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Countryboy73

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I haven't ventured into making any yet but I've been surfing the forum for a while and have found some recipes I'm going to try. I've been talking to a few people about wine making and 1 person said his gramps made wine and he added raw rice to his batches to raise the abv. Is this true and has someone tried it. As I get into making wine ill be asking a few more ?s. thanks.
 
Several people I work with makes wine and they say they use a yeast packet that you make bread with. A guy my father in law knows makes an awesome strawberry wine but I'm not sure what he uses. How much of a change in taste will regular yeast have.
 
Countryboy73 said:
Several people I work with makes wine and they say they use a yeast packet that you make bread with. A guy my father in law knows makes an awesome strawberry wine but I'm not sure what he uses. How much of a change in taste will regular yeast have.

Bread yeast is used to make the bread nice and fluffy. It will not give you 10-12% alcohol.

Most wines will require sugar and the right wine yeast to reach it's potential.
 
Good to know thanks. I don't have a home brew store around me and I am unable to buy the proper stuff online for now. I'm wanting to make a small batch just to have some till I can get the stuff I need.
 
Several people I work with makes wine and they say they use a yeast packet that you make bread with. A guy my father in law knows makes an awesome strawberry wine but I'm not sure what he uses. How much of a change in taste will regular yeast have.


Lalvin D47 has been my choice of late. I like to smell airlocks (that sounds weird) and choose my "yeast of the day" based purely on that. As long as the yeast you choose is style wise in the ballpark of the type of wine you are making then I haven't noticed an appreciable difference in them.
 
Ok. I'll be using apple juice concentrate to make a gallon for my first try, something simple. My wife likes the hard lemonade and stuff like that. The ones i make for her I'll be carbonating it. I saw the hard ice tea and the coffee vanilla recipes that I will be trying later on.
 
I saw a recipe a while back for blackberry wine. In the directions he said to split the sugar into 1/3's and put 1/3 in to start then after it stopped bubbling until all sugar was used. Is there any difference from that an putting all in at 1 time.
 
I saw a recipe a while back for blackberry wine. In the directions he said to split the sugar into 1/3's and put 1/3 in to start then after it stopped bubbling until all sugar was used. Is there any difference from that an putting all in at 1 time.

Yes, I think it has to do with the yeast and the yeast health. I don't do it that way, though. I have a great blackberry wine recipe posted that is probably my favorite wine and I think you'd find it easy to follow.
 
There was a place near where I live that sold everything needed for home brewing. I thought they closed the doors, I couldn't find them where they were before. I went by a mom and pop general store to get some stuff and what did I see in the corner of the store, a sign that said "the brew hut". I'm on cloud 9. I will be getting everything tomorrow.
 
Awhile back there was a store by my house that sold everything for home brewing. I went by and they wasn't there anymore. I went by a mom and pop general store a couple of days ago for some stuff and what did I see in the corner of the store, a sign that said "The Brew Hut". I'm on cloud 9. I will be getting everything I need to get started on my first batch tomorrow.
 
Sorry about the last 2 posts. My iPhone acts up at times and it shows that a post didn't post and I do another and about an hour or so later it shows both posts. My LHBS has carbonation drops/tablets, are these any good for carbonating beverages.
 
I saw a recipe a while back for blackberry wine. In the directions he said to split the sugar into 1/3's and put 1/3 in to start then after it stopped bubbling until all sugar was used. Is there any difference from that an putting all in at 1 time.

I really am unable to answer your question. Just want to encourage you to try the 1/3 at a time recipe. It was fun and the people who have tasted it have mostly loved it. The one who didn't thought it was dry. So a couple of people here explained about adding sugar back in and that fixed it for Cait. Wicked learning experience. Wish I had taken the specific gravity. One man who likes "potent" wine says it is kick ass. Lol.
 
My LHBS has carbonation drops/tablets, are these any good for carbonating beverages.

Yes they are good for carbing, but are basically sugar tablets. A cheaper alternative is to use corn sugar or dextrose to carbonate. You'll find that as you get into this hobby that buying commonly used items in bulk will save much time and $ (i.e. pickup two packets of whatever yeast you need at the time). You'll get an idea of what to stock up on as you progress and gain experience.

It's an addictive adventure:D. As your supplies accumulate and you make more wine, you'll also quickly grow out of vessles. It seems the day you finally get a dozen 1gal carboys is the same day you decide to do nothing less than 5gal at a time...and so on...

Congrats on the first batch and keep us posted as it goes. Welcome to the club. :mug:
 
Also...there are some great stickies that give info about how to harvest yeast and freeze it, etc. So if accessability is an issue one packet of yeast can actually yield many batches of wine.

May want to consider Skeeter Pee, www.skeeterpee.com, it is an excellent hard lemonade like beverage. You both may enjoy it, plus it is typically ready to consume in 60-90 days, sometimes sooner. I seem to recall there is a thread about Dragon's Blood in 15 Days, essentially a berry blend Skeeter Pee.

Enjoy your adventures.
 
Thanks to everybody for the info. I'm really looking forward to making some wine for me and some wine cooler style stuff for my wife, although ill be drinking it with her. I haven't made a batch yet. When I plan on getting everything something happens and I have to wait. Hopefully that'll change here soon. Thanks again for all the info. Hopefully here very soon ill be saying bottoms up.
 
Has anybody used extract instead of fruits or juices to make wine. If so how do you go about doing that. Some friends of ours use to make wine and he said he has made some with extract. When I tried to talk to him about it he would get off subject about it.
 
Countryboy73 said:
Has anybody used extract instead of fruits or juices to make wine. If so how do you go about doing that. Some friends of ours use to make wine and he said he has made some with extract. When I tried to talk to him about it he would get off subject about it.

I personally would not consider using a flavoring extract to make wine, though I have used some high quality ones to help flavor on the back end. You would really need to look at the product you want to use because extracts are typically alcohol based, like vanilla. Then you run into the 'is that a concentrate vs an extract'? There are people who have used rootbeer extract and other extracts, making sodapop wine, etc. Is there something specific you are considering?
 
I was thinking about adding it at the end to add a little more flavor. Thanks for the info.
 
Countryboy73 said:
I was thinking about adding it at the end to add a little more flavor. Thanks for the info.

Be very careful with the extracts. I ruined 5 gallons by adding too much. Do bench trials first.
 
Yeah I wouldn't be very happy if I botched a batch. I think I'll pass on the extract.
 
I've been thinking about what I want to make and I'll be doing several 1 gallon batches to see what I like and what my wife will like. This might be a dumb ? But I've got to ask. Will 1 packet of yeast be to much for a gallon.
 
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