Help! Cherry wine

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Camelia

Very New Wine maker
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Jul 28, 2010
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Can anyone please advise me. I am a new-to-winemaking amateur and have followed the recipe exactly but when I transferred it to the demijohn - nothing happened. I checked for leakage from the airlock and kept the temperature a steady 24. After a week of no action I decided to put in some wine yeast & nutrient activate with warm water and suger, but as I removed some wine (?) from the demijohn to add the yeast mix, I thought it looked really good so sampled a glass and it really is quite clear and taste like a good dry red wine. Not sure what to do now, is that it? do I just skip the 'bubble' bit and bottle? (also, whats the longer thermometer thing with funny numbers and a bulge at the bottom painted red, it came with the job lot but no instructions). Thanks in anticipation of a reply. Camelia.
 
hydro_big.jpg


If it looks like one of these, its a Hydrometer - used to take sugar readings in your wine must to determine how far along your fermentation is.

If your wine tastes 'dry', theres a chance your fermentation is already complete and the yeasts have ate all the present sugar.

If that instrument you spoke of is infact an hydrometer, the object is to draw out enough of the must in a test tube (which might have came with the instrument) for the hydrometer to float. There should be a series of numbers along the instrument, and floating it in the must will give you a reading - you want to read the instrument from a horizontal angle (dont try reading your hydrometer, looking down on it, as it will give you a slightly false reading) - and hopefully it has a Specific Gravity reading.

Specific Gravity is a set of numbers between roughly 0.900 and 1.100, maybe a little lower/higher. Anywhere between 0.900-1.000, and your wine is done fermenting - only if it stays there after multiple readings, which are usually taken on consecutive days.. Slight changes from day to day, means it might be finishing fermenting just a bit

I'm sure more help will come with more questions..

What was the recipe ?
When did you start the batch ?

I'm sure there's more, but they arent coming to me right now..
 
HELP! Cherry Wine

Thank you for replying and yes, it is as your picture and I appreciate you putting me right there. (I now possess a hydrometer and a motorbike - life dosen't get any better than this!)

My recipe comes from Drink Your Own Garden by Judith Glover (a lovely old yellowing book printed 1979 - I love old books!)

The recipe:
6 lbs cherries (not sweet)
3 lbs sugar
1 Camden tablet
2 tsps pectin enzyme
1 gal. Water
wine yeast, yeast nutrient (I used Super Wine Yeast)

by 'Batch' do you mean when did I start this off, it was 6 days ago, 2 days steep after adding boiled water - 4 days fermenting and stirring twice daily then I strained and 'bottled' into plastic demijohns but the airbubble didn't bubble.

My thanks again for all your help.


PS: While I've been typing this, the wine has been sampled by well meaning, encouraging friends and the demijohn has gone down quite a lot so I think I'd better assume "if it looks like a duck . . . etc"
 

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