I just got thru dumping 15 bottles of a very poor batch of Red Zinfandel. It's sad to hear it glug from the bottle, knowing that no one could appreciate it. I have 12 more to go, but needed to step back and reflect on my original errors.
#1. Don't have your out of town friend get your juice, add some sugar and start the fermentation. Get it yourself.
#2. If it comes from California, it doesn't need anything but love and attention. Sugar can be a bad thing.
#3. If it tastes like crap, and you add sugar to sweeten it before you bottle, it's still crap, just sweetened crap. Again, sugar can be a bad thing.
So, off to dump the rest. It's a $50 lesson, but a quality one. I waited 6 years to see it improve, now it'll take 30 minutes to clean the bottles
#1. Don't have your out of town friend get your juice, add some sugar and start the fermentation. Get it yourself.
#2. If it comes from California, it doesn't need anything but love and attention. Sugar can be a bad thing.
#3. If it tastes like crap, and you add sugar to sweeten it before you bottle, it's still crap, just sweetened crap. Again, sugar can be a bad thing.
So, off to dump the rest. It's a $50 lesson, but a quality one. I waited 6 years to see it improve, now it'll take 30 minutes to clean the bottles