A Hair in my Must

[rakundig]

So, I just started my first batch of wine.

I also have a golden retriever (lots of shedding constantly).

I went into a secluded part of the basement to make my wine and when I poured in the must everything seemed good. My daughter came in and asked how things were going and I said they were going well. I had done all my sanitization and I had just poured in the "grape juice". She asked where my dog was and I said she couldn't be in the basement while I did this because she sheds too much and I can't get contaminants in the wine.

Then she pointed it out; there was a single small golden hair in my must.

Call me deflated.

Since I had all the kit anyhow I went ahead and removed the offensive hair, checked the rest of the must with a flashlight for any more floating day ruiners, and not having found any others I completed the instructions and I have set my fermenter aside to begin the process.

So, the question is; because there was a single golden retriever hair in my must is my wine ruined???????

 

[Pumpkinman]

You will be fine, continue making the wine per the instructions.

 

[cmason1957]

I feel your pain, I have a golden retriever as well. We do our best to keep them out of the area, but sometimes we get a few Duke hairs flying around. It will be fine. Haven't found one in a bottle in four years of making.

 

[rakundig]

Thanks

Thanks! I appreciate the responses; especially yours cmason1957. Those retrievers are great dogs, but man, that hair is uncontrollable. It just seems to float around in the air sometimes. No matter how much brushing or bathing, they just keep losing hair.

Glad to hear it shouldn't ruin the vino! I am excited about my first batch and I would hate to not know what may have affected it because of a stray hair.

 

[WVMountaineerJack]

Even a few dog hairs wont be a problem unless you get so many it clogs your racking cane! Just imagine in the old days they used their feet to smash the grapes, and that was before they even knew what germs were, can you imagine the sweaty smelly feet stomping grapes all day, and compare that to your worry about a few stray dog hairs? WVMJ

 

[jamesngalveston]

hey i will take that wine off your hands....

 

[Bartman]

An old girlfriend's family used to find bits of their Bernese Mountain Dogs' fur in food and drink all the time. They jokingly referred to it as "flavoring particles". They were kind of embarrassed by it when visitors pulled a black-and-white 2-inch-long hair out of a beautiful plate full of dinner, but resigned to the fact that they weren't going to be able to prevent it. As a visitor, it's more easily forgiven if the dogs are nice and friendly.

 

[jamesngalveston]

Do not get me wrong, I love dogs, I had dogs my whole life until i had to my last one to sleep, 9 years ago....
My sister has 3 dogs and 3 cats...her house stinks,and hair is everywhere even though she is a great housecleaner....
Dogs are great, but a pain...once your without one, you dont have to worry about them if you leave, you dont have to feed,care, get shots, vet bills,are have dog hair everywhere...
What gets the most is the people that take there dog everywhere, even to your house with out asking if its ok.

 

[Turock]

This is such a funny thread because I also have a retriever--and I never eat ANY meal without one of her hairs!! I would never get rid of her to have a hairless house!

When we are bottling, we always laugh about having a hair in every bottle of wine--sort of like the worm in the Tequilla!! Hair is no problem, as the alcohol content and PH will not allow the growth of any bacteria.

 

[cmason1957]

We have a sign posted in our kitchen.

At this establishment dog hair is considered a condiment.

 

[dangerdave]

I have a large (dumb) cat---our last. And two stupid dogs. I love them all dearly. They shed everywhere, including the Lab. It's an occupational (or occupant) hazard. I had a friend who actually returned a bottle of my wine to me because she could see a hair in it---white wine. I laughed and told her she has likely consumed many hairs, as she has had a good many bottles of my wine.

I drank the wine. She has not asked for more.

 

[dburling]

Thanks for the laughs! Unfortunately, I had to put my best friend, Jake (yellow lab), to sleep a week ago. I haven't found any hair in my wine yet but I guarantee I have consumed my fair share over the last 11 years.

Again, thanks for the laughs here. Very therapeutic!!!!

 

[JohnT]

In my best Arnold Schwarzenegger voice...

"a har in your must... Quik, GET DOWN!"

Honestly, a hair in your must is nothing to worry about..

 

[Julie]

Thanks for the laughs! Unfortunately, I had to put my best friend, Jake (yellow lab), to sleep a week ago. I haven't found any hair in my wine yet but I guarantee I have consumed my fair share over the last 11 years.

Again, thanks for the laughs here. Very therapeutic!!!!

Sorry for your loss but I am enjoying the thread too.

 

[dburling]

Thanks Julie!

 

[rakundig]

Follow-up

Thanks everyone for the info on the hair.

Things have been going pretty well so far. My wine fermented nicely in the 6 gallon container and it has been racked into the carboy. It has been there a few days so I degassed it today.

One item of note: I cleaned my equip with c-brite. I let it all sit in the c-brite for a bit (couple hours) then rinsed and let it dry. I noticed that my degassing wand smelled a bit chlorine-y so I rinsed and rinsed and rinsed and scrubbed and scrubbed. Still smells a bit chlorine-y. I degassed anyhow. Any worries?

Now, on to my real question.

When I took out the bung it had some "green" on it. I assume this is because a few days ago I had to refill my airlock thingy and apparently it was kind of stuck because when I removed it the wine popped a bit and shot some wine out and then it leaked for a little bit, bubbles galore.

Anyhow, I didn't think to take it out and resanitize I just waited until the thing stopped making a mess and put the refilled airlock back in. That was about 3 or so days ago.

So, today I take it out and it has a bit of green on it. Is this an issue?

I washed it off and then got some star san and soaked it in a bit of the solution for about 10 min then rinsed and dried it before putting it back in; I also wiped down the inside of the carboy neck with a clean towel to get whatever else may have been there. The must still smells fine but I am curious if I may have caused a problem by not cleaning it earlier.

Oh, and one more question. What is the best solution to put in the airlock? The instructions say "sulfite solution". I have c-brite and star san. Either of those good?

 

[jamesngalveston]

i use plain water....the liguid never touches the wine, and the water keeps the air out of the wine.

 

[rakundig]

i use plain water....the liguid never touches the wine, and the water keeps the air out of the wine.

Ok. What I read said was to use some sort of sulfite solution so that things won't grow in the water. I suppose if I change the water when I degas it should be fine.

 

[Uvas]

I heard that vodka was good to use in the airlock, so that's what I use.

 

[rakundig]

I heard that vodka was good to use in the airlock, so that's what I use.

That makes sense to me. I will probably do that from now on.