Skeeter Pee

Effington said:

Update: so after 48 hours of absolutely no airlock activity (with an S bubble two piece airlock) I opened the lid and there was a nice layer of foam on top indicating fermentation. I took a gravity reading and it was down to 1.030.

How can it be fermenting with no airlock activity? The lid seemed to be sealed completely...

I'm still thinking about re-pitching another packet of 1118 - is this a bad idea?

I'm a bit of a wine noob.

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Tossing in some more yeast won't hurt too bad. THought you might get yeasty flavors that take a bit too age out. I would check you gravity every two days and see if it continues to decline. If it keeps reducing, I would leave it.

Added the yeast for my first 1 gallon batch of this a few hours ago and fermentation has started already, great. How long has it taken others to get to the recommended gravity of 1.050?

Bridochristie said:

Added the yeast for my first 1 gallon batch of this a few hours ago and fermentation has started already, great. How long has it taken others to get to the recommended gravity of 1.050?

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Normally for me it has been the 2nd day. I use a EC1118 starter.

Thanks stujol, I'll keep an eye on it

Yeah, I'd have to agree with stujol. Mine took about 2 days. It's now down to ~ 1.000. They say that you shouldn't rely on airlock activity to determine when fermentation is done (or has even begun, for that matter). SP starts out at about 1.07 and finishes at about .995. I took my reading two days ago and realized that my hydrometer only starts at 1.000. There was a little nub of hydrometer sticking up out of the SP. If my SG drops any further, I'll have to fish it out. Airlock activity has slowed down by about 75%. I'm cleaning my last fermenter (sp?) and some bottles, so I guess early on Father's day, I'll rack it to that.

DoctorWho said:

Lon, I just want to say thanks again for your recipe...it has been a hugh hit at the BBQ's I've taken it to.

It also works so well racked over fresh fruit. So far I have done small batches of cherry, strawberry, lime and blueberry pee. All have been fantastic! Time to start the pipeline!

Cheers,
The Doctor

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When you rack it over fresh fruit how much fruit are you using per gallon? Are you boiling your fruit to make a juice or simply dropping it at the bottom and allowing the fermentation to break it down naturally.

Thanks I really want to move into flavored pee!

Cjacquette81 said:

When you rack it over fresh fruit how much fruit are you using per gallon? Are you boiling your fruit to make a juice or simply dropping it at the bottom and allowing the fermentation to break it down naturally.

Thanks I really want to move into flavored pee!

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I uses fresh fruit that has been frozen (this helps break down the cell walls so it flavors better.)

I usually use 1/2lb of fruit per gallon. For the cherry pee I heated (but not boiled, as this can cause hazing) the cherries with some simple surpy (50/50 sugar and water), but I now think that was unnecessary.

The biggest thing I can say about fruit is to keep it in a small grain bag or muslin bag so that when/if it turns to mush, it's easy to remove and also add the fruit duing secondary racking. To me, it loses too much good fruit flavor when added during primary.

Hope it all works out well, all of mine have been very good, but I just had a party and the blueberry pee was the favorite. They cleaned me out, the moochers

I'm having a hard time finding yeast energizer! The LHS suggested I simply mix one part Yeastex and one part "Potassium Sorbate to make a yeast energizer. He also sold me some "Diammonium Phosphate" to add with the mix.

Before I put my pee together I'm hoping for some feedback.

Cjacquette81 said:

I'm having a hard time finding yeast energizer! The LHS suggested I simply mix one part Yeastex and one part "Potassium Sorbate to make a yeast energizer. He also sold me some "Diammonium Phosphate" to add with the mix.

Before I put my pee together I'm hoping for some feedback.

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dude you lhbs guy is a ****** - don't listen to him again. Sorbate is a yeast reproduction inhibitor - so his magical mix will not energize anything. better to put nothing in than that.

CidahMastah said:

dude you lhbs guy is a ****** - don't listen to him again. Sorbate is a yeast reproduction inhibitor - so his magical mix will not energize anything. better to put nothing in than that.

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Thanks man!!! I will never go back there

Cjacquette81 said:

Thanks man!!! I will never go back there

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you can still use the LHBS for supplies but dont ask questions and give awnsers to there questions... just make your list for what you need and use HBT for all info.. Diammonium Phosphate is a good nutrient but you still want an energizer.. now if they dont have energizer i would question them as being a homebrew supply shop!!!

edmanster said:

you can still use the LHBS for supplies but dont ask questions and give awnsers to there questions... just make your list for what you need and use HBT for all info.. Diammonium Phosphate is a good nutrient but you still want an energizer.. now if they dont have energizer i would question them as being a homebrew supply shop!!!

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What is the difference between energizer and nutrients? Can I make an energizer? Can I make my pee without the energizer I'm using the EC-1118 champagne yeast

Cjacquette81 said:

What is the difference between energizer and nutrients? Can I make an energizer? Can I make my pee without the energizer I'm using the EC-1118 champagne yeast

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I'm on my phone right now in a park waiting for fireworks but I believe the nutrient and energizer are close to the same but the energizer has more nitro for the yeast to speed up... Not sure though. But I can see a difference when I use it... The Nutrient for yeast is basically dead yeast hulls.. someone else should chime in here...

Cjacquette81 said:

Can I make my pee without the energizer I'm using the EC-1118 champagne yeast

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I am sure that you can, because thats exactly what I did...but I will tell you that you can tell the difference.

The first time that I made this recipe I didn't have nutrient or energizer and I went ahead with only adding some raisins in (I had read that this can add some nutrients for the yeast and tannins.) Fermentation was normal, but when I tried the stuff I could tell it had a bit of a harsh alcohol bite. Someone describe it as "nail polish-y" (I thought that was a little overboard as it was drinkable) and one of my homebrew buddies says that can happen with a stressed yeast.

However, for the second batch I used store bought (web actually) nutrient and energizer and the product was much smoother with no bite at all. It's well worth it to source some nutrient and energizer. You don't need much and a bottle of each will last 4 or 5 batches.

Here is an excerpt about nutrient and energizer:

The most common source of nitrogen is Yeast Nutrient it comes either in powder or tablet form. Yeast Nutrient supplies nitrogen to the yeast in the singular form of a phosphate.

In certain situations Yeast Energizer may be more beneficial than Yeast Nutrient. Just like Yeast Nutrient, the Energizer supplies the wine yeast
with much needed nitrogen, but from a wider range of nutrients than just phosphate. Yeast Energizer contains over a dozen yeast extractive
proteins, along with B1 Vitamin, and di-ammonium phosphate. All are valuable sources of nitrogen.

Hope this helps!

This Yeastex says "vitamins include biotin, colic acid, riboflavin, thiamine. Minerals : calcium, magnesium, manganese, potassium, zinc and phosphate. Ammonium salts, amino acids, proteins and proteolipids."

I also bought a pack of Diammonium phosphate.

I have the nutrient just not the energizer. Can I just add the Diammonium as the energizer?

Thanks

Cjacquette81 said:

This Yeastex says "vitamins include biotin, colic acid, riboflavin, thiamine. Minerals : calcium, magnesium, manganese, potassium, zinc and phosphate. Ammonium salts, amino acids, proteins and proteolipids."

I also bought a pack of Diammonium phosphate.

I have the nutrient just not the energizer. Can I just add the Diammonium as the energizer?

Thanks

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just got home.. kids love the fireworks... me too!!!

i think it would be ok but it might be a little slow at first.. be sure to add plenty of oxygen the second day when adding the final additions.. you might want to double the nutrient to make up for the lack of energizer..

The research I have done on Nutrient v Energizer is very misleading.

Some nutrients have the same ingredients as Energizers and vice versa. Bottom Line, I think the stuff you have has all those ingredients will be fine and just add some DAP as energizer.

As I said, I didn't use either and it was still drinkable. Go for it!

Ruh-roh!

The noob to winemaking that I am, I used a drill attachment to degas AFTER adding the sulfates and the sparkolloid. What I got was a giant homemade volcano of skeeter pee.

I didn't lose much since it was mostly foam, but I quit with the agitation and stuck the airlock on. The foam has died down but... ugh.

Should I have degassed before the final additions, or did I just whip it up too quickly?

DoctorWho said:

The research I have done on Nutrient v Energizer is very misleading.

Some nutrients have the same ingredients as Energizers and vice versa. Bottom Line, I think the stuff you have has all those ingredients will be fine and just add some DAP as energizer.

As I said, I didn't use either and it was still drinkable. Go for it!

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@Doc: all I need for energizer us DAP? I got that I didn't know that was energizer!!! Thanks.

BTW I put my pee together last night got a Gravity if 1.070 it's bubbling away like crazy right now gonna let it do it's thing j will check gravity tomorrow so I can know when to add the extra lemon juice and other things

why does the recipe call for Kmeta and sorbate?
I have campden tablets....

rasherb said:

why does the recipe call for Kmeta and sorbate?
I have campden tablets....

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quote from http://www.eckraus.com/PS210.html
"Potassium Sorbate is a yeast growth inhibitor. For best results, use Potassium Sorbate in combination with either Campden Tablets or Potassium Bisulfite."

The Vintner's Reserve wine kit I made came with both.

So I put it together and it's got a vigorous ferment going on. I'm proud!!!! But I have a question. I want to rack it onto fresh strawberries for a strawberry pee. Should I let it fully ferment dry before I rack it and how many pounds of strawberries should I use?

In fact a little walk through would be helpful thanks!!!

Well just bottled and drank some today. It might not be my cup of tea, I really wanted to like it but I just couldn't. I'm going to let it sit for a few more weeks in the bottles to see if I can come around too it.

SwampassJ said:

Well just bottled and drank some today. It might not be my cup of tea, I really wanted to like it but I just couldn't. I'm going to let it sit for a few more weeks in the bottles to see if I can come around too it.

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too acidic etc? what aspect do you dislike? I have had some people love it and a few who didn't I personally can only have a few of the crabonated ones at a time, just a beer guy I guess.

Cjacquette81 said:

So I put it together and it's got a vigorous ferment going on. I'm proud!!!! But I have a question. I want to rack it onto fresh strawberries for a strawberry pee. Should I let it fully ferment dry before I rack it and how many pounds of strawberries should I use?

In fact a little walk through would be helpful thanks!!!

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I would let it ferment out all the way, then rack it to a bottling bucket onto sorbate and use a muslin to put your strawberries in. Mush them up and "steep" them in there for 10minutes. Add strawberries until you get the flavor you want, then sugar if needed. Then finally add sulfite. maybe start with4quarts of strawberries and go from there for 5 gallons.

CidahMastah said:

too acidic etc? what aspect do you dislike? I have had some people love it and a few who didn't I personally can only have a few of the crabonated ones at a time, just a beer guy I guess.

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I'm just not liking the flavor, it's almost fake lemony kind of flavor. Like sucking on a lemon head candy sort of. I'm going to let it sit for a little while longer and then do some experiments with it.

Pour into a several glass and add some lemon juice to see if it makes it better or worse, try over sweetening the next glass and then the last one try cutting with some water to ease up on the sweetness and tartness.

SwampassJ said:

I'm just not liking the flavor, it's almost fake lemony kind of flavor. Like sucking on a lemon head candy sort of. I'm going to let it sit for a little while longer and then do some experiments with it.

Pour into a several glass and add some lemon juice to see if it makes it better or worse, try over sweetening the next glass and then the last one try cutting with some water to ease up on the sweetness and tartness.

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Thats what I was going to tell you to modify the flavor by sugar, water etc. It is weird, I love the stuff on a hot day. outside of that, i find myself reaching for something else. The lady likes it a lot though

CidahMastah said:

I would let it ferment out all the way, then rack it to a bottling bucket onto sorbate and use a muslin to put your strawberries in. Mush them up and "steep" them in there for 10minutes. Add strawberries until you get the flavor you want, then sugar if needed. Then finally add sulfite. maybe start with4quarts of strawberries and go from there for 5 gallons.

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Thanks

SwampassJ said:

I'm just not liking the flavor, it's almost fake lemony kind of flavor. Like sucking on a lemon head candy sort of. I'm going to let it sit for a little while longer and then do some experiments

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What yeast did you use ? Ours just has a hint of lemon, we use a slice of lemon in each glass to get much lemon flavor. It is light and refreshing but not a ton of flavor, it is a perfect summer drink. I have been using EC1118, I tried a batch using 71B, but it is taking much longer to clear so not sure how that is going to turn out.

on average, how much does it cost to make a 5gal batch of this stuff?

Cost me about $20

you followed the recipe as stated on their home page? 7lb sugar, 2x32oz lemonade, etc.?

I had everything but the lemonade and sugar. So it was cheaper. I don't expect it to be more than $25 total though.

The lemon concentrate and sugar costs me $26.00 at Walmart for two 5 gallon batches.

The yeast nutrient and energizer and tannin I have on hand always and buy a couple pounds at a time. I don't think they add a lot to the cost tho.

CidahMastah said:

I would let it ferment out all the way, then rack it to a bottling bucket onto sorbate and use a muslin to put your strawberries in. Mush them up and "steep" them in there for 10minutes. Add strawberries until you get the flavor you want, then sugar if needed. Then finally add sulfite. maybe start with4quarts of strawberries and go from there for 5 gallons.

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I guess I need to try that method just for giggles. I've made two batches with sliced frozen strawberries that I pureed in a blender. They went through the fermentation. Came out with a nice flavor and color that everyone enjoys, but it would certainly be good to try some ripe, fresh strawberries in the secondary.

BigdogMark said:

I guess I need to try that method just for giggles. I've made two batches with sliced frozen strawberries that I pureed in a blender. They went through the fermentation. Came out with a nice flavor and color that everyone enjoys, but it would certainly be good to try some ripe, fresh strawberries in the secondary.

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Hey whatever gets the flavor in there Frozen Strawberries works too, I don't blend them just because you get more sediment that way (though in time it all falls out)

Anyone using ale yeast? I just started a batch on the SO-4 slurry from a batch of sweet cider that i racked at 1.020. It currently in my attic at about 95 degrees bubbling away non-stop.
Any predictions?
Think my ferm temps are too hot?

dusty1025 said:

Anyone using ale yeast? I just started a batch on the SO-4 slurry from a batch of sweet cider that i racked at 1.020. It currently in my attic at about 95 degrees bubbling away non-stop.
Any predictions?
Think my ferm temps are too hot?

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I did this about a month ago except I fermented the cider dry and was no where near the temps you are talking about. it worked ok, but I wasn't that impressed with the flavor of the pee which didnt have enough lemon flavor for my taste. this was my first attempt at SP so I will probably give it another go with a more traditional approach to give it a fair shake though.

I would get it out of the attic though if it were me or the yeast is going to throw off some pretty funky esters and die off altogether if the temps get much higher.

Okay, first attempt at SP. Not really supposed to bottle until 7/3. Had a taste last night after 2 days in the fridge. I thought I followed the directions pretty well. A little dry and a lot of sulfur... I can deal with the dry, but the sulfur, not so much. Am I stuck with it? (the sulfur, that is)

Are you talking so2 or h2s?