Recent content by Swediepie

I thought I'd update on this wine and my plans for it this week. It has been clearing nicely! I was surprised today to get a reading of .988. It's going to need some backsweetening. Today I racked it again and added sorbate and will let that sit for a few days. My plan is to add some...

Thank you! What a great idea to add in some chai tea to top up- I'm going to do that! My head gets so confused and nervous that I'll screw this one up, and I feel like have a unique thing going on here that I don't want to mess too much with. I'll add the sulfite- thank you Saramc for the...

I'm wondering if I may have some advice. Today I decided to rack the wine for the first time. I took an SG reading of .996. I am very happy with it and I love the flavor so far. I'm not really sure at this point what I might do with flavoring/sweetening down the road, because it's tasting...

Aw, yeah! Best feeling ever! I took pictures of mine (and still do) like they are my babies! I get very agitated and annoyed when my primary is empty. Like now.

Just stopping in to say that your kitchen (after the honey explosion) looks like my kitchen every day. I can only blame mine on three sloppy kids and a dog, though. Great photos and tips. I would love to try a vanilla mead and I have it on my to-do list!

I had a brain cramp this afternoon and added 4lbs of granulated sugar to my one gallon recipe for Dandelion Wine, instead of 2lbs. Duh. I had a starting SG of 1.16. Figuring that there wasn't much I could do except go for it and fly by the seat of my pants, I pitched the yeast (Red Star...

I have to try both Skeeter Pee and Dragon's Blood. I started with a few kit wines, and I have to say that making wine from a recipe is so much more exciting, and like you, I feel a new happy outlet. I can't wait to have a collection to open, though. Waiting, waiting, waiting. :)

Bottled: 3.31.13 WineExpert Cabernet Sauvignon 4.13.13 Grand Cru Pinot Grigio 5.5.13 Orchard Breezin Green Apple Gewurtztraminer 6.9.13 Cellar Classic Chilean Malbec 6.26.13 Orchard Breezin Cranberry Chianti 7.21.13 WineExpert Coastal White 7.21.13 Orange Spiced Chai Tea Wine In Primary...

I just picked my dandelions today! I biked to a nearby field and picked away (stuffed two gallon-size ziplocks in anticipation of using only the petals for a one-gallon batch) and a man saw me and stopped, and asked why I would need so many dandelions. When I told him, he asked me to please...

Thanks for the tips! It's a learning curve for me. I'm definitely going to be making this again with some of the suggestions. I've already added the orange juice, so we'll see how things go. I will add in more chai tea later on to up the taste. At least if the entire batch stinks or is...

Can you tell me how to test the acid? I did add yeast nutrient today (1.25 tsp) and I'll take Arne's advice to add some more around 1.04. I now know how to create a volcano project for my kids if they ever need one, by the way! Holy explosion. I didn't lose much, and it made me laugh my...

I think I'll steep overnight and up the tea bag count if I try this again- great idea. I'm clueless on the pH and whether to add nutrient. I have yeast nutrient in my supplies. Is there any harm in adding some at this point? I was very happy this morning to see that fermentation had begun!

Thank you, Manley! I've just added the frozen orange juice concentrate and got a reading of 1.08. A little better. I'll definitely consider adding an orange zest/taste to it like you suggest later on. I appreciate your help!

This is my first big step away from a kit wine, so bear with me and my nervousness! I got the nerve to start a chai tea wine. Today I boiled a gallon of water, added 10lbs of sugar to dissolve, and then added 50 spiced chai tea bags and let them steep for 30 minutes. I removed the tea...

It looks beautiful! Enjoy! Our pinot grigio will be ready to open at the end of June. I can.not.wait.