Not enough juice for a batch question

[Leeboy]

Last night we picked our grapes ( Concorde) and juiced them but we don't even have close to enough juice for a full batch. Is there a way to just for fun scale down a recipe and use some other kind of container instead of a carbouy? We might have 4 or 5 litres of juice . Maybe 6 . But like i said , this is just for fun and were ok if we get a couple bottles of wine out if it . Questions I have are , amount of yeast ? And the amount of the other additives normally ? Thanks

 

[sour_grapes]

It is okay if you use the whole pack of yeast. (You can also just use a proportional part of it.) Yes, the other additives should be scaled.

 

[Brew and Wine Supply]

yup, scale back, using the whole pack of yeast won't hurt anything. Ive done some batches where I only got one bottle out of it, don't like to waste anything.

 

[Leeboy]

Thanks for that info , all I have us the 21 litre carbouys, what can in use as a carbouy instead of the large ones I have ?

 

[Treeman]

You can do the fermentation in you 21L carboy. Just fit it with an airlock and the CO2 you produce will easily fill the container. When it finishes, you will want to get some gallon glass jugs, or pickup several 1.5 - 3L glass bottles to rack once fermentation is done. These are handy to have around to put some topping wine into if you ever make 5-8 gal batches in the future.


Cheers!

 

[Leeboy]

I hope I did this right .....so we smushed all the grapes and squeezed/filtered as much juice as we could. Poured it into my primary fermenter, poured the yeast and closed the lid. It's been about 5 days now , and it's definitely fermenting. When I was googling ( for fun) different one gallon wine recipes , I came across a page where ther saying you need to boil water and sugar or something to kill germs in fresh juice, and not to use sulphites . So, I'm at the 5 day stage and going to test gravity later, but am I on the right track? Or did I wreck it ?

 

[Tenbears]

When making wine from grape juice I never add water so there is little boiling going on. to "Sterilize the must" Kill wild yeast I generally use Potassium metabisulphite. If you are in the fermentation process then you made it home free to this point. wild yeast can conflict with cultured yeast and change or diminish the fermentation. if you have an strong active fermentation going it will most likely continue, there may be subtle difference in the finished product if wild yeast has been involved in the fermentation, but if this is your first time you certainly would not notice it. When you rack it off the lees add campden tablets to the wine to help stabilize it. Try to use potassium metabisulphite tablets rather than sodium metabisulphite Tablets, as the sodium remains in the wine. you should be fine

 

[Leeboy]

Can someone explain the next step and amounts of product I need please ? I checked the gravity this morning after 6 days of formenting. It was reading 1.040 . It looks like red pea soup. I will filter it into a 1 gallon glass jug . What is next ?

 

[Tenbears]

Do not filter it. let it stay with the lees until it is done fermenting, it is okay to place it in a carboy (JUG) but do not filter it just syphon it in, or pour it. attach an air lock and let it continue to ferment until the bubbling stops.. Then rack the wine off the lees, or filter add 1 crushed campden tablet and let stand under an airlock to clear and offgas as it clears rack again and allow to stand continue this process every 45 days or so until no sediment falls in a 30 day period. then bottle and age

 

[Leeboy]

Thank you very much for that information it sounds a lot different of a process than buying a wine kit at the superstore. Should I just leave it in the primary for now or should I pour it into the jug with airlock

 

[Tenbears]

You can leave it in the primary as long as it is still fermenting, remember that yeast only converts sugar to alcohol in the absence of oxygen, although head space is not that important when the yeast is working because the CO2 produced by the yeast keeps the O2 off the must. it is better to cover with a tight lid and attach an airlock so the yeast effectively work, as the fermentation slows unsecured covers can allow o2 to transfer within the primary. At a minimum you want to leave the must undisturbed while converting sugar to alcohol. By placing in a carboy, reducing headspace, and attaching the airlock, your wine will be safe even if you should forget it for a while.