- Joined
- May 4, 2010
- Messages
- 594
- Reaction score
- 16
Every forum that I have ever been a part of has a thread for general rules of thumb for that forum. In this case we have winemaking and enough experts and non-experts here to have a good rule of thumb thread.
Add your one line rule of thumb you follow for your wine making, I will edit this post and add them as they are posted for as long as I can.
I will save Tom the trouble of posting his favorite and put it up for him.
So here goes it
PW:
listen to the people that have been there done that
Tom:
follow the three P's, Patience - Patience - Patience
follow the three T's, Taste - Taste - Taste
think out of the BOX
Use WineCalc to figure how much sugar to add
djrockinsteve:
Learn how to read a hydrometer and use it, it is your friend
xanxer82:
Degas properly!
Measure twice cut/pour once
granda:
always check weights and measurments twice and again for luck
UglyBhamGuy:
Sanitize
Take notes
IQwine: Listen to Tom
robie:
A check of specific gravity is the only reliable method to determine if fermentation is ongoing
Don't try to degas unless the temperature is at or above 75 F
Just before bottling, if your wine is in a glass carboy, utilizing either a vacuum pump or a vaccu-vin do one more degas, just to be sure
When bottling, inside the bottle always allow ~two fingers of room between the top of the wine and the bottom of the cork
Always have a backup hydrometer handy
Never bottle cloudy wine
Runningwolf:
Own two more carboys of each size then you think you'll need. You never have enough
Ensure you own an extra hydrometer and glass thief
Stabilize before back sweetening
If it is not moving, ferment it
Never throw anything away. If its crap, mature it
You will never get 6 bottles to the gallon
If in doubt, improvise
Keep notes
make sure you keep all wines labelled at all stages of winemaking
Always present your homemade homebrew wine well
non-grapenut:
Dont forget the pectic enzyme!!!
myakkagldwngr:
Ferment juice, not water
Get everything you can from your fruit or berries before going to the gallons you are looking for
sirden1959:
best advise I can give is if you don't understand something, and have a question... ask it here, seek advice, then listen to it...
jdeere5220:
Let the wine tell you when it is done, Not the other way around
Julie:
Date your chemicals
ffemt128:
Always have a willing participant to taste your wine along side of you and to give you an honest opinion
steviepointer:
When deciding what to make next, make what SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed) wants. Get it out of the way, so you can move on to making the good stuff
Daisy317:
Just because the recipe says so does not mean it will work for you. Don't be afraid to tweak a recipe to your taste
Make wine you like. There's no use of having a cellar full of wine you won't drink
non-grapenut:
If you have a friend or family member that DOESN'T like wine, have them taste test...THESE are your worst critics! If they say "that's do-able" then you know you have a weiner
PW
Add your one line rule of thumb you follow for your wine making, I will edit this post and add them as they are posted for as long as I can.
I will save Tom the trouble of posting his favorite and put it up for him.
So here goes it
PW:
listen to the people that have been there done that
Tom:
follow the three P's, Patience - Patience - Patience
follow the three T's, Taste - Taste - Taste
think out of the BOX
Use WineCalc to figure how much sugar to add
djrockinsteve:
Learn how to read a hydrometer and use it, it is your friend
xanxer82:
Degas properly!
Measure twice cut/pour once
granda:
always check weights and measurments twice and again for luck
UglyBhamGuy:
Sanitize
Take notes
IQwine: Listen to Tom
robie:
A check of specific gravity is the only reliable method to determine if fermentation is ongoing
Don't try to degas unless the temperature is at or above 75 F
Just before bottling, if your wine is in a glass carboy, utilizing either a vacuum pump or a vaccu-vin do one more degas, just to be sure
When bottling, inside the bottle always allow ~two fingers of room between the top of the wine and the bottom of the cork
Always have a backup hydrometer handy
Never bottle cloudy wine
Runningwolf:
Own two more carboys of each size then you think you'll need. You never have enough
Ensure you own an extra hydrometer and glass thief
Stabilize before back sweetening
If it is not moving, ferment it
Never throw anything away. If its crap, mature it
You will never get 6 bottles to the gallon
If in doubt, improvise
Keep notes
make sure you keep all wines labelled at all stages of winemaking
Always present your homemade homebrew wine well
non-grapenut:
Dont forget the pectic enzyme!!!
myakkagldwngr:
Ferment juice, not water
Get everything you can from your fruit or berries before going to the gallons you are looking for
sirden1959:
best advise I can give is if you don't understand something, and have a question... ask it here, seek advice, then listen to it...
jdeere5220:
Let the wine tell you when it is done, Not the other way around
Julie:
Date your chemicals
ffemt128:
Always have a willing participant to taste your wine along side of you and to give you an honest opinion
steviepointer:
When deciding what to make next, make what SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed) wants. Get it out of the way, so you can move on to making the good stuff
Daisy317:
Just because the recipe says so does not mean it will work for you. Don't be afraid to tweak a recipe to your taste
Make wine you like. There's no use of having a cellar full of wine you won't drink
non-grapenut:
If you have a friend or family member that DOESN'T like wine, have them taste test...THESE are your worst critics! If they say "that's do-able" then you know you have a weiner
PW
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