Niagara not doing anything?

[Ebonheart]

Ok, this is kinda crazy. 4 days at 65-70 degrees, based on the thermometer. 1.08 SG, unchanged as of last night. I hydrated a second batch yeast on Wednesday, added some juice to it and let it sit for 4 hours. Once I was sure we were alive (obvious frothing of the solution), I tossed it in the juice. In the 2 days since it's clarified again. I stirred it every day since Monday. I'm at a loss for what is going on. There is no visible sign of any yeast activity.

At this point, I'm thinking about moving it to a new bucket, and moving some into a 1 gallon carboy. This should agitate/aereate it enough to get anything out of solution that may be there, and I can keep an eye on a 1 gallon carboy, which should ferment quicker. If all starts going well in the carboy, I can essentially use it as a starter of sorts. I'm thinking of also checking the PH. At this point I'm worried about TOO MUCH nutrient/energizer, I guess. It was suggested for us to add pectic enzyme at the beginning, so we added the amount specified on the bottle per gallon. Could that do doing anything to it?

Anyone ever have this happen? From the amateur winemakers I've talked to, usually fermentation starts whether you want it to or not.

 

[reefman]

Dan,
They are used in the burst charge of large aerial shells. The rice hulls get coated with black powder and placed in the center of the shell. They provide a lower level of burst charge to spread the effects inside the shell across the sky, without damaging them. It's an interesting hobby for sure.

 

[Ebonheart]

As it turns out, the guy I got the juice from is having exactly the same problem I was, only with a LOT more juice. He thinks it was over potassium metabisulfited, and we need to go gingerly with a starter yeast, and slowly add juice over time to overcome it. I have my starter begun. We'll see how it goes. He figures by the time we get to a gallon, it should be ok to stick in the bucket.

 

[Ebonheart]

FYI, Months later. Three weeks after pickup, after much trial and error, a half gallon of Welches, pouring bucket to bucket 3 times a day, and a starter yeast, it fermented down very well. I ended up making a nice off dry wine that reminds me of a sauvignon blanc.