1st batch

[AmityFlatts]

Well I had to dip my toe in the skeeter pee.

I tried to follow the recipe as best I could, I was at 1.06 when I was done mixing and adding ingredients. I opted to just go for a little less alcohol than add more sugar.

It took a while to get it going, mostly because I think I was only about 65 degrees. But beating it like a red headed stepchild every day it finally started working. At a little below 1.05 I added some more nutrients and enegizer as called for.

I racked it to a clean carboy at 1.03 and added an air lock since I wasnt comfortable with a towel over the top. Besides it help me see things are still working. I checked it last night and I am down to 1.01. Kmeta, sorbate and sparkloid are all new to me, so after I get below 1.0 I will be in unfamiliar territory adding more stuff.

It smells good, and I suspect will be tasty. Hoping it gets done so I can try some dragons blood.

 

[Loner]

Well I had to dip my toe in the skeeter pee.

I tried to follow the recipe as best I could, I was at 1.06 when I was done mixing and adding ingredients. I opted to just go for a little less alcohol than add more sugar.

It took a while to get it going, mostly because I think I was only about 65 degrees. But beating it like a red headed stepchild every day it finally started working. At a little below 1.05 I added some more nutrients and enegizer as called for.

I racked it to a clean carboy at 1.03 and added an air lock since I wasnt comfortable with a towel over the top. Besides it help me see things are still working. I checked it last night and I am down to 1.01. Kmeta, sorbate and sparkloid are all new to me, so after I get below 1.0 I will be in unfamiliar territory adding more stuff.

It smells good, and I suspect will be tasty. Hoping it gets done so I can try some dragons blood.

You are doing fine. Now that ACTIVE fermentation has slowed a bit you may have to help your wine stay warm @75* with a brew belt or some other source of heat. Watch your hydrometer and try to get as close to 0.990 as possible. Once you go as low as possible and stay there for 3 days THEN you can add stabilizers as needed...

 

[AmityFlatts]

it is still bubbling away on the airlock,

Pulled a sample last night and dropped the hydrometer in it, shook up the carboy a little, then proceeded to drink the sample smelled a little yeasty, but was pretty tasty, wife even took a second swig, and said I could make more of that.

 

[djrockinsteve]

It will continue if you keep it warm. Once it reaches 1.000 give it a good stir then don't shake it up anymore. It will finish and sediment will start to fall. Based upon time you can guestimate when it should be done. Add an extra day or two then rack off of sediment, degas, add sulphate and sparkolloid. Airlock and let it be.

If you need help with sparkolloid PM me and l'll help you. Yeast taste will go away.

 

[AmityFlatts]

Well its been two months and for the last 2+ weeks the pee has been at 1.00 and wont drop another notch. I decided it must be as done as it is going to get. I added the Kmeta and Sorbate and sparkloid.

Holy cow that sparkloid clears things up in a hurry. Within a few hours the clearing was amazing. The recipe says to let it set two weeks before adding sugar and then setting another two weeks before bottling.

Do I really have to give it the first two weeks? Does it need that much time to make sure the yeast is killed, or is it just clearing time. It has been 3 days since I added the sparkloid. I think I am as clear as it is going to get. I would like to rack again and add sugar and get towards bottling. I got some drinking to get done, and the waiting is killing me.

 

[CBell]

It's just for clearing, you don't need to wait long for the kmeta sorbate to work. Problem is, when I used sparkolloid, it produced pretty fluffy, easily disturbed lees. Waiting helped them to compact a bit. Plus, there are particles too small for your naked eye to see, but clearing agents bind to these particles and pull them out of the wine, so if you bottle now when it looks clear to your eyes and the fining agents continue working on miniscule particles, you can end up with sediment in the bottle.

 

[CBell]

You could probably rack again and backsweeten, though, as long as you're keeping it in a carboy for at least a couple weeks after sparkolloid and not trying to bottle yet.

 

[Arne]

Well its been two months and for the last 2+ weeks the pee has been at 1.00 and wont drop another notch. I decided it must be as done as it is going to get. I added the Kmeta and Sorbate and sparkloid.

Holy cow that sparkloid clears things up in a hurry. Within a few hours the clearing was amazing. The recipe says to let it set two weeks before adding sugar and then setting another two weeks before bottling.

Do I really have to give it the first two weeks? Does it need that much time to make sure the yeast is killed, or is it just clearing time. It has been 3 days since I added the sparkloid. I think I am as clear as it is going to get. I would like to rack again and add sugar and get towards bottling. I got some drinking to get done, and the waiting is killing me.

Well, there is nuthing that says you can't draw a glass or two, put some sugar in to taste and drink away. ONly downsides are it will improve with a little more time, you wind up with a little extra headspace, and you won't have to clean as many bottles. Arne.