lovethepirk
Member
- Joined
- Aug 24, 2009
- Messages
- 66
- Reaction score
- 18
August, 25 2009 6pm
So I spent $200 yesterday and got all my supplies and a "Vino del Vida" red Zinfandel kit. My girlfriend and I were excited. We like Pinot Noir mostly but the local brew guy suggested red zin after a chat on his personal results.
The local guy told me I really didn't need star sans sanitizer and potassium metabisulfite solution would do nicely. I am cleaning everything with that and letting it drip after a good shake.
So we put 1 gallon warm water with bentonite into bucket, easy. Mix in concentrated juice, easy. Add water till I got to 5.2 gallons, checked sg and was nearing 1.09 so I added more water and stirred heavily. Checked and got about 1.088!
Tossed in the inclueded wood looking powder/fine scrapings? No clue what it was. And tossed in the included peppercorn looking stuff, oak maybe? Stirred heavily.
Here's where I am venturing off kit instructions.... I put 1/4 teaspoon of potassium metabisulfite into must to get 40-50 ppm. Stirred heavily. Kit instructs to add this after final rack, but I read you should do this before yeast and wait 24 hours.
We capped bucket and put airlock on with pot. metabisulfite solution in.
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Notes and questions
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1) good move puttin in 40-50 ppm potassium metabisulfite in 24 hrs before yeast?
2) why do we need to wait 24 hrs?
3) Tomorrow before we add yeast should we stir heavily before the yeast or do we not want to stir up the metabisulfite?
So I spent $200 yesterday and got all my supplies and a "Vino del Vida" red Zinfandel kit. My girlfriend and I were excited. We like Pinot Noir mostly but the local brew guy suggested red zin after a chat on his personal results.
The local guy told me I really didn't need star sans sanitizer and potassium metabisulfite solution would do nicely. I am cleaning everything with that and letting it drip after a good shake.
So we put 1 gallon warm water with bentonite into bucket, easy. Mix in concentrated juice, easy. Add water till I got to 5.2 gallons, checked sg and was nearing 1.09 so I added more water and stirred heavily. Checked and got about 1.088!
Tossed in the inclueded wood looking powder/fine scrapings? No clue what it was. And tossed in the included peppercorn looking stuff, oak maybe? Stirred heavily.
Here's where I am venturing off kit instructions.... I put 1/4 teaspoon of potassium metabisulfite into must to get 40-50 ppm. Stirred heavily. Kit instructs to add this after final rack, but I read you should do this before yeast and wait 24 hours.
We capped bucket and put airlock on with pot. metabisulfite solution in.
-----
Notes and questions
-----
1) good move puttin in 40-50 ppm potassium metabisulfite in 24 hrs before yeast?
2) why do we need to wait 24 hrs?
3) Tomorrow before we add yeast should we stir heavily before the yeast or do we not want to stir up the metabisulfite?