Recent content by frijolero

aren't those contradictory statements?

okay, looked it up. it's a first run. no second run. what does that mean? should i, basically, have pressed less initially, and kept grapes back for a second run? and then combined the two? is there really much point in that? when i squeezed the skins and bits after primary fermentation, there...

Woahh! What do you mean? What's first run / second run? I don't know difference. I am a novice, man. Help a dude out. What are you all talking about? These were grapes from the garden, so I only had what I had.

Reallly? Advice is not to press too much? I just went for it, assuming it would get me more liquid. Do you use Boskoop Glory, by chance?

Got a feeling it might be Boskoop Glory? Has anyone had any dealings with that?

Okay, thanks again. I reckon I probably did get all the good stuff out. By the time I transferred from primary there was a thick sludge at the bottom, and it collected quite suddenly - within 24 hours or so - and the SG went below 1,000. Is there a grape checker anywhere? Will try Google again.

Hi all. I have a separate question – I didn't want to get trigger happy on new threads, so am posting as supplementary to this. Will my wine change colour at all? I have racked it off the secondary lees. It seems very clear. The colour is almost a raspberry red - it looks like Ribena, basically...

thanks for the encouragement. i tasted the final must from the primary - sieved through muslin - and it was really dry. got a feeling i'm going to need some help with it. glad i found this place. so, again, thanks all.

Can I just ask, again, do people agree that a fining agent is not required? That I should just forget it, and worry about racking it off the (secondary) lees and then let it alone for a few months before bottling?

Okay, great. He says campden tablets are the same as k-meta! I have them, so I'll use them - one per gallon. That sound right by everyone? :)

It seems I can't get hold of k-meta in the UK - not off any eBay retailers, anyway. Why would that be? Any decent alternatives?

Am I right to use sodium metabisulphite, or does it have to be potassium metabisulphite? The former seems to be more easily available in the UK.

okay, thanks. i have x4 one-gallon demijohns. it's going to be hard to measure out 1/20 tsp per gallon. is it an exact science for k-meta, or can i just add a pinch per demijohn? do i need to add it with any camp den tablets? presumably, at bottling itself, i sanitise each bottle with a campden...

Hi. Thanks for the feedback. Feel I can relax some. So... there seems to be contrasting opinion on how long to leave it on these secondary lees. Should I leave it as is until bottling, or take it off and syphon into new demijohns now? Your extra advice is appreciated. And, it seems I...

It was below 1.00 after primary fermentation - before I put it into the demijohns. There was a thick lees at the bottom of the fermentation bucket, which I disposed of. There is a thin (0.5 inches) at bottom of demijohns now. Is k-meta essential? The instructions I followed, initially, didn't...