Recent content by ShepherdQ

Yeah that's what I went ahead and did. Every instruction everywhere says to stabilize over SG is below 1, that's why I was worried, but I should have an ABV of 5.4-5.7% Thanks whynot

Yup, stirred very well and kept the brew belt on for 5 days. We'll see, I'll sample before racking

Hi all, I started a batch of DB on 12 April fully intending to take it right to dry in the primary. I forgot to get yeast energizer and used about a pound of honey and 3 lbs of white sugar, worried the hone may have slowed the yeast down. SG started at 1.0512 (wanted a lower final alcohol...

That's what I figured, that you need another source of sugar to offset the tartness of the berries. I will say that it gave the DB a gorgeous deep red colour, it looks awesome! Cheers, Rob

I've now done three batches, each 6 gal, so we're up to 2094 :)

I just bottled my latest (3rd) batch of DB, and with this one I didn't back sweeten with honey or sugar. Instead I made a compote out of the same berry mix I used in the primary and added it during stabilization. It hasn't worked quite as well as I'd hoped. This batch is very dry and tart, and...

Hi all, I've got a batch of quad berry Dragon's Blood in the primary, and I'll be ready to clear, stabilize, and back sweeten by Saturday or Sunday. I've got an extra two pounds of berries that I'm planning to simmer for a few hours with a bit of water and use the resting reduction to back...

Good point Bernard, one might be lulled into a false sense of security and end up drinking too much. And thanks for all the relies everyone. Gregin, now that you mention it I recall reading about the studies to which you're referring. I'll rephrase though: alcohol is just plain bad for your...

I just bottled my second batch of Dragon's Blood, and I wanted to see how it came out before mentioning a major tweak that I made to the recipe. I added only half the recommended sugar (10 cups instead of 20). That made for a starting SG of 1.054 and a final of 0.994, resulting in an...

Well the haze must have been suspended particulate, because after three weeks in the carboy the wine fell beautifully clear. Bottled it yesterday and I'm very impressed. Even my wife, who doesn't drink, found it very enjoyable and even appropriated my test glass! Cheers, Rob

Well it sounds like Red Mountain is the next kit I'll be making! Far and away the most highly recommended kit, even considering kits other than CC. Cheers, Rob

Just Superkleer Cheers, Rob

Excellent, thanks. Now, the following morning, I've got a good 5cm of sediment, but still have a haze in the wine. Pectin? I added the prescribed amount of pectic enzyme at the beginning, should I add more before bottling? Cheers, Rob

Didnt quite make it to 15 days in the secondary, I had to rack yesterday as I'll be traveling for work the next two weeks. Final SG 0.993, for an approximate ABV of 13.3%. Just finished a batch of Dragon's Blood, so I'll drink that while this one ages. I'll start a new thread when I bottle :)...

Phew! Really put a lot of time into this batch, checking SG and squeezing the bag every day (I'm usually much lazier). Just finished racking, degassing, stabilizing, added 2 kg of honey, and Super Kleer. Anyone think the clearing agents will strip out the honey? I stirred the honey in for...