Hello from a WNY Gardener

[Shirley_Rocks]

Hi, all... My name is Shirley, and I have a degree in geology (no job atm) hence the name. I'm an avid vegetable gardener, I have some fruit trees and things, planning on more, and I am new to wine making, although I grew up around a little bit of it.

I've been reading up on it for years, had purchased some equipment several years ago, but hadn't been able to find glass carboys locally until a few days ago. One year I was going to buy the plastic kind, but then masked robbers wiped out all of my concord grapes. Those @#&%@ raccoons seem to know when grapes have reached their peak of perfection!

When I was a kid, my dad made a few batches of wine, and I was allowed to try sweetened versions of the dandelion and the rose petal wines he made. You know, there aren't many things I remember clearly from back when I was that young, but I remember those distinctive tastes very, very well. Since the Japanese beetles tend to destroy those very same roses, it's unlikely I'll make that kind (although the first bloom occurs just before the beetles emerge, so next your I may beat them to it) but I'll definitely make dandelion wine. I've read a few recipes online over the years, and I understand better why the flavor was so distinctive.

So obviously, I'm a science buff and will enjoy this hobby from that aspect probably almost as much as I'll enjoy the finished products! I also enjoy cooking, and I'm very good at differentiating flavors and picking out the many "notes" in foods and wines, so I know I'll love that part of it as well. I also like making pickles, so a bad batch may find some unusual repurposing I also just generally like being able to make anything from scratch, and anything that can help me be more self-sufficient, so wine making fits a lot of my interests. and that, too

So today, I'm going to start cleaning my carboys (they're a little dusty as I got them at an estate sale) while I prepare my first must of blueberries which are in season right now. I have H.E. Bravery's "Successful Wine Making at Home" and while the language is a little dated, it's very straightforward and easy to follow. I'm armed with all sorts of little jars of powders and things and a hydrometer and other fun toys.

I'm looking forward to playing "mad chemist" and enjoying the finished product as well as hanging around here and learning more. I'm very much at home with online forums and know how enjoyable it can be to share tips, ideas and hard won successes and failures with others who enjoy the same pursuits. Looking forward to that here!

 

[winemaker_3352]

Welcome aboard!!

 

[Runningwolf]

Hello Shirley and welcome to the forum. I don't if you're near Westfield or Buffalo when you say western NY but there should be several places around to buy carboy. It was nice you founf some used ones as they are hard to find. If you live near the PA line Presque Isle Wine Cellars has carboys very reasonable. If you're up near the Falls then maybe Larry can direct you to places to shop. The best place on line for all the other supplies if Fine Vine Wines. They are great to deal with and if you call they'll answer all you questions and make any suggestions you ask for. Feel free to ask questions any time here.

 

[robie]

Welcome to the forum. Be careful! Wine making can be habit forming.

 

[ibglowin]

Welcome to WMT Shirley!

 

[Tom]

Welcome!
What part of WNY are you? There are some great places aound there for getting wine stuff. Walkers http://www.walkersfruitbasket.com/ is one of them.

 

[Flem]

Hi Shirley, This forum rocks too!! Welcome!

 

[Julie]

Hi Shirley,

Welcome to winemakingtalk.

 

[Larryh86GT]

Hi Shirley-Welcome to the forum. When were you able to get your veggie garden started this year with all the rain we had in the spring?

Larry

 

[Arne]

Hello Shirley
Welcome to the forum. We have a cure for the masked bandits around here. Get a electric fencer like they use for livestock. Get some electric fence posts and insulators and a roll of fence wire. Put one strand about 6 inches off the ground and string another strand about 14 inches up. That will keep the little buggers out, but won't really harm em. Make sure you disconnect the fencer before you get wrapped up in when you are picking or whatever. They do talk to you. lol, Arne.

 

[Shirley_Rocks]

First off, thanks to all of you for the welcome messages. From lurking around here, I could tell this was a friendly place with a lot of nice, helpful people.

Hello Shirley
Welcome to the forum. We have a cure for the masked bandits around here. Get a electric fencer like they use for livestock. Get some electric fence posts and insulators and a roll of fence wire. Put one strand about 6 inches off the ground and string another strand about 14 inches up. That will keep the little buggers out, but won't really harm em. Make sure you disconnect the fencer before you get wrapped up in when you are picking or whatever. They do talk to you. lol, Arne.

Thank you for this info, because I've been doing a ton of Googling on electric fence set-ups, but most are related to keeping dogs or livestock in, and not keeping pests out. I have actually inherited a very nice solar panel electric fence charger with a gel battery that, AFAIK, hasn't been used much, and a quick flash in the sun proves it's still working. My garden is fenced with coated wire (but not with posts to spec - further apart than they should be, but I can reinforce that where needed).

Your last sentence hints at what no fence set up instructions have included, at least not the ones I've found... how do I set up the wire where the gate is, so I don't end up keeping myself out? LOL There seems to be little or not instruction available on how to actually terminate the wire so that it successfully wraps around the whole garden. I'd also like to be ready to extend the wire around the fenced part of the garden and an additional area outside of it if I decide to get serious about growing corn. Without a fence, the masked bandits could get past the electric fence high or low if I don't set it up properly. While I seem to be able to find all kinds of great info online for all kinds of things, some of the more complicated steps regarding electric fence have been harder to find.

Let me know if I can PM you with some newbie electric fence questions or if you have some good resources. Everything I've found falls very short, and I'm at a point in life with enough experience that I like to at least try to do things the most optimal way the first time, not the 40th time. And I have plans to get those masked bandits reduced in numbers, but that's another story and another forum...

Hi Shirley-Welcome to the forum. When were you able to get your veggie garden started this year with all the rain we had in the spring?

Larry

I got things in pretty late, Larry, but my tomatoes are doing really well! I have over 50 really healthy looking plants and should be able to pick my first Roma in the next day or two. I've had a few nice grape tomatoes every day for the last week or so, and a few summer squash and early cukes, but the cucumber beetles have been really intense and between them and ground hogs for the plants outside the garden fence, I've lost some plants. That said, I started some cukes from seed as the early ones I started indoors began to flower, and the cuke beetles, so far, have left the greenery on them alone, since they have the flowers of the other ones to hang out in and... well.. get it on... they always seem to be doing that when I catch them... anyway, I'm thinking it might be wise to plant a lure/sacrificial crop every year and then start new seed if possible as the flowers on the early ones start to open.

My pepper plants are small, but producing a lot of fruit (thank you, bone meal) and I've eaten a few small ones so far (cajun bell, a mild-hot kind, and gave a big Hungarian hot wax away) and I haven't yet figured out why they haven't bushed out. My soil (clay with few stones, and nice and dark for the first 12-18") still needs some work.

And I learned some things about tomatoes this year while trying some new (to me) varieties: Romas from seed (which are heirloom) survived my brutal hardening off technique (live and learn) with a ratio of like 10:1 to the other seedlings, which included two other plum-types - "summer Salsa" (one or two plants made it) and "Rio Grande" (6 or so surviving, and producing fruit, but only 3-4 per set, not 4-6 like Romas) and my Romas, planted as the same time as "Early Girls" are turning red already, with no sign of change from the Early Girls.

I got my green and yellow wax beans in late and they're just starting to flower. My melons and pumpkins are prodding along. It was such a joy to get rain today... even when the Buffalo area has gotten it, we've often been skipped. It's nice to have Lake Erie, cheap water and soaker hoses set up, or it would just all be dried up now.

Hoping for some beets really soon. I do love me some beets! And I hope it cools down a bit to start the fall crops. I really want edible pod peas!

Welcome!
What part of WNY are you? There are some great places aound there for getting wine stuff. Walkers is one of them.

I haven't been to Walker's yet, as it's a bit of a drive, and they were the one I knew about that only stocked plastic carboys when I called them 4 years or so ago. I did check out the closer Dunkirk Homebrew place and it turns out, they have carboys at reasonable prices. I managed to get mine at an estate auction for a bit less, but I assumed (my bad) that Dunkirk Homebrew was too small of a place to want to have that kind of thing taking up space. Once I get my finances in order, I'll be back for some 3 gallon glass carboys, and who knows what else. I enjoyed my visit there and learned a lot. It's my understanding, and I may be wrong, that Walker's only carries things seasonally. I do eventually want to check them out, but I'm very happy to support Dunkirk Homebrew since it's closer and the owner and workers I encountered so far are really nice and really knowledgeable.

It feels good to do business with local people in a small, specialty shop. Let's hope Walmart never enters the home brew market...

Welcome to the forum. Be careful! Wine making can be habit forming.

I'm counting on it!!

Hello Shirley and welcome to the forum. I don't if you're near Westfield or Buffalo when you say western NY but there should be several places around to buy carboy. It was nice you founf some used ones as they are hard to find. If you live near the PA line Presque Isle Wine Cellars has carboys very reasonable. If you're up near the Falls then maybe Larry can direct you to places to shop. The best place on line for all the other supplies if Fine Vine Wines. They are great to deal with and if you call they'll answer all you questions and make any suggestions you ask for. Feel free to ask questions any time here.

I'm very close to Westfield and it was there which I picked up my first carboys at a residential auction. Thanks for the tips on regional places - I can already tell that any trips I make for other things will also result in side trips regarding wine, and maybe eventually beer (I know it's more complicated, and I have celiac disease, so I'll have to approach it from sorghum or other non-wheat, barley, rye, etc. starters if/when I do get into it). I also like the drive to Erie and Presque Isle areas and always try to fit in as many destinations as I can... I have some friends in Erie I haven't seen in far too long, so I should really try to plan an eventful day trip to see them and hit Presque Isle Wine Cellars.



And: Wow. Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone. I figured there would be some regional folks, which is why I included my general location in the thread title, but I'm surprised by so many in such a short time. Glad I quickly found a very active forum.

Hopefully, I will take the time to post my slightly bizarre, fresh blueberry + frozen concentrate first batch concoction I made today as my first must. While it doesn't follow a recipe, I followed the rules as I understand them from the last several years of researching.

The hydrometer will tell a good part of the story tomorrow after it's been left to do it's thing for 24 hours.

I started with reading about old school recipes that only used Campden tablets, but no pectic enzymes, acid blends, energizers or nutrients for yeast. I think (or I would like to think) I've researched the methods enough to know how to err on the side of caution and understand the process and what each of these additions do, so I used the E.C. Kraus chart for blueberries, and added pectic enzyme, acid blend and yeast energizer accordingly. But... I supplemented my shortfall of blueberries with frozen concentrate, and I added a smidge of fresh grated ginger, like I would to a blueberry pie, because it's A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.

I should really do a purist batch of just blueberries into wine alongside this, but I really like light table wines over heavier port style wines. I wouldn't have chosen blueberry wine as a first batch except that it's what is in season atm.

I'm paper-journaling my recipe and steps, so if it turns out to be really awesome, I'll post all of the nitty gritty details here...

or how to make some killer vinegar out of it... we shall see...

Thanks again for the warm welcome - it's nice to come on board to a forum and feel relaxed and among friends right away.

 

[PCharles]

Welcome Aboard

Welcome aboard! I look forward to getting to know you better.

Paul

 

[Arne]

For the short fences we usually just step over them. If you have wooden posts they make insulators that nail onto the posts. Won't need seperate electric posts then. For a gate they make insulated handles to make an entrance with. Any more questions about this, I will try and talk you thru it. I suspect there are others here with more experience with these fences. Most of mine is when I have run into a fence or stepped over one. Over is much nicer than into. lol, Arne.

 

[Larryh86GT]

Shirley - Have you grown Chioggia beets? I've had good luck with them and am picking/eating them now.


http://farming101.wordpress.com/2008/08/22/growing-fancy-chioggia-beets/

 

[Shirley_Rocks]

For the short fences we usually just step over them. If you have wooden posts they make insulators that nail onto the posts. Won't need seperate electric posts then. For a gate they make insulated handles to make an entrance with. Any more questions about this, I will try and talk you thru it. I suspect there are others here with more experience with these fences. Most of mine is when I have run into a fence or stepped over one. Over is much nicer than into. lol, Arne.

Thank you, Arne! That really answers quite a few of my questions. I should probably go over to Tractor Supply and see what kinds of parts they have. I've seen insulators that (I think) can attach to the wire fence, so I know actually doing it shouldn't be difficult, it's planning the details about making it easy to deal with. I'll probably come back and want to pick your brain once I get around to actually putting it up, and I thank you for the offer

Shirley - Have you grown Chioggia beets? I've had good luck with them and am picking/eating them now.

No, I haven't yet - they're very beautiful. Do they taste just like all red beets? All I found locally were Detroit Dark Red, and they're doing great. I later found some seeds for 'Cylindra' which should be great for canning slices, and I'll put them in as soon as it cools off a bit. I'm hoping to try some more unusual varieties next year. I was lucky to get as much in as I did!

This is my first year doing it at this kind of scale. I'm really enjoying it! Too bad pumpkin wine doesn't sound very good because I think I'm going to have a few too many of those...

And wow - I've already learned a ton of info in the last few days lurking the posts. I added the yeast to my must last night. Everything is looking and smelling very good so far!

 

[Runningwolf]

Shirley I never heard of Dunkirk Homebrew. Is it a decent place for buying supplies? I goggled it and it said it sounds like its near Silvercreek, is that correct? Walkers is actually very close to the area. There is a crazy candy store I go to when I pass through Silvercreek.

 

[Shirley_Rocks]

Shirley I never heard of Dunkirk Homebrew. Is it a decent place for buying supplies? I goggled it and it said it sounds like its near Silvercreek, is that correct? Walkers is actually very close to the area. There is a crazy candy store I go to when I pass through Silvercreek.

I thought it was great, but since I've never been to another, I don't have much for comparison. It's a small little outbuilding behind a big beige barn on Rt 20, just west of the official "town" of Sheridan, so it's a little closer to Fredonia than Silver Creek, in fact, 1.6 miles east of where rts. 60&20 cross. The barn was converted to a commercial building some years back, and I think once held a big sign for Grape Country Candles (which is in the "town" proper now) and a doctor's office/chelation center. The big building is easy to see, but the brew place is easy to miss because the building is toward the back and I didn't notice any signage. I don't know what the hours are, but the phone is 679-7977.

From the site about the owner: "Steven Spears is the proprietor of Dunkirk Homebrew Supplies. He has been brewing BEER since 1995 and making WINE since 1988. He has won numerous awards at local beer and wine competitions. His best beer moment was brewing a 100 gallon batch of German Alt beer for the Barker Brew Company in 2002. Steve is knowledgeable in all aspects of the beer-making and wine-making process. Bring in your beer and wine questions, and Steve will do his best to answer them."

They have glass carboys in a variety of sizes, and when I called Walker's a few years ago, they either only carried plastic or the glass variety cost a fortune. Dunkirk Brew (in Sheridan, with a Fredonia phone number) has 5 gallon for I think $35? and they have one gallon with an airlock set up for $4 something. They had a variety of Red Star and Lavlin yeasts $1 a pack, plastic airlocks for $2 and additives and cleaning stuff in varying amounts, all at prices that were as low as any I'd found online (but I'm not as well versed as you are). They had juices and purees, flavoring liquids (not sure if they were extracts or artificial flavors - probably both), various gadgets, and a whole bunch of beer making stuff that I don't know much about, but he does have sorghum syrup for gluten free beer which I'll probably eventually try out. I spent a good half hour in there talking to the guys, and they were really helpful and not pushy. I brought in all the stuff I bought years ago and the guy working walked me through all of it. There were also more than a dozen carboys full of potions

From the outside, it looks really small, but they are master packers. There is quite a bit of product in there, and they're open year round. I'll probably check out Walker's when they're open in September, but I can't imagine needing anything they won't have at Dk Brew or that they probably wouldn't get with enough requests or personal interest in a product. Their website says they'll special order.

LOL the crazy candy place is Valvo's... I remember that giant "little" girl out there as the highlight of many trips as a kid. I guess this place does have character!

EDIT: According to their Facebook, which they don't update much, their hours are Mon - Fri: 12:00 pm-6:00 pm, Sat: 10:00 am-6:00 pm

 

[Runningwolf]

Thanks Shirley. Just for the record don't count on Walkers for any equipment except 5 gallon better bottles for $15.00. They are mainly a destination just for juice. They sell to wineries all over the country.

 

[Shirley_Rocks]

Thanks Shirley. Just for the record don't count on Walkers for any equipment except 5 gallon better bottles for $15.00. They are mainly a destination just for juice. They sell to wineries all over the country.

Oooohhh, good to know, thanks. They're a little bit further away from me (Mapquest says 15 minutes, but that seems very, very unrealistic). It sounds like I'm really lucky to have Dunkirk Homebrew. We don't have many mom and pop shops left, but that and Westwind archery are the kinds of places where you can go in and talk to enthusiastic owners who have turned their hobbies into a business, even though it might not be their main source of income, sadly. They're the kinds of places I like to support, but also the kinds of people I like to chat with. Hope you get to check it out next time you're out this way or feel like taking a road trip.

 

[Runningwolf]

That is why I asked you, because when I goggled them they do seam to be very close to each other (within 15 minutes). Walkers is only about 3 miles off of rt 20