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I have 2 oak spirals that have been used while I've bulk aged a couple red wines. I'm ready to take the oak out and bottle. Can I sanitize the oak and reuse it for a future wine? Or should I toss it and just buy a new spiral? Thanks!

I started my Amarone with raisins yesterday and added the raisins today. It started me down a paththat's usually dangerous for me-I started thinking "What if..." I see the Amarone with raisins is popular, but has anyone toyed with adding raisins to any of the other kits? A merlot perhaps...

I'm ready to choose my next wine and would like some suggestions. I want a big red, something unusual. I have it narrowed down to the following: Italian Amarone Italian Montepulciano Luna Rosa Nero d’Avola Have you made one or more of the above? How'd you like it? Any other...

I've been busy the last year or so and haven't had the chance to participate here as much as I'd like. Between my day job as a business analystand flipping houses I've been going non-stop for over a year. <?:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /> I started a...

A few weeks ago I worked on my wine-degassed, stirred, etc. While working with it my gas detector went off (a NightHawk CO2/Gas Detector). I have it just outside the basementroom in which I do my wine. I assumed it was a fluke-I changed the battery, reset the unit and it hasn't gone off since...

First off let me qualify my question-it’s regarding a kit that I did NOT purchase from George. I purchased a Riesling/Muscat blended kit. It arrived about 2-1/2 weeks ago and I put it in the primary-I followed the instructions to a “T”. In my defense the directions never said to check the SG...

I racked my cabernet/merlot blend into the final carboy for bulk aging. The directions state that for aging/holding beyond 6 months I need to add 1/4 teaspoon of Potassium Metabisulphate. <?:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /> I would like to age this for...

I'm finally back in town and can start another wine. My primary has been sitting empty for far too long. I started a Vintners Reserve Riesling. The temperature is at 78.8 degrees so I'll wait for a couple hoursbefore addingthe yeast. I have some American White Medium Toasted Oak that...

Ok, so it's my first bottle of wine I'm giving away. It's to my parents for their anniversary. They don't know I'm making wine, so when they come out tomorrow and get a bottle of "my" wine with the familyname on the labelit will be pretty special. A little background-when I was growing...

I bottled my "first born" yesterday. Vintners Reserve Merlot. I'm sitting here with Styx dvd playing onmy secondarymonitor (Dennis DeYoung is singing Show Me The Way), drinking a glass of Merlot that I made myself, typing this onmy primary monitor. Life just doesn't get any better than...

I've read through the thread from Waldo regarding sanitizing and what is and isn't a sanitizer and it contains excellent information. Looking at the link to the April 2006 newsletter regarding sanitizing I see a ratio listed (about 1/2 down the page) of "3 tablespoons of either...

Saturday I tested my first Merlot after it's been sitting in the secondary for 8 days. SG was stable at the number listed in the directions for 2 consecutive days, so I added the final items from the package and stirred it "vigorously" just as the directions stated. I have a question regarding...

It was time to put the wine into the secondary today. It went in perfectly and not a drop was spilled. Next couple of questions..... Is the light a problem? The room is next to the laundry and the lights get turned on several times each day, at times they are left on for a couple hours...

I put everything in the primary on Saturday. SG was 1.080. Temperature was 68 degrees. Had a couple temperature swings, but it's now steady at 72.1. Checked the SG this evening and it was 1.032. The number I need to shoot for (per the directions) is 1.010. At this rate I'm guessing I'll...

Since this is my first batch of wine I'd like to make sure I understand fully the next couple of steps. I have it in the primary and it's fermenting. I did have a little trouble with the brew belt keeping it too warm-this morning it was up to 77.2 degrees so I've unplugged the brew belt...

Clearly I've been bitten hard by the wine bug. I spent much of Sunday afternoon playing around with labels. Here's what I came up with. These are just printed on regular paper and taped onto the bottle. The flash from the camera washed it out some. Here's a better shot of the label...

The first batch was started today. No real problems, just a matter of learning how to use the equipment. Imagine my surprise when I realized I had no idea how the hydrometer should work. I did figure out that the wine thief and the hydrometer worked together (doh!). I was extremely careful with...

Saturday will be my first try at winemaking and (as I warned you) I have some questions. Some of these may seem dumb, but I'd rather ask the dumb question than make the dumb mistake.... My first question is about the primary. It's basically a modified 5 gallon bucket with a lid. Does...

Hello! I know this has been touched on in other posts, but some of those are somewhat old and I thought I'd make my first post with this question. I'm going to dive into home winemaking, and I'm considering the Deluxe or Premier starter packages. In addtion to what is offered with these...