Banana Wine
- Thread starter Yooper
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wolverinebrewer
Well-Known Member
How long is 'too long'? I made up a 1 gal. jug of this on 9/24/11 and racked onto raisins on 11/27 and they are still there. I was planning on leaving them for 4 months.
This is a noob question, but 2 years is too long to risk not asking, is granulated sugar just white cane sugar? Thanks.
thanks for the quick reply.
My raisins are slowly migrating to the top of the jug. I plan on leaving them in there until they are all up there.
FYI - Walmart had bananas on sale for .39 a lb. the other day, so I got 8-10 bunches. Wife was pissed, but any extras can go in the freezer for banana bread. She couldn't understand why I'd buy more bananas before I've even tasted the first batch. Makes sense once you figure out how little it costs to make and how long it takes to mature!
I want to make a 3-5 gallon batch!
FYI - Walmart had bananas on sale for .39 a lb. the other day, so I got 8-10 bunches. Wife was pissed, but any extras can go in the freezer for banana bread. She couldn't understand why I'd buy more bananas before I've even tasted the first batch. Makes sense once you figure out how little it costs to make and how long it takes to mature!
I want to make a 3-5 gallon batch!
How long has yours been with the raisins? It's been 2 weeks or more for mine, and they're still on the bottom. Mines a 2.5 gallon batch.
I have everything ready to start, one last (probably not last) question:
Is Brewcraft Wine Tannin (Hydrolized Gallotannin) the same as grape tannin?
Thanks.
Is Brewcraft Wine Tannin (Hydrolized Gallotannin) the same as grape tannin?
Thanks.
OP
OP
Is it powdered? I use powdered tannin, from LD Carlson. But the hydrolized stuff might be fine- I just have no idea!
Yes, its a powder. I found this additional information on the intra-webs:
Yes there is the difference.
"According to Dr Paul Smith, a chemist at the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) whos working on tannins, Wine tannins constitute evolved grape tannins plus some grape tannins in the same chemical state as they were in the grape. Dr Leigh Francis, also of the AWRI, expands on this: Wine tannins are considered more complex than grape tannins due to the various chemical reactions that occur during winemaking and storage'
Further reading in some wine-making forums, it seems that they are close enough for homebrewing wine. (homemaking wine?). Since my LHBS only had this, I'm going to use it. I'll let you know how it works out in two years
As always, thanks for the reply Yooper!
Yes there is the difference.
"According to Dr Paul Smith, a chemist at the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) whos working on tannins, Wine tannins constitute evolved grape tannins plus some grape tannins in the same chemical state as they were in the grape. Dr Leigh Francis, also of the AWRI, expands on this: Wine tannins are considered more complex than grape tannins due to the various chemical reactions that occur during winemaking and storage'
Further reading in some wine-making forums, it seems that they are close enough for homebrewing wine. (homemaking wine?). Since my LHBS only had this, I'm going to use it. I'll let you know how it works out in two years
As always, thanks for the reply Yooper!
WhoDey78
Active Member
O.k., I finally broke down and started a 5 gallon batch of this tonight. I wanted to start it a year ago, but am impatient and didn't want to wait two years for it. Now, I would be half-way there. This is my first wine, so hopefully it turns out as good as everyone says!
Sirthomas42
Well-Known Member
Your very first wine? Heh, I couldn't have standed making a long term recipe for my first one. Make up a batch of Ed's Apfelwein, you'll be drinking in no time!
WhoDey78
Active Member
I prefer beer over wine, but my wife prefers wine. This helps legitimize my hobby to her. I would like to try some others. Maybe I'll go for the Apfelwein next.
Has anyone ever back sweetened this wine? Results?
WhoDey78
Active Member
This is my first wine and I'm a little confused about something. When making beer, I don't want to remove the airlock, but I'm supposed to stir this daily for a week. Isn't oxidation a concern? Is that just a difference between wine and beer making? Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Sirthomas42
Well-Known Member
If the wine is actively fermenting, introducing some oxygen isn't a bad thing. Yeast needs the O2, so a lot of recipes call for aerating the must. With Skeeter Pee, I whip the hell out of it with a whisk a couple times during the fermentation. Once the wine is done fermenting, you don't want to introduce O2. I generally don't aerate after 50% of the sugar is gone.
So, stirring the wine while it's fermenting isn't going to hurt anything. I just made this recipe a few weeks ago, and I stirred it all the time to break up the scum that kept floating to the top (before I racked to 2ndary)
So, stirring the wine while it's fermenting isn't going to hurt anything. I just made this recipe a few weeks ago, and I stirred it all the time to break up the scum that kept floating to the top (before I racked to 2ndary)
WhoDey78
Active Member
Thank you, sirthomas!
OP
OP
I don't know- I don't write those details down. Not long, though.
I just started two gallons of this, looks and sounds great. However, I realized I don't have any tannin on hand. Any danger in adding it a few days later or skipping it all together? I think I can always hit the LHBS tomorrow if necessary. Doing a little searching to see if I can determine this myself but anyone with experience I'd appreciate your thoughts.
weeple2000
Well-Known Member
So I'm a bit of a lurker but I found this recipe a couple years ago, and I didn't read it close enough. I haven't had a bottle in some time, hoping it will improve, but my friend and I used normal raisins instead of golden ones, and the wine tastes a lot like raisins. I bought some golden raisins to compare the taste and they do taste pretty different. Just thought I'd pass along the tip, hopefully someone else can benefit from it.
weeple2000
Well-Known Member
Ok guys I tasted it again last night, had a bottle. I believe the last time I tasted it was before we bottled, and that was a while ago. The raisin flavor dissipates over time and it blends well with the banana flavor. So if I made it again I would use golden raisins but with normal raisins it didn't turn out poorly after it aged.
Wow, I somehow never saw this thread before making my banana wine! Weird!
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f25/banana-toffee-wine-315909/
I'm not sure how much of a difference it will make, but I mashed my banana (both physically and chemically a la malted barley), didnt use any of the banana skin, and caramelised the sugar. It was a ridiculously active fermentation, but after it calmed down and I racked it, it's looking (and smelling) very nice!
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f25/banana-toffee-wine-315909/
I'm not sure how much of a difference it will make, but I mashed my banana (both physically and chemically a la malted barley), didnt use any of the banana skin, and caramelised the sugar. It was a ridiculously active fermentation, but after it calmed down and I racked it, it's looking (and smelling) very nice!
louie0202
Well-Known Member
Bought bananas for this last night, going to start a 3 gallon batch....if I have to wait 2 years, might as well make a couple years worth of it. (I assume since I make other wines, I won't drink 15 bottles of this two years...but who knows)
louie0202
Well-Known Member
started a 2 gallon batch of this, let you know how it is in 2 years
wickerman
Well-Known Member
I'm getting ready to rack mine off of the raisins in a few weeks, and will need to top it off. I thought it said to top it off with white wine, but can't find it in the thread. What kind of white wine should I top it off with?
Thanks,
wickerman
Thanks,
wickerman
OP
OP
Racked 4 gallons into a carboy last night. The bucket was filled right to the 4 gallon mark so I grabbed a couple of extra containers so I could keep the extra for topping off. I put 4 boxes of raisins in the carboy and filled it up and I had just over 1 qt. of extra wine remaining.
I thought the carboy was a 2.5 gallon, but maybe it was a 3 gallon? There was a fair amount of lees on the bottom of the bucket.
We watched the whole War Horse movie while I chopped those darned raisins. I gotta find a faster method...
I thought the carboy was a 2.5 gallon, but maybe it was a 3 gallon? There was a fair amount of lees on the bottom of the bucket.
We watched the whole War Horse movie while I chopped those darned raisins. I gotta find a faster method...
CaptainLongneck
Well-Known Member
Slap chop
