Day two of 1 gal batch - Blackberry Wine (Premier Cuvee, dry wine yeast)
Must is in primary (no yeast added yet).
Checked SG - 1.094 (seems to have risen slightly since yesterday)
1) ** Is the SG within an acceptable range (any suggestions)?
Yeast package suggests 1/4 cup water (100°F)
I'd like to add some must, citrus and nutrient to make a starter.
2) ** Does this sound like a good way to get fermenting going?
3) ** Can I add all nutrient to starter of should some go into must?
24 hrs after Campden was added will be in approx. 3 hours.
4) ** Is this enough time for starter to work?
5) ** Once yeast is in primary do I just place a towel over the primary for 3 days or should I set the lid on the primary with airlock from the beginning?
Racking Questions in a week or so.
Thanks,
1. - 1.094, if fermented down to .995 will give you roughly 13% abv. Will be fine for preservation even if it stops at 1.000-ish. You'll definitely feel the warmth in your chest either way, dont worry.
2. - Normally, what i do, is keep some of the juice (pre-sugar additions) in a quart jar to start my starter. It has a lower SG than your adjusted must, but a higher SG than water. I figure the small amounts of sugar present are enough to let the yeast get started when the times right (when they're done multiplying).
I make my starters in empty 2-liter soda bottles. First i add 1/3 of the quart jar to the 2-liter, then sprinkle the yeast. Let sit for 15 minutes and swirl it in.
2 or so hours later, i come back and add another 1/3 of the quart pre-adjusted juice. Another 2 hours pass and i add the last 1/3; by this time the 2-liter is about 1/3 full - from this point i start adding the adjusted must in roughly the same quantities at the same time 2hr time interval.
I usually pitch my yeast when the 2-liter is full, giving the starter as much time as i can. Not everyone does it this way, granted, but i find it works wonderfully. When the starter gets introduced to the rest of the batch, i usually have foam & soda-can-sizzling of Co2 within another 2 hours.
Something to consider for future batches. And since i dont use water, but juice/must instead - this gets me past any extra tampering with the starter that i didnt already do to the juice/must. A little bit of nutrient & energizer in the starter is all i add, chemical/additive wise.
If you're read this far, the method you suggested will work - i just wanted to give your mind something to chew on.
3. - 99% of the nutrients should go in the must. A dash in the starter, i find, helps.
4. - 24 hours after campden tablets / k-meta, should be plenty of time for your yeast/starter to take off.
5. Never go by days, for fermentation. Never. Instead, go by SG. Every fermentation is different & they dont always work at the same speed.
The majority of a fermentation is 'aerobic' - meaning it needs oxygen to perform. I would almost suggest to throw your lid away, because you'll always want to use a towel for fermentation (except for the fact that the lid will keep dust out when you're not using it)
Theres different schools of thought on when to switch to "anaerobic fermentation"/secondary fermentation & i've been adjusting my personal perspective as i go along. My first batches, i removed the fruit straining bag and racked to secondary @ 1.020 - 1.030, but i had trouble with my wines finishing. Most have stopped between 1.004 - 1.012 & i believe the cause is that too much of my yeast colony is within the straining bag - remove the bag, lose the yeast.
So from here on out, i'll be fermenting to "dry", in primary. Seeing as how a just-fermented wine is loaded with co2 still, the chance of oxidation are practically nill & thats about the only thing you could worry about at that point.
People will suggest racking to secondary anywhere from about 1.030, to dry. A few batches will start to show you what will work best for you.
