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Ok. I did not rack it through the copper and I left it in the carboy since my last message. I just stole a bit of wine and the smell is reduced, while still present, and the taste and feel is better. I am going to bottle it this weekend. I don't think it can stay in the carboy any longer as...

I purchased a copper funnel and planned to rack it through the funnel. GreginND: how would racking it through copper be toxic? All the pipes in my house are copper. I read about using copper sulfate and there are all kinds of warnings regarding how and when and how much copper sulfate to use...

sorry for my late reply; I didn't pull SG yet, but I did try the pennies. The smell is slightly improved. Still there but better. It isn't quite "bad egg" smell. I read someone describing the smell of Tempranillo as a "leather". I can smell that, but I also smell something else. Like I...

I will pull the SG this weekend. I did degass a couple times and added clearing agents as directed. I will also try the sulfur test. Thanks for the advice. I will let you know how it goes.

Thanks. I have also found tempranillo to have an odd smell. It does smell tempranillo-ish, but stronger. Personally I would have bought something else but this was my wife's gift to me since I love wine and she knows little about it. Still, a great gift. I have tasted it and it tastes ok...

It was a kit. It came in a large sealed plastic bladder. Hmmmm. Not sure that it is rotten eggs or burnt rubber. I will re-check with those in mind. Ok, I wouldn't exactly call it "burnt rubber" but I think I could see why someone would say that. So, I suppose it is "burnt rubber-ish"...

Hello, newbie here. I have been making a batch of wine since Dec. A Tempranillo. When I initially poured the must I noticed it had a very strong smell. I assume that is what must smells like because I have never made wine before. I have gone through all the instructions and I have let...

can't remember the manufacturer and it didn't have a sticker like the video that came with it; go figure. I did get the gravity it was (on 12/28/13) 1080. Before clearing it was 996 which is the upper limit of the instructions. I have degassed it a few times with a drill and a wand...

Ok, so I followed all instructions. I have just completed the "clearing" phase and it is on to the bottling phase. Now, I don't know if this is correct or not (but I saw it in movies) so I used my wine thief to get a small dab of wine in a glass. The wine still smells a lot like the must...

good advice, at my temp I need to adjust by .02, so it is actually darn near ready, better than I thought. THANKS!

sweet, thanks. I will do that. I am also closing the door to the room it is in to trap some of the heat. Hopefully it will hit the magic number in a day or so and I can move on to the next step. Looking forward to having my own wine !

Unless someone lets me know that leaving it in the carboy and not adding the clearning agents for a while longer will ruin it i plan to leave it nearer to the heater so that it may ferment a little more and see if I can get the right SG.

I have always had it on a wire shelf 3' off the ground. I did put it on the cement floor once in the primary fermenter when the temp was waaay high so that it would cool off, but once it was down around 72 I put it back on a shelf, but further away. It maintained about a 77 degree temp there...

Well, I don't have the box anymore so I can't remember the manufacturer; I kept the instructions and I followed them completely (except I added about 1oz of lightly toasted oak) Oh, and I did do one degassing during fermentation in the carboy (which the instructions allow for as "optional")

I just thought of that as well. I am in the basement and it is a little cool. Not sure of the exact temp. When I was in the fermenter I moved it wine a bit further away from my heater because it was around 78 degrees, or higher,not sure since my thermometer on the fermenter stopped around 78...

I am at day 21. I have tested, according to my kit instructions, the SG beginning on day 17. It is approximately .998-.999. I waited until day 19, the same It is now day 21, the same. My kit says that is should be between .996 - .990. It is perhaps, barely, below 1.000 and it says...

Good advice. I will switch to k-meta and I already switched away from c-brite. No more chloriney smell for me.

The k-meta just goes in the wine?

meaning i cannot reuse my Tilia bottles and the screw tops that came with them? Obviously they won't be attached to the metal on the neck any longer but that part is just to keep them from unscrewing on their own and as tamper evidence. If I tighten them down they should be ok yeah? Don't see...

Ah yes, the days of Boons Farm and Wine Coolers. It is true, the crackle sound isn't the same for sure. Tradition, TVs and Movies have helped romanticize that cork popping sound. We are so easily conditioned :) I do prefer a cork because of that kind of nostalgic feeling you get when...