New to wine making so bear with me. I thought pectic enzyme was to break the fruit itself to make the juice run out easily. If i am starting with the juice itself not must, do i need pectic enzyme? Also these buckets are not pasteurized. If I wait 12 hours after it hits room temp won't the wild yeasts have already taken hold?
The Merlot I got began fermenting on its own as it was coming to room temp, so I just pitched the yeast at about 65-70 F. I didn't know it would ferment on its own, so I didn't have camden tabs, since I don't need them for my beer brewing. I will be getting some on Saturday before I pick up the other 3 buckets, Pinot N, Cab S, and 1 white Pinot G, Sauv blanc, or Chardonnay.
The Merlot being my first step into wine making was going to be an experiment to see what I could do. Although there was a horrendous smell during the first 2-3 days of fermentation (I looked into the forums and figured it was due to lack of nutrient and or lack of aeration) I was pleasantly surprised by the smell when I transferred to secondary after 7 days and noted I had dropped from 1.100 to 1.020. The stink in my basement had disappeared, and It smelled like any other wine i had ever bought. So after the transfer i decided to jump in head first and buy 3 more buckets this year. Of course I will be paying much closer attention to the smaller details this time, ph, nutrient, aeration, etc.
