Try telling the wife to ignore the sulfur smell. lol I may try picking up some 1118 for the next round, but I have about 400g of VL2 in my fridge.
Interesting to see how these changes come out. Also has anybody just reused the yeast cake from the previous batch of Skeeter Pee instead of a new wine slurry? I've done this several times with Apfelwein with no issues.
The key is to stir it up to dissipate the Sulfites. You can't overstir... whip it... whip it good!!
It is listed as an early drinker... but my Elder Pee from last year is really amazing now. The bitterness of the lemon has subsided and it's sooo nice! I've made Cherry Pee as well. You can make a starter out of any frozen juice as well... to add a nice flavor. I made my cherry from approx 1lb tart cherries, sugar, etc... just to get it roaring good for a couple days... then started the official recipe.
Debbie
Unless you're squeezing your own lemons the lemon juice you buy in the store contains sulfites or other preservatives that inhibit microbial activity. Whipping the must adds oxygen which helps neutralize these preservatives. The oxygen also is necessary for yeast reproduction so it's a double benefit.
I still think you water coming out of a utility sink would have plenty of air in it - but even so , additional aerating in the beginning wouldn't hurt. All regular kitchen taps should have an aerator in them.
But my real contention is that people have been stating twice daily aeration is necessary (or even just preferred) during the ferment. I disagree with this statement.
In my mind, this does introduce risk for contamination of bacteria/infection. And again, it isn't necessary once ferment starts. There are a lot of unnecessary steps in the original recipe. The originator isn't bad for adding the steps, just sayin' - the steps can bee improved by less interruption IMHO.
However I will concede that in reality the substance is so acidic, it isn't a good growing ground for most readily available bacterias. Which is probably why so few people have had infections from their very "hands on" approach to this fermentation. Think about any other wine/beer/cider you have made that calls on you to touch it so many times in the midst of fermentation.
As with any recipe, there is room for alteration. If other ways work for you..... knock yourself out.
I published the recipe the way it is because it was the method that produced the most consistently successful results. Some alterations you can make won't kill it, but may alter the time of ferment or flavor somewhat. I've gotten e-mails from people having problems and I come to find that the issue rests with changes or substitutions they've made.
Let's just say that the recipe takes you down the middle of the road where there are less obstacles to encounter. If you'd rather take a short cut or more adventurous route, ...cool.... It can be fun to drive through the ditches once in a while, but watch out for the rocks, holes, and stumps hidden in the grass.
The originator
That's a good idea although I would never have equated dandelion with wine. I've seen some other recipes for all kinds of cheap home wines on here and am definitely curious.
Wow, thanks for the advice. I can definitely relate to having a bunch of bottles of something you're not crazy about. My lhbs has a bunch of different wine kits so maybe I'll start there; they've also been very helpful whenever I have a question.If you decide to go this route, I would recommend finding some other wine makers who've made dandelion and will share some with you. I think it's an acquired taste.
I made it one time and it tasted like poo, I still have some bottles left over and I can't get anyone to take them. I used a recipe that was supposed to be good and I followed all the proper steps (petal collection, no green, etc.).
Thinking that maybe it was just a bad recipe, I made another batch using another recipe, lowered the alcohol content and left it dryer. Still tastes crappy in my opinion.
On another forum, twice I begged and pleaded for someone to send me a bottle of good dandelion so that I could see if my batches tasted normal or not. I offered a trade of two of my good wines for one dandelion. It never happened.
I then made a post asking if dandelion was really an urban myth. Everyone seemed to have heard stories of some sweet little granny making this phenomenal wine, but for some reason, as awesome as it was, no one in the family carried the tradition forward. I thought that was weird. Most families have certain traditional foods or recipes that transcend generations, but this "spectacular wine" was left in the dust for some reason. With all the talk about it, how many had actually made it, and how many think it is a great wine and make it often. Most responses came back in one of these categories:
1. Never made it or tried it, but my (grandma, aunt, grandpop, etc.) made it a long time ago and people in the family tell stories that it was good.
2. I've made it and didn't like it.
3. Never made it, have tried it though and don't like it.
4. It's OK, but definitely not worth the effort.
5. I make it and/or like it.
Only about 20% came back with a like it response. I think it makes a good story because it tells the story of good triumphing over evil. Take something evil (dandelions) and out of it comes something heavenly. Nice story, happens like that in books and movies, but in reality, mostly fairytale.
If you're a new wine maker, I would definitely point you to kits. You're almost guaranteed success and people will like your wine. After you have some drinkable stuff in the cellar, THEN go about the process of playing the mad scientist and coming up with your own stuff from scratch.
I teach wine making classes and always point students to kits at the beginning. IF you had never baked a cake before, and you were going to be alone in the kitchen for your first project, I wouldn't give you a recipe for a cake from scratch, I'd give you a cake mix. When you had a couple of cakes that everyone could enjoy, then you could start to add your own creativity.
Nothing will kill spirit and ruin your reputation as a winemaker faster than having 60 bottles of crappy wine and sharing it with friends and relatives. Most will be polite and won't tell you the truth. I've made my share of crappy wine and I know now that some were pretty crappy, and only a few people are bold enough to speak the truth. This is even more true when you have a group of people together. It's kinda like the story "The Emperor's New Clothes".
Cheers, good luck, have fun.
Nothing will kill spirit and ruin your reputation as a winemaker faster than having 60 bottles of crappy wine and sharing it with friends and relatives.
Good dandy picking advice Debbie... I'm gettin' old, I need frequent position changes........Tonight I got the lemon juice on sale at Aldi's for $1.59 each... good deal! I bought 6. Try and save some for a year... see how good it is!
Debbie
I made my first dandelion last spring... still in the carboy. Most people said it was best after a year, so I'm not bottling yet. It seems to me that once you add all the fruit, it's really not about the dandelions anyway... so if you had one of those recipes without the added flavor of the fruit... it's not going to have as much flavor.
Debbie
Update - Yeast from packets and less steps:
My ferment started 2/13/11 and is just about dry, very slow ferment right now, should be done in a day or so.
I thought I would post back with the following information:
1. I only aerated at yeast pitching (which I did right away, and didn't wait 24 hours)
2. I did split the yeast nutrient and energizer additions, half up front and half about 24hours later.
3. I didn't touch the ferment again and it had a nice constant steady ferment throughout and no off smells from the ferment.
Details:
1. Double batch of skeeter pee in a demi john - planned on using 4x1118 yeast packs but had 5 on hand so figured eh, it won't hurt. So 5x1118 yeast packs @ 85 cents each.
2. started 2/13/11, should be done by end of week latest (3/4/11)
3. Used warm tap water to help dissolve the sugar, added 2/3 of lemon juice and 1/2 of nutrient and energizer up front (cooled pee to ~77F before pitching). I hydrated my yeast prior to pitching, but no starter.
3. Ferment temp ~68F-73F
4. About 24 hours and tossed in the rest of the lemon juice and the rest of the energizer and nutrient.
Conclusions:
There are a lot of extra steps in the original recipe (perhaps a few more that I did) that may or may not hurt the process (make you more prone to infect your wine, etc). I tend to think that extra aeration after the first 24-48 hours is not helpful, and possibly harmful. since this part of the fermentation is anaerobic anyhow. All you would be doing is oxidizing the must.
Next time:
I plan to pitch everything in at once next time and see what happens. I think as long as you prime it with enough yeast, you will be good to go.
I would think you'd want to use a workhorse yeast like Pasteur Champagne or EC-1118 if you're not going to be pitching an entire yeast cake.
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