Cheesy_Goodness
Well-Known Member
Okay, so here's the story
Last April I started a batch of watermelon (5 gallon). I followed the recipe, but after about a month it started smelling bad, and the samples weren't good either. I racked it, hoping I could check it again in a few months and it would turn around. I ended up dumping it after about 3-4 months in the carboy. It had a sour sweaty sock taste to it (yeah, it was that good) and had a hazy white color. I was disappointed but, bad batches happen.
About a month ago I started a batch of peach and started with fresh (then frozen) fruit. I followed the recipe (5 gallons here too) and racked it yesterday. Unfortunately, it looks like the peach is heading down the same road. It had a very similar taste to the watermelon (sour) and it lost a lot of its peach like color since pitching the yeast.
I've read that watermelon can be tricky to get right, but I thought surely fresh peaches would be doable.
Basically I have two questions:
1) Is it worth letting it work for another few months or should I toss it and use the carboy for something else (I only have one other bucket so a batch of wine cuts beer/cider production in half)?
2) What can cause a wine to go that bad so quickly?
Last April I started a batch of watermelon (5 gallon). I followed the recipe, but after about a month it started smelling bad, and the samples weren't good either. I racked it, hoping I could check it again in a few months and it would turn around. I ended up dumping it after about 3-4 months in the carboy. It had a sour sweaty sock taste to it (yeah, it was that good) and had a hazy white color. I was disappointed but, bad batches happen.
About a month ago I started a batch of peach and started with fresh (then frozen) fruit. I followed the recipe (5 gallons here too) and racked it yesterday. Unfortunately, it looks like the peach is heading down the same road. It had a very similar taste to the watermelon (sour) and it lost a lot of its peach like color since pitching the yeast.
I've read that watermelon can be tricky to get right, but I thought surely fresh peaches would be doable.
Basically I have two questions:
1) Is it worth letting it work for another few months or should I toss it and use the carboy for something else (I only have one other bucket so a batch of wine cuts beer/cider production in half)?
2) What can cause a wine to go that bad so quickly?