Hey all!

[TNAgronomist]

I just started to get interested in small time wine making. This summer I'm going to have a small crop of strawberries (75 or so plants...125 or so pints!) and want to turn some of this crop into some nice wine. I have thought about getting the same kit that mjdtexan ordered a couple days ago.

I do have some questions however. The kit comes with one carboy or better bottle (6 gal). Which of those would be best for me? Also, would I need a second one for the second racking?

My other question is regarding bottles. Is there any benefit from having one of the clear/amber/green/blue bottles over another or is it purely aesthetic?

 

[arcticsid]

Hi Tn, don't wait till summer. Start a batch now for practice, whether its a kit, fruit or even frozen concentrate. This will make you more prepared when it comes time to use those special strawberries. practice may make perfect, but wine can be made out of just about anything.
Troy

 

[TheTooth]

Congrats on the strawberry crop. I hope your wine turns out great!

Plastic Better Bottle or glass carboy... is that the question? That will get you all kinds of answers from different people. There are pros and cons to both:

- The biggest detractor to the better bottle is that it is plastic, so it will allow some micro-oxygenation.

- The biggest detractors to the glass carboy is heavier weight and possible breakage. They are not like a car windwhield, so when they break they shatter in a million skin-shredding pieces. If you go this route, just handle them carefully and you should be fine.

The bottles only matter if you leave you wine out in the light. If you cellar it in a dark place (closet, cellar, etc...), then the bottle colors are purely asthetic. If it will be exposed to the light for any amount of time, I'd go with the colored bottles to help prevent the ill effects of the sun on your wine.

 

[TNAgronomist]

Thanks for the welcomes and answers. I will probably be ordering the kit soon to make a trial 1st batch.

 

[Wade E]

As for the 2nd carboy, you dont need 1 as you can rack it back into your primary bucket temporarily whie you clean and sanitize the carboy and then rack right back inti there for safe storage of your wine. it is much easier and quicker to get a 2nd carboy though and it wont be extra for long trust me. Soon youll have 2 carboys full and be looking for a 3rd and so on!

 

[cpfan]

TNA:

I have 6 glass carboys and 3 Better Bottles (all 23 litres or 6 US gallons). I will never have more than 5 + 2 full so that I have a free one of each type for racking.

A few years ago, I was making wine and beer with a buddy, and we had 9 glass carboys between us. We used a simple spreadsheet to help us plan carboy usage.

I haven't gotten to that point recently but then I still have one glass & one BB unused since the move.

PS, I also have three 11 litre (3 US gallon) carboys still unused since the move.

Steve