I just started my first batch of wine today. I went down to the store and bought three gallons of the cheapest white grape juice I could find. I poured the grape juice into three gallon water jugs, rehydrated some Lalvin K1-V1116 yeast per the instructions and added it to the must. The fermentation is going very slowly right now, with not very many bubbles to be seen in my airlock. Could this be because of the potassium metabisulfite that was used to preserve the grape juice or the yeast starting out very slowly? I have heard that this shouldn't be the case as the sulfites eventually leave the grape juice after they have been used. It has been 15 hours since the fermentation has started.
Potassium metabisulfite
- Thread starter zeug
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AHammer16
Well-Known Member
you need to post in the wine forum not the beer forum and yes pot. metasulf. kills yeast and bact.
Could you at least lie and say that you're 18 or older? Jeez, there are tons of kids on here all of a sudden!
AHammer16
Well-Known Member
lorenae said:
yeah they are showing up all of a sudden lets kill them and make beer out of their livers!!!
I see nothing wrong with underage home brewing, as it is much safer legally. I don't have to worry about getting charged with a misdemeanor for buying underage nor getting an adult in trouble for providing alcohol to minors when they supply it to me. I also get to learn something about homebrewing in the process.
rdwj
Well-Known Member
you'd be much better off learning something that will get you employed. They're will be plenty of time for this hobby when you're old enoough
It appears as if the sulfites in the grape juice have no effect on the fermentation and that they have dissipated. The must is now fermenting like crazy with the airlock bubbling constantly. The potential alcohol content is 8% according to my hydrometer and I don't want to add any extra sugar to it. Is 8% high enough not to spoil easily?
Most wines are in the 12- 13% range and they can be stored indefinitely. With an ABV of 8%, there is a real danger of spoiling if you try to "age" it. Look in the wine forum for my simple recipe for grape juice wine. You'll see that sugar is added. That is NOT to sweeten the wine, it is to boost up the ABV. I ferment my wines to dryness (no residual sugar) because I don't like sweet wines. The sugar is for the yeast, which then turns sugar into alcohol and co2. That is really a simple explaination for a much more complex chemical process, but that's the jist of it.
How do you arrive at a potential alcohol of 8%? When did you take the s.g.? You should do it before you pitch the yeast and at 60 degrees for the most accuracy.
Lorena
How do you arrive at a potential alcohol of 8%? When did you take the s.g.? You should do it before you pitch the yeast and at 60 degrees for the most accuracy.
Lorena
I took the SG right before I pitched the yeast. The temperature was around 70 and I also calculated the potential alcohol based on the sugar content on the "Nutrition Facts" label on the back of the juice bottle. I took the total sugar content in grams and divided it by 2, to get the pure alcohol potential, and then subtracted that number from the total mililiters of the juice as half of the sugar will leave the must as carbon dioxide. I then divided the potential pure alcohol content of the finished must by the adjusted finished total volume, coming out with roughly 8.7% which should be extremely accurate.
I won't be aging the wine very long as it was done with regular grape juice from the store, and probably won't be of very high quality. I will order some special grape concentrate online for my future batches.
If I ever add any sugar, I will use some finely powdered corn sugar from a local homebrew store. I heard that white sugar introduces a cidery taste on the wine.
I won't be aging the wine very long as it was done with regular grape juice from the store, and probably won't be of very high quality. I will order some special grape concentrate online for my future batches.
If I ever add any sugar, I will use some finely powdered corn sugar from a local homebrew store. I heard that white sugar introduces a cidery taste on the wine.
What was your s.g. when you started? If you ferment it fully dry (.990), you'll have the potential alcohol you estimated, but you might choose to drink it at 1.000 or 1.010 and that would of course change the ABV. You could ferment it dry and backsweeten it, too. It's simple to take the s.g. before pitching the yeast to get the potential alcohol and take the s.g. when you're finished.
For wine, you should use regular granulated sugar. You don't get a cidery taste in wine with regular sugar, because you don't use malt extract or grains like you do for beer. Regular sugar is the best for wine.
Here's my grape juice recipe (from the winemaking forum):
2 cans (11.5 oz) Welch's 100% frozen grape concentrate
1-1/4 lbs granulated sugar
2 tsp acid blend
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1 tsp yeast nutrient
water to make 1 gallon
wine yeast
Bring 1 quart water to boil and dissolve the sugar in the water. Remove from heat and add frozen concentrate. Add additional water to make one gallon and pour into secondary. Add remaining ingredients except yeast. Cover with napkin fastened with rubber band and set aside 12 hours. Add activated wine yeast and recover with napkin. When active fermentation slows down (about 5 days), fit airlock. When clear, rack, top up and refit airlock. After additional 30 days, stabilize, sweeten if desired and rack into bottles.
You don't absolutely need acid blend and pectic enzyme or yeast nutrient, but it makes a difference between "drinkable" and "good". Wine yeast is necessary. If you have a LHBS, you can get those items for a couple of dollars.
You definitely don't need special grape juice concentrates- you just need to make sure the juice you use is 100% juice. The purple (red) is made out of Concord grapes, and the white is 100% Niagara grapes. Don't get the juice with high fructose corn syrup or added sugar. Welch's is really the best for this.
Don't use an airlock until fermentation slows down- just cover it loosely to keep bugs out. Wine ferments less explosively then beer- it'll go slow and steady without a krausen.
Now, that's the last of my advice. I can't be of any more help to you except to tell you to read up on this stuff yourself.
Lorena
For wine, you should use regular granulated sugar. You don't get a cidery taste in wine with regular sugar, because you don't use malt extract or grains like you do for beer. Regular sugar is the best for wine.
Here's my grape juice recipe (from the winemaking forum):
2 cans (11.5 oz) Welch's 100% frozen grape concentrate
1-1/4 lbs granulated sugar
2 tsp acid blend
1 tsp pectic enzyme
1 tsp yeast nutrient
water to make 1 gallon
wine yeast
Bring 1 quart water to boil and dissolve the sugar in the water. Remove from heat and add frozen concentrate. Add additional water to make one gallon and pour into secondary. Add remaining ingredients except yeast. Cover with napkin fastened with rubber band and set aside 12 hours. Add activated wine yeast and recover with napkin. When active fermentation slows down (about 5 days), fit airlock. When clear, rack, top up and refit airlock. After additional 30 days, stabilize, sweeten if desired and rack into bottles.
You don't absolutely need acid blend and pectic enzyme or yeast nutrient, but it makes a difference between "drinkable" and "good". Wine yeast is necessary. If you have a LHBS, you can get those items for a couple of dollars.
You definitely don't need special grape juice concentrates- you just need to make sure the juice you use is 100% juice. The purple (red) is made out of Concord grapes, and the white is 100% Niagara grapes. Don't get the juice with high fructose corn syrup or added sugar. Welch's is really the best for this.
Don't use an airlock until fermentation slows down- just cover it loosely to keep bugs out. Wine ferments less explosively then beer- it'll go slow and steady without a krausen.
Now, that's the last of my advice. I can't be of any more help to you except to tell you to read up on this stuff yourself.
Lorena
Thanks for all your help, but I won't be needing it anymore. I had an interesting experience in the emergency room after consuming a bottle of 13.5% alc chardonnay and 5 shots of gin. I might have even had a whole fifth, but I will never know as I have no idea where the bottle is. I'm worried I might have picked it up while very drunk and started drinking more.
My dad eventually woke up as it was at night and took me to ER. I was very violent and had to be restrained by some security guards. I didn't have my stomach pumped, but I eventually threw up, which I have no memory of. I am not surprised at how violent I was. I was given ritalin in kindergarten and was very violent with the teacher. Kids still bothered me about it two years after it happened. At least I didn't go on a killing spree like some kids who are drugged on ritalin do.
I would like to warn the underage kids here brewing their own. Don't do it and instead go out and buy the cheapest liquor you can find and maybe a brita water filter to go with. Before you start drinking, pour a "limit" into another bottle and do not drink more than that. I found whenever I drank something other than spirits, I misjudged how much alcohol I was drinking and ended up drinking too much or throwing up.
My dad eventually woke up as it was at night and took me to ER. I was very violent and had to be restrained by some security guards. I didn't have my stomach pumped, but I eventually threw up, which I have no memory of. I am not surprised at how violent I was. I was given ritalin in kindergarten and was very violent with the teacher. Kids still bothered me about it two years after it happened. At least I didn't go on a killing spree like some kids who are drugged on ritalin do.
I would like to warn the underage kids here brewing their own. Don't do it and instead go out and buy the cheapest liquor you can find and maybe a brita water filter to go with. Before you start drinking, pour a "limit" into another bottle and do not drink more than that. I found whenever I drank something other than spirits, I misjudged how much alcohol I was drinking and ended up drinking too much or throwing up.
nightstrm
Member
Seriously WTF? Sounds like you should be laying off the alcohol completely, and not giving tips out to others. Besides, I dont think your advice would work very well... most people will just find the other bottle and drink it when they're drunk.
