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My Vanilla Red is bulk aging in glass now. I started with a Fontana Pinot Noir kit, scaled to 5 gallons. It has a nice, medium body, juicy blackberry notes (from primary), and a distinctive vanilla finish (from secondary), which I know is a deviation from a genuine pinot noir, but damn, it's...

joeswine this is a fantastic resource, I've read the first 25 pages and I can't stop. Thanks for your generosity in sharing your knowledge! I've mostly made fruit wines up to now. Last night I started my first cheap kit wine - a $42 Fontana Pinot Noir. These are the tweaks I made: Instead of 6...

Thanks! My kids are grown and half of them are gone so I don't cook half as much as I used to. I miss it. I'm still gonna smoke anything that will stand still for it, even if it goes to the local soup kitchen.

I'm happy to announce a new addition to the family: Sorry so big... She's listed at $298 on the mfctr's website, and $252 at Home Depot. I got her for $110 at Gander Mountain's going out of business clearance today. She was the last one they had. Her name, of course, is Smokey...

In a past life (overseas where wine was nigh impossible to obtain) I made countless gallons of plain old grape juice wine from a local juice that was available in tetrapaks. My recipe never varied, so making wine was more of a chore than a hobby. But it served a demand, I guess. Now, I'm...

No, I understood that's what you meant. Thanks again.

Thanks again, all. Montanawineguy, yeah, I foresee some obsessive days on the horizon for me. It's funny the things that grab your interest, while others fly right by your radar screen. I love making soap, while candles interest me not at all (the two often go hand in hand). I'm fascinated...

Thanks Arne, I greatly appreciate it.

I've made two batches each of SP and Dragon's blood. I've had a similar issue with all of them--they just smell really yeasty, even when by the creators' accounts, they are ready to drink. Here are brief notes on the issue: The first batch of DB, made chapter and verse by Danger Dave's...

I had a lot of leftover sauce from the double batch of chipotle-braised short ribs I made several days ago. I hit it with the stick blender to puree the mirepoix, then added a generous splash of cream and a little more wine. It's simmering in the slow cooker now. I'll serve it over fresh...

Gander Mountain here in my town is going out of business. I'm going to head over there tomorrow and see if I can snag the grinder and stuffer at a steep discount. I think everything is 40% off right now. Thanks so much all! I will get Ruhlman's book and also look into the chest freezer etc.

Niiiiiice! I sometimes introduce my husband as "my first husband." Keeps him on his toes.

So far I've only made two (6 gallon) batches of SP, and one is still in the secondary. I used Dragons Blood yeast slurry for the first, and it tasted quite a bit like DDDB. I used a blueberry wine slurry for the second batch, and when I had to top off the secondary, I topped it with blueberry...

I would say no, because you're holding a fruit drink, with lots of additives. Juices for making wine should ideally be 100% fruit juice with maybe some ascorbic acid (Vitamin C).

I've been a soapmaker for about 15 years now; this is my first year making wine; I've experimented with cheese making, but it's not really my thing. Now I want to try my hand at charcuterie. What is/are the best resource(s) for a beginner in this craft? I know from my long years as a soaper...

Chipotle Braised Short Ribs I found the chipotle-braised short rib recipe that someone recently posted on here, and I just put a dozen of those sweethearts to bed in the crock pot for dinner tonight. I'd rather make it in the oven, bc it seems like the liquid might better reduce that way, but I...

My hydrometer was only $7 at my local homebrew store. It's the one investment you really have to make. I'm new to this too, so I don't have a lot to add, except if your juice has a short shelf life you might consider freezing it until you have a chance to do the research to make it the best...

My son is a soldier, about to deploy for 9 months. As he is a big mead fan he wants to start a 5 gallons batch of plain old mead before he leaves. I will tend it while he is gone. When he gets back it should be clear and bulk aging in a carboy. My question is, at that point can he divide it...

Thanks all! I'm not a mead fan but my son is. He's a soldier, about to deploy for 9 months, so I want to make a few different meads to have ready for his welcome home next year. I'll definitely add this one to the list.

Yes there is. Is there a way to overcome that? Someone gave me this bag and my first thought was, o I can ferment that!