Starting Pumpkin Tonight....

[skinnydipper]

...or tomorrow night. This is my first time and I am a bit nervouse.


Wish me luck!

 

[Scott]

Don't put it off start it now, do it come on it's ok.


Good luck to ya.

 

[gaudet]

I second that ............

Get ta Fermentin............

 

[Wade E]

Love the Avatar gaudet, skinny, can you post the recipe for some of us to check out?

 

[gaudet]

Love the Avatar gaudet, skinny, can you post the recipe for some of us to check out?

Ditto on the recipe!!!

On the Avatar, I thought I'd get into the spirit early and since you guys had rankin and bass, I thought I'd be the heat miser since I'm down in New Orleans.
Edited by: gaudet

 

[Wade E]

Okay, whats rankin and bass mean?

 

[gaudet]

Okay, whats rankin and bass mean?

They are the company that produced all those Christmas stories

Check out http://www.rankinbass.com/

 

[Wade E]

Thanks for the info.

 

[dfwwino]

Good luck. Just don't give up if at first you don't succeed. Pumpkin wine is a heck of a challenge for your first wine.

 

[skinnydipper]

My Bride was in the kitchen cooking up a wonderful Cuban Picadillo. We said our normal hello, how was your day? As we embraced, I was thinking pumpkin and could glimpse a large Jack-O-Lantern survivor just outside the back door. I had chores to do, the dog needed walking. I had an ongoing struggle with our cable provider and upgrading systems that I wanted to put-off but I am so put-off by them that I needed to get it squared away. Finally, I had to re-write an assignment for an on-line college course I’m taking through Penn State. Needless to say, I rushed through these tedious duties while visions of pumpkins danced in my head.
I struck a fire in the living room hearth, sat down to a good meal, and enjoyed some brief family time. It was time to make wine. I grabbed a pumpkin, washed it thoroughly, took out my sharpest knife and went work. I ended grating a little over seven pounds of pumpkin by hand. I would like to report that I found some inner peace, Zen, or became one with the pumpkin and task before me, but alas, it was work. It must have been the excitement of making my first wine that kept me going, but I survived and managed to fill a three gallon bucket with freshly grated pumpkin flesh.
I am fortunate enough to have a 25,000 BTU burner and large crock. I boiled up thirteen pints of water and slowly added six pounds of sugar. Simple syrup is what some call it, it’s like cool-aide without food coloring. I brought the simple syrup back to a boil and slowly poured it into my primary where it joined pumpkin flesh. The aroma in the kitchen changed instantly from picadillo to Halloween, it was delightful.
I officially have must? Maybe not yet. As the concoction cooled, I got back on the phone with my cable provider, the “upgraded” service I ordered almost a month ago was still not working. After spending almost an hour on the phone, the concoction had cooled, I couldn’t help it, I grabbed a spoon, sanitized it, and took a little taste. Yep, pumpkin cool-aide.
This morning, I arose early. I realized that I hadn’t made a yeast starter. I decided to use the sprinkle-on-top method. I read my recipe, scratched my head about when to add yeast nutrient and yeast energizer. I’m not a scientist, chemist, or alchemist, but I figured if called yeast nutrient and yeast energizer, it must be required by the yeast for nutrition and energy, so it must go in the must with the yeast. So I used the sprinkle-on-top-method for each of those. The yeast had started belching within 30 minutes. I will mix the yeast partially into the must when I return home this evening.
I’m not expecting good wine my first time out, just hope it’s not bad wine!
This is the recipe, copied and pasted from Jack Keller’s website; hope I didn’t breach recipe sharing etiquette of copy right laws:
Requested Recipe:<?amespace prefix = o ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><O></O>
PUMPKIN WINE<O></O>
<O></O>
"A friend told us about Pumpkin wine they tasted at our Pumpkin
Fest in Port Elgin Ontario, they said it tasted wonderful. Knowing
we had a few homemade recipes, they thought we might have this
recipe. We don't but maybe you have." John Moore, Canada<O></O>
<O></O>
<?amespace prefix = v ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-com:vml" /></V:STROKE></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:F></V:ULAS></VATH><O:LOCK aspectratio="t" vxt="edit"></O:LOCK></V:SHAPE></V:></V:SHAPE><O></O>
<O></O>
PUMPKIN WINE<O></O>
<O></O>
This essentially is Leo Zanelli's recipe and he swears by it. The sugar is high and will produce either an 18% alcohol dry wine or a lower alcohol sweet wine, depending on what yeast you use. If you want the high alcohol, use a high alcohol yeast such as Lalvin K1V-1116 (Montpellier) or Wyeast 3347 (Eau de Vie), both of which can handle the extreme sugar. If you want moderate alcohol but sweet wine, use Red Star Côte des Blancs for 13% alcohol with 5% residual sugar. For slightly less sweet, use Lalvin 71B-1122 (Narbonne), ICV-D47 (Côtes-du-Rhône), Lalvin Simi-White, or White Labs WLP730 Chardonnay White Wine for 14% alcohol and 4% residual sugar, or Lalvin AMH (Assmanshausen), Lalvin BGY (Burgundy), Lalvin CY3079, Lalvin ICV-D80 (Côte Rôtie), or White Labs WLP720 Sweet Mead/Wine for 15% alcohol and 3% residual sugar. Read the yeast descriptors at Strains of Wine Yeast for correct nutrient and temperature requirements for the strain you select. Begin this recipe in the morning so you have time to complete the tasks without having to awaken in the middle of the night.<O></O>
<O></O>
Pumpkin Wine<O></O>
<UL ="disc">
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">5 lbs grated pumpkin flesh <O></O>
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">3-1/4 lbs finely granulated sugar <O></O>
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">1 tsp pectic enzyme <O></O>
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">1/2 oz citric acid <O></O>
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">1 tsp yeast nutrient <O></O>
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">1/4 tsp yeast energizer <O></O>
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">1 finely crushed and dissolved Campden tablet <O></O>
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">6-1/2 pts water <O></O>
<LI style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt; COLOR: #001f76; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in" ="Msonormal">wine yeast (see above) <O></O></LI>[/list]
Grate the pumpkin flesh mechanically (recommended) or by hand and set aside. Do NOT place chunks in a blender and attempt to chop them. Bring the water to a boil and stir in the sugar until dissolved. Remove from heat. Place grated pumpkin flesh in primary and pour boiling water over pumpkin. Allow to cool to room temperature and add finely crushed and dissolved Campden tablet. Cover primary and allow to sit 8-10 hours. Add pectic enzyme and allow to sit overnight. Next morning add citric acid, yeast nutrient, energizer and activated yeast. Cover primary and stir twice daily for three days, submerging "cap" as necessary to keep moist. Pour through a nylon straining bag and let pumpkin drip drain. Transfer to secondary and fit airlock. If you did not recover a full gallon of liquid, wait 5 days and top up as necessary. Rack after two weeks and again after additional 30 days, topping up and refitting airlock each time. Set aside for 3 months and then rack, stabilize, sweeten if desired (unlikely you will need to but...), wait 3 weeks for dead yeast to fall out, and rack into bottles. Set aside to drink next year at Thanksgiving or Christmas. [Adapted from Leo Zanelli's Home Winemaking from A to Z with major modifications by Jack Keller]<O></O>
<O></O>
My thanks to John Moore, in Canada for this request.<O></O>
<O></O>


Edited by: skinnydipper

 

[NorthernWinos]

That sounds interesting....Hope it turns out.

Keep us Posted.

 

[dcrnbrd]

We really do like pics.

 

[JWMINNESOTA]

Pumpkin Wine...now theres one Ive never thought of trying, does sound good!

 

[skinnydipper]

I just realized that after staying up late last night arguing with the cable company and then getting up early this morning to continue making wine, that I skipped the pectic enzyme and Campden tablets. I was supposed to do Campden this morning andpectic enzymetonight, yeast tomorrow morning.


Any suggestions?Edited by: skinnydipper

 

[NorthernWinos]

Put the crushed Campden tablets in right away.....
Edited by: Northern Winos

 

[Wade E]

Youll be fine just start it all now!

 

[skinnydipper]

Okay, when I got home last night the yeast was burping away. I added the Campden, two tablets finely crushed. Stirred it in, and this morning no burping.

 

[gaudet]

Dude,

you use the campden to sterilize the must before adding yeast. You only add more campden after fermenting has ceased to preserve the wine. You may have to wait 24 hours, stir the must well to get the SO2 out of the must and repitch the yeast.
Edited by: gaudet

 

[skinnydipper]

Hum, maybe Northern Wino and Wade misunderstood that I had already added the yeast.


When I was looking back through the recipe last night, I noticed that the printed version is different than the version that is now on Jack Keller's sight. I guess he must have updated. Anywho, the version I prineted didn't even have campden in it, I thought it was because the boiling water would sterilize the must.


I have often found that the best way to learn is to make mistakes. Am I better off to wait 24 hours and repitch or should I put this batch in the compost pile and start over?

 

[gaudet]

Since there is campden in solution I think it will be alright. No need to pitch the batch as it is protected from the nasties. The yeast may restart on their own after the SO2 dissipates(but I wouldn't bet on it), but you will probably need to repitch yeast tomorrow.