I can learn and understand, the better. Your post is the first I've heard of the soy. I try to avoid soy but I bet the ferment fixes any ill effects and has some good ones! |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
|
Oh, please talk about more than wine here. I'm interested in anything fermenting really. I talk about wine most because it is my main hobby with fermenting. Speaking of wine, I did the dishes last night. Almost two hours of handwashing, rinsing and sanitizing.  I was going to start the next batch of apple wine but didn't have it in me to put the effort in last night. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
I plan to start my next batch tonight. While we were relaxing before bed the other night my wife brought in some cider. It was awesome. Not something I would want often, but it really was enjoyable. In my first thread someone mentioned doing spiced wine. Since I do apple wine mostly, it just seems to fit.  My wife picked these up clearance somewhere recently so I'm going to try. My plan is to ferment like a normal batch of wine. When I go to rack the wine, I'll rack a gallon in one of my new gallon fermenters and add the spices to it. Then I'll get a gallon to test with and 5 gallons of my normal wine. I'm really looking forward to this test. While I won't be heating the wine with the spices in it, letting them sit in it for months should still do the trick of flavoring it. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Wine process started! I added the brown sugar to the bucket and then one gallon of juice. This minimizes the splashing when adding the brown sugar after the juice.  Add in the ingredients like tannin, pectic enzymes, etc...  Stir in with the paddle and drill...  Waiting for 24 hours so the Campden Tablets finish sterilizing the mash. 
|
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Originally Posted By Brundoggie: My set up for hard cider: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/85882/bucket_sm-3663577.jpg The transfer pump: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/85882/Pump_sm-3663575.jpg The cord is flimsy so I got a spare one. That is a cool looking pump! My mom bought me a purifier/pump that I've used once so far. I still just do everything with the auto siphon. I might have to look at getting a smaller pump like that one. Mine is this one without the primary sediment filter.  
|
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
Gnats from summer haven't all died around here yet. Two found my prepped mash. I fished them out before pitching the yeast.  Yeast has been pitched.  
|
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
Born with a low tolerance for bullshit
Joined:
Feb 2007
Posts:
53337
EE: 0% (0)
KY, USA
Um... carnage in the airlock! I'm thinking I might go ahead and rack this just so I can swap airlocks and clean this one out! We did bring in a ton of plants to winter out in the basement so that must be where all these gnats are coming from. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Yeah, I couldn't take the airlock being so bad so I went ahead and racked it. I'm sure I'll do a secondary racking after this because I let the siphon go into the sediment. :( Racking into freshly sanitized carboy:  Very actively fermenting still:  Cloudy because it is still actively fermenting, but the airlock is clean! Plus, it has been 6 days since I pitched the yeast and the recommendation is rack after 4-5, so I'm good: 
|
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Originally Posted By turtle2472: Yeah, I couldn't take the airlock being so bad so I went ahead and racked it. I'm sure I'll do a secondary racking after this because I let the siphon go into the sediment. :( Racking into freshly sanitized carboy: https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1048.jpeg Very actively fermenting still: https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1049.jpeg Cloudy because it is still actively fermenting, but the airlock is clean! Plus, it has been 6 days since I pitched the yeast and the recommendation is rack after 4-5, so I'm good: https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1051.jpeg The little mini-pumps I showed earlier have lead me to retire my siphons. They are great for bottling since you can keep it just below the surface until you get close to the bottom of the bucket to avoid sediment. The last bottle or two in the bucket will have some sediment and they are marked as late bottles. I'm going to rack my bucket of hard cider tomorrow to get it off the lees and bottle Sunday or Monday. |
an event "of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,"
|
Originally Posted By Brundoggie:The little mini-pumps I showed earlier have lead me to retire my siphons. They are great for bottling since you can keep it just below the surface until you get close to the bottom of the bucket to avoid sediment. The last bottle or two in the bucket will have some sediment and they are marked as late bottles. I'm going to rack my bucket of hard cider tomorrow to get it off the lees and bottle Sunday or Monday. A similar one to yours is in my cart. I don't have Prime so I build up orders for free shipping. I'm going to get one with a power button so I can turn it on or off without fussing much with it. I was thrilled to see it as an option and do wish I had it for my racking. I don't know that I'll use it for bottling, maybe. I have to trust it first. :p |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Awesome. Really great documentation of the process. And your setup is awesome. Very jealous. I did some Joe's Ancient Mead a few years ago, we really liked it. Me and wifey don't drink much so it lasted quite a while. We were going through the pantry and uncovered the 1gal carboys way in the back. So we started a new batch but changed it up a little and used some fresh apple juice and apples instead of the oranges. No idea if it'll be successful, but we will see in another few weeks 
|
"That pistol just kept saying, let go of my ears, you don't know what you're doing." - thehellbringer
|
Originally Posted By cccpNyC: Awesome. Really great documentation of the process. And your setup is awesome. Very jealous. I did some Joe's Ancient Mead a few years ago, we really liked it. Me and wifey don't drink much so it lasted quite a while. We were going through the pantry and uncovered the 1gal carboys way in the back. So we started a new batch but changed it up a little and used some fresh apple juice and apples instead of the oranges. No idea if it'll be successful, but we will see in another few weeks https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/389138/IMG-20251013-WA0007-3667406.jpg Thank you! I'm hoping my documenting the process will help others be more willing to try things out. Your mead attempt is cool and I really hope it works out well for you! The hardest part of this whole thing is having to wait so long to even see if it is going to be any good. It makes experimenting harder because those long times between fermenting, racking, aging, and enjoying (hopefully) it! Keep us updated on how it works out for you. :) |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
I started the batch that is going to be the spiced apple cider wine. Sadly I waited too long to likely be able to have it for Christmas, but maybe. Last night I did some dishes and mixed in the normal mix for my apple wine but for a 2.34Gal mix. I literally just realized, as I'm typing this post, I put 6lbs of Dark Brown sugar in the 2.34Gal of juice. . Well, I hope it works out! I'm used to 1 lbs bags, not 2. I was good with an extra half pound in there.This mix is also using aged apple juice that is supposed to be awesome on its own. "Best by" August 2024. It should be amazing, if it isn't over powered by the abundance of brown sugar. I'm going to ferment it, then when I rack it I'll add the mulling spices to it. Trying to figure out the best way to do this, I'm planning to put the spices in a Mason jar, get some distilled water and put enough to submerge the spices and then add a portion of a Campden tablet to the mix to ensure it is sterile. This will prevent it from fermenting off again and hopefully let the flavor infuse in nicely without watering it down too much. Ingredients, and what made me realize I doubled my brown sugar. Jars of apple juice including the best by date.   1.5L of juice mixed in with the other ingredients to help them dissolve.  Mixed in.  Staged for 24 hours before pitching the yeast.  I put the bottles on top to minimize the gnats. We figured out why the gnats are so bad down there. It wasn't just the plants moved in for winter. My wife brought down a ton of peppers to dehydrate and forgot about them. They rotted and the gnats have been breeding in the remains. :( Such a loss of some great peppers and the source of all the bugs down in the basement. Taken care of now, but the bugs are going to be a pain to get all of them taken care of. ETA: Pictures are cached bad. They should load shortly on caching expires with my proxy. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
Yeast pitched last night.  My transfer pump is due in Friday. I'll be able to use it when I work through the two batches. I'm hoping I can get this spiced wine a little early, but I just don't think it will be ready soon enough. It certainly won't be clear if I rush it. Not that I am overly worried about clear, but the sediment can really impact the flavor. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
I will be bottling 30 bottles of red blend today or tomorrow. It's been under airlock for 7 months and is now clear. How you can ferment a food without a hydrometer is troubling. It's like reloading by a pinch of powder or not using a torque wrench for gun parts. It's the most valuable tool you own for fermentation. |
|
Originally Posted By DoctorCAD: I will be bottling 30 bottles of red blend today or tomorrow. It's been under airlock for 7 months and is now clear. How you can ferment a food without a hydrometer is troubling. It's like reloading by a pinch of powder or not using a torque wrench for gun parts. It's the most valuable tool you own for fermentation. Nice! Where did you get the ingredients for your wine? Was it from bottled juices like mine normally is or from fresh fruit? For skipping specific gravity; it doesn't change my process if I were to use it. So we could argue my wine is likely higher ABV since I don't stop fermentation at a specific point. If I were to add it back in to my process, it would change the wine the way we like it. This isn't creating a dangerous issue like you suggest with your analogy, it just means I can't tell you how high (or low) my ABV is. It doesn't matter to us and can't be higher than 18% by function of the yeast we are using. Is there something I'm missing on this? I'm open to any input you have and would certainly hear any logic you have on why I should be measuring. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Originally Posted By turtle2472: Yeast pitched last night. https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1070.jpeg https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1071.jpeg My transfer pump is due in Friday. I'll be able to use it when I work through the two batches. I'm hoping I can get this spiced wine a little early, but I just don't think it will be ready soon enough. It certainly won't be clear if I rush it. Not that I am overly worried about clear, but the sediment can really impact the flavor. Why EC-1118 instead of D-47? Have you tried the SafCider yeasts? They make 3 different versions that vary the dryness outcome? I don't use a hydrometer either as it wastes too much product. I use a refractometer instead. 
|
an event "of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,"
|
Originally Posted By Brundoggie: Why EC-1118 instead of D-47? Have you tried the SafCider yeasts? They make 3 different versions that vary the dryness outcome? I don't use a hydrometer either as it wastes too much product. I use a refractometer instead. Originally I started using EC-1118 because it is what I was told to use. As I got more into it I see all these flavors and texture differences other yeasts can make. Also things like alcohol tolerance. One of the sites shows the differences in a neat "radar" chart format: EC-1118:  D-47:  The EC-1118 impacts the included flavors less than D-47 as an example. In my mind, this means I have greater control over the flavor with my additions or removals. I'm open to trying it, but we have pretty much dialed in how we like our apple wine. Those other "enhancements" seem like they might change the flavor a ton. While it might be good, it isn't something I'm going to want to try until I can do a smaller batch for sampling and proof of concept. I did add a refractometer to my Amazon cart too. Don't know that I'll get it, or even use it, but I don't like the "waste" of the hydrometer either. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Originally Posted By turtle2472: Nice! Where did you get the ingredients for your wine? Was it from bottled juices like mine normally is or from fresh fruit? For skipping specific gravity; it doesn't change my process if I were to use it. So we could argue my wine is likely higher ABV since I don't stop fermentation at a specific point. If I were to add it back in to my process, it would change the wine the way we like it. This isn't creating a dangerous issue like you suggest with your analogy, it just means I can't tell you how high (or low) my ABV is. It doesn't matter to us and can't be higher than 18% by function of the yeast we are using. Is there something I'm missing on this? I'm open to any input you have and would certainly hear any logic you have on why I should be measuring. It's just a tool that you should use to verify things are OK to start and when you are done. There is no stopping a fermentation, yeast will do what they do. The "danger" comes from bottling the wine too soon and having the bottles explode from the build up of CO2 in the bottle. Wine bottles are not pressure rated like beer or sparkling wine bottles are. I use kit juice for all my wines. I usually do 2 a year, one starting in Dec or Jan for summer ( a light white or fruity wine) and one starting on the summer for every day wine, typically a heavy red finishing about now. 6 months minimum sitting before bottling. |
|
Originally Posted By DoctorCAD: It's just a tool that you should use to verify things are OK to start and when you are done. There is no stopping a fermentation, yeast will do what they do. The "danger" comes from bottling the wine too soon and having the bottles explode from the build up of CO2 in the bottle. Wine bottles are not pressure rated like beer or sparkling wine bottles are. I use kit juice for all my wines. I usually do 2 a year, one starting in Dec or Jan for summer ( a light white or fruity wine) and one starting on the summer for every day wine, typically a heavy red finishing about now. 6 months minimum sitting before bottling. Do you keep it in the same fermentation vessel the whole time? How long after bottling can you drink it? These are still wines, right? Making grape wine is the next thing I want to try. |
an event "of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,"
|
Originally Posted By DoctorCAD: It's just a tool that you should use to verify things are OK to start and when you are done. There is no stopping a fermentation, yeast will do what they do. The "danger" comes from bottling the wine too soon and having the bottles explode from the build up of CO2 in the bottle. Wine bottles are not pressure rated like beer or sparkling wine bottles are. I use kit juice for all my wines. I usually do 2 a year, one starting in Dec or Jan for summer ( a light white or fruity wine) and one starting on the summer for every day wine, typically a heavy red finishing about now. 6 months minimum sitting before bottling. I did juice kits off the start thanks to my mom. I messed up both of them because I mixed the wrong packets in at the wrong time. To be honest, I was horrible about following directions on those! Your concerns about bottling before fermentation is done is valid. I'm going to probably push that line for this spiced apple cider wine I'm gunning for at/before Christmas. So while I can't stop fermentation, I can stop the yeast from reproducing with Potassium Sorbate. Normally I'm racking (or secondary racking) for months as well. This means I don't have to worry about any yeast being able to kick up fermenting again until I back sweeten. This is where I add in Campden tablets and the Potassium Sorbate. They stabilize it so it won't kick off fermenting again. For my spiced wine, I might bottle some of it in growlers (flip-lock lids) for early consumption and then let the rest age while infusing the spices. I'm still not sure on this one. The fact that I accidentally doubled my sugar in the fermentation phase already makes me concerned about how well it will turn out. The EC-1118 is the best yeast to handle that much sugar though... so we will see. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
I got my new transfer pump in! I went with the slightly upgraded model where the chamber is clear so I can see funk in it. It also has a variable speed motor. I'm going to run some soapy water through it, then fresh water, and finally sanitizer solution to clean it out before using it. The future cider wine is slowing fermentation so I'll rack it in the coming days. The earlier regular batch of wine is ready to be moved for secondary racking. With the transfer pump it should be a much simpler task. I'm really looking forward to seeing it in action! 
|
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Originally Posted By turtle2472: I got my new transfer pump in! I went with the slightly upgraded model where the chamber is clear so I can see funk in it. It also has a variable speed motor. I'm going to run some soapy water through it, then fresh water, and finally sanitizer solution to clean it out before using it. https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1208.jpeg The future cider wine is slowing fermentation so I'll rack it in the coming days. The earlier regular batch of wine is ready to be moved for secondary racking. With the transfer pump it should be a much simpler task. I'm really looking forward to seeing it in action! https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1210.jpeg I think you'll like it. After use I circulate PBW through it, then fresh water, and finally StarSan. |
an event "of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,"
|
I used to grow vine berries: boysenberries, raspberries, marionberries, black caps, blackberries, and Loganberries. I would pick the berries, wash them, run them through a blender then use a fine sieve to strain out the seeds from the berry essence. Then I would pasteurize the berry essence and label and freeze it. After a few years my wife complained that my berry essence was taking up too much freezer space so I had to get rid of it. The 50 pounds of berry essence made 15 gallons of really wonderful berry wine . I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do with all the wine, then a friend who owned a legal craft distillery said if I gave him the wine, he would split it 50/50 with me and return some berry brandy to me.. I sure wish he was still in business, but after a couple of years he went bust and closed the distillery down. The 100 proof berry brandy was aged with French oak chips and turned out REALLY good. I only got about 1.5 gallons back.. |
|
That does sound amazing. I do wish there wasn't such a tight grip on taxes for home distilling. It is all about the money, not the safety of the product or anything like that. I was going to work on the wine over the next few days, but then we got hit with some stomach bug. While I'm just about on the other side of it, I'm not going to handle consumables like wine until I've fully cleared it. While I trust sanitizer and all, there are some chances I'm just not willing to take. ETA: Oh, I'm adding PBW to my amazon cart now. Is there a brand you trust most? I always use regular dish soap and brushes but see the appeal of PBW. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Today I did secondary racking for my main batch of apple wine and primary for my future spiced wine. I also used my new pump! It doesn't flow as fast as the auto siphon, but it was much simpler to use for sure! So first up, sanitizing the carboys again. I always clean and sanitize them before putting them away, but I also always sanitize again before using just to be safe.  Given this was new I ran soapy water through it for a long while, then clear water, and concluded with the sanitizer for a good long but after.  First transfer was good, but I discovered my wine really foams up if you just hook the discharge on the carboy and let it go. I ended up tilting the secondary carboy to have the wine go down the side to reduce the foam.  The future spice wine had one seriously disgusting airlock. Thank God the gnats couldn't get past the vodka.  Then it was on the racking the spiced wine. This worked out REALLY well with the pump I got because I was able to hover the weighted intake right above the sediment and really minimize the sediment it sucked up and get most of the wine out!    The finished racking. I cleaned the airlock on the spiced wine as you might imagine.  We are about to start a batch of pear wine now. A friend of mine sent me a dozen bottles and a case of Harry & David pears for Christmas so I could make some pear wine. I've never done pear before, but I'm looking forward to it! We will juice the pears shortly and supplement with store bought pear juice. I'm going to look up some recipes and see what jumps out at me. I learned from my peach wine, less tannin is more. The tannin is a little strong in my peach wine from last summer. Not bad, just "noticeable". I used the same amount of tannin as I normally use in my apple wine. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
I figured out how I'm going to infuse the mulling spices into the cider batch. I put the spices into a French Press. Added a portion of a Campden tablet to it. Added vodka to the point everything was submerged and stirred. From there I am going to let it sit for 24 hours. I went this route because I don't like the idea of using water in my wine. The little bit of vodka isn't going to raise the alcohol content that much and is also less likely to kick off fermenting again. That is beyond the fact that I added a portion of a Campden table to the mulling spice slurry. Tomorrow around this time I'll pour it into the carboy. I have the large mesh filter that was included with my transfer pump so I'll use it with the carboy when I go to secondary racking. Each packet is "rated" for a half gallon. This is going in about 3 gallons so I should be good with the extra long infusion. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
Spices added! Last night before bed I had to add a little more vodka to the slurry because the spices grew more than I gave room for. Not much, but enough they weren't all submerged. Given how little sediment was in the racking I'm likely to swirl the carboy a few times over the next week or so. I'll then let it sit for at least a full week before either secondary racking or bottling. I'll make that call when I go to strain out the spices. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
Pear wine is in progress! I mentioned earlier that I got a case of pears from Harry & David as a gift to make pear wine with. Well, today is the day it started. I did have to supplement with store-bought pear juice, but I can't imagine it will be a huge difference between all natural juiced pears and pear juice supplementing. Most recipes are basically infused pear juice water and then add more water. I'm going with no water and all juice. For my mix, I went with this: Tannin 1/2 tsp Acid Blend 3 tbsp Yeast nutrient 3 tbsp Pectic enzyme 2 tbsp Campden tablets 6 Dark brown sugar 6#  The pears were skinned, cut, cored and run through the juicer. We also had a punch of extra pears from our church that does fruit bags before Christmas and used them too.    After the pears were juiced I added both the juice extracted from the pears AND the solids that were left off. Since they were already prepped, there was nothing in the solids I couldn't let ferment anyway! Then I added the bottles of pear juice to the batch to bring it just over 6 gallons total.   I'm letting it rest for 24 hours before pitching the yeast tomorrow. Then I'll let it run for a few weeks at least before racking. There were a few dime sized chunks in the pulp, but not many. I expect they will really break down as fermentation kicks in. |
Louis L'Amour, “To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”
|
Originally Posted By turtle2472: Pear wine is in progress! I mentioned earlier that I got a case of pears from Harry & David as a gift to make pear wine with. Well, today is the day it started. I did have to supplement with store-bought pear juice, but I can't imagine it will be a huge difference between all natural juiced pears and pear juice supplementing. Most recipes are basically infused pear juice water and then add more water. I'm going with no water and all juice. https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1438.jpeg For my mix, I went with this: Tannin 1/2 tsp Acid Blend 3 tbsp Yeast nutrient 3 tbsp Pectic enzyme 2 tbsp Campden tablets 6 Dark brown sugar 6# https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1439.jpeg The pears were skinned, cut, cored and run through the juicer. We also had a punch of extra pears from our church that does fruit bags before Christmas and used them too. https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1440.jpeg https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1441.jpeg https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1442.jpeg After the pears were juiced I added both the juice extracted from the pears AND the solids that were left off. Since they were already prepped, there was nothing in the solids I couldn't let ferment anyway! Then I added the bottles of pear juice to the batch to bring it just over 6 gallons total. https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1458.jpeg https://turtle2472.com/ar15/IMG_1463.jpeg I'm letting it rest for 24 hours before pitching the yeast tomorrow. Then I'll let it run for a few weeks at least before racking. There were a few dime sized chunks in the pulp, but not many. I expect they will really break down as fermentation kicks in. That looks really good.  I think I'm gonna do pear cider for my next batch. |
an event "of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,"