Skeeter Pee

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well that is the important part, have fun!!! As long as you sanitize everything well it is hard to screw something up. play, experiment. Thats the fun of this you can do what ever you want, and thats what makes it fun. Also feel free to keep asking questions, thats what we are here for.
 
newbee Skeeter Pee question, that I don't doubt has been answered, but my searches didn't find it.

Just bottled my first batch of SP. OG was 1.064, and I stabilized and back-sweetened after SG hit ~ .995. Do I use 1.064 and .995 to calculate ABV, or do I use 1,064 and 1.020, which was my SG at bottling?

(This stuff is dangerously good :D I got a feeling that (1.064 X 0.995)/131.25 may be the answer ;) )

TIA!

Fred
 
FG is the gravity after it ferments out not after you back sweeten. I came up with closer to 9% but I use OG, FG and a conversion table.

1.064- .995 = .069 when you look at a table .069 = 8.8%
 
Has anyone tried this with fresh squeezed lemon juice? It seems like it would taste much better but maybe not after the fermentation. I live in Phoenix and we have access to plenty of lemons this time of year.
 
Daze said:
FG is the gravity after it ferments out not after you back sweeten. I came up with closer to 9% but I use OG, FG and a conversion table.

1.064- .995 = .069 when you look at a table .069 = 8.8%
Click to expand...

Thanks Daze, that makes sense. My "newness" made me unsure.

Fred
 
So I racked to secondary today. I'm a little worried because I wasn't able to get to it for a day longer than I had hoped and the SG was 1.002 when I racked. Do you think I screwed it up by letting it have access to O2 for too long. I tasted my sample and it's a little harsh IMO. Maybe that's normal at its first racking but IDK this is my first Skeeter Pee batch. OG was 1.071.

Thanks everyone!
 
dont have to worry about the oxygen.. i rack mine upto 3 times if its going a little slow or there's alot of yeast fallout.. i also cold crash before i keg wich will pull in a little more o2!! i then forcecarb and fill bottles :mug:
 
HBngNOK said:
newbee Skeeter Pee question, that I don't doubt has been answered, but my searches didn't find it.

Just bottled my first batch of SP. OG was 1.064, and I stabilized and back-sweetened after SG hit ~ .995. Do I use 1.064 and .995 to calculate ABV, or do I use 1,064 and 1.020, which was my SG at bottling?

(This stuff is dangerously good :D I got a feeling that (1.064 X 0.995)/131.25 may be the answer ;) )

TIA!

Fred
Click to expand...

(S.G. - F.G.) x 133 = ABV %

( 1.064 - 0.995 ) x 133 = 9.17% ABV
 
edmanster said:
dont have to worry about the oxygen.. i rack mine upto 3 times if its going a little slow or there's alot of yeast fallout.. i also cold crash before i keg wich will pull in a little more o2!! i then forcecarb and fill bottles :mug:
Click to expand...

Ok that's what I thought since it wants you to stir in O2 so often. I think it just needs to get all the "stuff" to fall out of it and it'll be just fine. Glad to hear I more than likely didn't ruin it. :ban:
 
So I'm in process of making my first batch of SP. Actually first batch of anything. I've followed the directions and seem to have come to a stop at 1.004 for the last 5 days. There is very little activity from the air lock. Do I consider this done at this stage or is there something I can do to get the SP to go dry?
 
Fishfoot, what was your OG? I've made a couple Pees that didn't go dry. I usually start my Pee with a bit higher gravity (usually 1.080 to 1.110) so even if it stops a little early, it'll still be 10% or more. As long as your wine doesn't stop so early that it's too sweet to drink, it's really no big deal. Just make sure to backsweeten with less sugar, since there's still some left in the must.

But first, do give it a couple days and check the gravity again to see if it is actually stuck.
 
Clifton said:
Leave it alone for two days and check gravity again.
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Ugh... I knew that was going to be the answer. Patience
Sirthomas42 said:
Fishfoot, what was your OG? I've made a couple Pees that didn't go dry. I usually start my Pee with a bit higher gravity (usually 1.080 to 1.110) so even if it stops a little early, it'll still be 10% or more. As long as your wine doesn't stop so early that it's too sweet to drink, it's really no big deal. Just make sure to backsweeten with less sugar, since there's still some left in the must.

But first, do give it a couple days and check the gravity again to see if it is actually stuck.
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OG was 1.076. It actually tastes decent but I will give it a few more days.

Thanks for the help:rockin:
 
Am I the only one that gets this funk smell from Skeeter pee? I've made it twice, the first time with raw sugar and I thought that was it, this time I made it with table sugar and it still has it. I did not clarify the first one and that smell never subsided. This second one I dropped some bentonite on it and it cleared up a bit and the smell has subsided a bit. Its a rather offensive smell, but rather difficult to describe. Its to the point now where the smell is faint enough that you can drink it without the smell coming back at you after you swallow, but its still lingers in the glass. Anyone else get this?

Its not completely clear yet and I'm considering picking up some sparkeloid to finish the job.
 
Atek said:
Am I the only one that gets this funk smell from Skeeter pee? I've made it twice, the first time with raw sugar and I thought that was it, this time I made it with table sugar and it still has it. I did not clarify the first one and that smell never subsided. This second one I dropped some bentonite on it and it cleared up a bit and the smell has subsided a bit. Its a rather offensive smell, but rather difficult to describe. Its to the point now where the smell is faint enough that you can drink it without the smell coming back at you after you swallow, but its still lingers in the glass. Anyone else get this?

Its not completely clear yet and I'm considering picking up some sparkeloid to finish the job.
Click to expand...

Is it a sulphery / rhino fart kind of smell? I ended up with it fairly badly on my first batch and further reading shows it's a byproduct of stressed yeast. If I make another batch I'll oxygenate with pure O2 prior to pitching, then follow SNA and aggressively degass daily to try and avoid it.

Unfortunately the smell never truly went away, even after degassing daily from four days in, fining and racking to secondary and force carbing in a keg. Even a month and a half after kegging I could still clearly identify the smell when I poured a glass, extremely faintly but there. I ended up bottling a case worth off the keg, and then dumping the keg as I needed to make room for another beer.
 
Atek said:
Am I the only one that gets this funk smell from Skeeter pee? I've made it twice, the first time with raw sugar and I thought that was it, this time I made it with table sugar and it still has it. I did not clarify the first one and that smell never subsided. This second one I dropped some bentonite on it and it cleared up a bit and the smell has subsided a bit. Its a rather offensive smell, but rather difficult to describe. Its to the point now where the smell is faint enough that you can drink it without the smell coming back at you after you swallow, but its still lingers in the glass. Anyone else get this?

Its not completely clear yet and I'm considering picking up some sparkeloid to finish the job.
Click to expand...

Are you aerating the must until the second lemon and nutrient addition?
 
Try stirring twice daily until after the second addition. If you are starting from dry yeast, it's especially important cause you're stressing them
 
I've made maybe a dozen various batches of Pee, and I've never gotten the rhino fart smell. This might be due to a few things. 1) I never use lees from another batch. I always make a yeast starter from dry yeast with juice or sugar water or whatever, and let it run overnight. I gradually step it up by adding a cup or two of must every few hours. It's usually 2 quarts in a pitcher before I pitch it, so there's an asston of yeast ready to rock before it goes into the bucket. 2) I aerate the Pee every day until the 2nd lemon juice bottle and nutrient addition. 3) I only use the EC-1118 yeast for my Pee - that stuff is a beast.

I'm not an expert or anything - only been doing this a year - but I've never gotten rhino farts, so maybe there's something to it.
 
Mine are definitely not rhino farts. Not a sulphur smell at all. Just funky, really hard to explain....
 
If you have CO2 bubble some through it. It'll help displace the sulphur. If you don't give it a little stir with some copper tubing. If memory serves this is caused by SO2 and these are two ways to get rid of it. I had some mead with it once and CO2 fixed it.
 
What is the overall process/feelings people have had with carbing this and serving via keg?

Do I need to to add chemicals to stop fermentation if I am force carbing or can I just back-sweeten and then carb immediately in the keg?

Do people find this tastier served flat over ice or sparkling with carbonation? Does force carbing this stuff change how much backsweetning I should do?

I'm honestly torn between bottling and kegging. Bottling has the advantage of portability but if i can skip the whole process of stopping fermentation and avoiding bottle bombs by kegging, I may just do this first batch in the keg.
 
I am making my first batch now so can't really help you, but I am planning on stopping fermentation, backsweeten, then force carb 4 gallons in the keg and the rest flat in bottles. Then if I want to bottle some of the carbed stuff, I can use my bowie bottler and bottle from the tap and bring it places if I want to. Best of both worlds.

I am thinking I am going to need to carb this like a cider, so much higher pressures than a regular ale. I like my cider at 16-18 psi so I am going to try this at that pressure first and adjust from there.

Let's hope others with real experience can chime in on what works best.
 
Tiktock said:
What is the overall process/feelings people have had with carbing this and serving via keg?

Do I need to to add chemicals to stop fermentation if I am force carbing or can I just back-sweeten and then carb immediately in the keg?

Do people find this tastier served flat over ice or sparkling with carbonation? Does force carbing this stuff change how much backsweetning I should do?

I'm honestly torn between bottling and kegging. Bottling has the advantage of portability but if i can skip the whole process of stopping fermentation and avoiding bottle bombs by kegging, I may just do this first batch in the keg.
Click to expand...

I only serve it on tap when I make this, just prefer it like that. When you back sweeten it make it just a bit sweeter than you like and carb it to 2.5volumes +. The carbonation steals a bit of the sweet and it will be perfect that way.

There are a couple ways to sweeten it:

You would need to rack the pee onto sorbate, then back sweeten with sugar, then rack into your keg with campden, in that order (carb then serve). Campden makes the pee taste funny for about 8 or so hours then dissapates so if you campden first it is harder to back sweeten by taste.

Or sweeten with non-fermentables; splenda, lactose, etc.

Sweeten with sugar and bottle pasteurize.



Just keep in mind, if your abv is 11% this is a dangerous drink carbed (you will crash your lawnmower). But seriously, I now reduce the ABV to about 6% or so because the 11% on draft will wreck your guests if not monitored.
 
Misplaced_Canuck said:
I would not recommend back sweetening using artificial sweeteners. Just follow the recipe, he mentions how to kill the yeast using sorbate/sulfite and how to back sweeten.

Also, I had difficulty carbonating this stuff and had to increase the PSI to 12 instead of my usual 8 PSI for beers.

MC
Click to expand...

I only use sugar, was just giving options for people who don't want to use sorbate and kmeta. Any specific reasons why not to use artificial sweeteners? I personally don't care for them but was wondering if you had personal experience to comment on.

Sorbate or sultfites do not kill yeast. Sorbate suppresses yeast reproduction and sulfites inhibit (temporarily) yeast and will not stop an active fermentation.

The reason you had issues carbing it is that likely the pee needed to de-gas a bit (as many wines often do).
 
I've used both splenda and stevia to backsweeten.. Both have their pros and cons.. Splenda uses maltodextrin as a filler it tastes more like real sugar but causes a thick mouth feel, I've herd lactose is the same.. Stevia is cheap but very potent, if you use just a little too much it tastes chemically.. I've come to appreciate dry skeeter pee.. If someone wants it sweet they can add a teaspoon of sugar.. I force carbonate at 3-3.5 vol for a soda like carbonation..
 
edmanster said:
I've used both splenda and stevia to backsweeten.. Both have their pros and cons.. Splenda uses maltodextrin as a filler it tastes more like real sugar but causes a thick mouth feel, I've herd lactose is the same.. Stevia is cheap but very potent, if you use just a little too much it tastes chemically.. I've come to appreciate dry skeeter pee.. If someone wants it sweet they can add a teaspoon of sugar.. I force carbonate at 3-3.5 vol for a soda like carbonation..
Click to expand...

Good post! I think that will really help the asker, and others, to decide.
 
CidahMastah said:
I only serve it on tap when I make this, just prefer it like that. When you back sweeten it make it just a bit sweeter than you like and carb it to 2.5volumes +. The carbonation steals a bit of the sweet and it will be perfect that way.

There are a couple ways to sweeten it:

You would need to rack the pee onto sorbate, then back sweeten with sugar, then rack into your keg with campden, in that order (carb then serve). Campden makes the pee taste funny for about 8 or so hours then dissapates so if you campden first it is harder to back sweeten by taste.

Or sweeten with non-fermentables; splenda, lactose, etc.

Sweeten with sugar and bottle pasteurize.



Just keep in mind, if your abv is 11% this is a dangerous drink carbed (you will crash your lawnmower). But seriously, I now reduce the ABV to about 6% or so because the 11% on draft will wreck your guests if not monitored.
Click to expand...

What is the campden for? How many tablets do you use per 5 gallons?
 
so i'm thinking of doing this after my apflewien finishes in a couple weeks. I made limoncello for a weddingfavor, so zested 100 lemons (yeah....) then we juiced all the lemons and froze the juice into cubes.

can I just use 96oz of the squeezed juice or is there an additional step I need to take.
 
jww9618 said:
What is the campden for? How many tablets do you use per 5 gallons?
Click to expand...


Campden is potassium metabisulphite - I would avoid the sodium version and stick with the potassium instead. It is used to inhibit yeast function, also to kill bacteria and suppress wild yeasts in some cases, it is an antioxidant which helps preserve wines and beers for long term storage when used at bottling.

For our purposes here it is used to inhibit the yeast function. Sorbate is to inhibit yeast reproduction. Campden is jsut conveniently prepackaged in a pill form (easy to measure). One tablet per gallon.

Campden and Sorbate deal a solid 1-2 punch to the yeast when it is in a mostly dormant state. You can sorbate only, but I know with ciders a bacteria culture will feed on the sorbate and create a stinky geranium smell. I don't think this will be the case here, but in the past the above method worked so I am sticking to it! :D
 
CidahMastah said:
I only use sugar, was just giving options for people who don't want to use sorbate and kmeta. Any specific reasons why not to use artificial sweeteners? I personally don't care for them but was wondering if you had personal experience to comment on.

Sorbate or sultfites do not kill yeast. Sorbate suppresses yeast reproduction and sulfites inhibit (temporarily) yeast and will not stop an active fermentation.

The reason you had issues carbing it is that likely the pee needed to de-gas a bit (as many wines often do).
Click to expand...

I just don't like the idea of drinking so much artificial sweeteners. And sometimes the off-flavors may be off-putting too.

If fermentation is complete and that you're following the recipe/instruction, the 'pee recipe is correct that it won't referment after you add sweetening sugar.

MC
 
Misplaced_Canuck said:
If fermentation is complete and that you're following the recipe/instruction, the 'pee recipe is correct that it won't referment after you add sweetening sugar.

MC
Click to expand...

What you are saying is misleading IMO. I would say that when the fermentation is complete (fermented dry) AFTER you add sorbate and sulphites you are ok to add sugar. Unless you have fully exhausted the yeasts capability to ferment, if you don't add sorbate and sulphites you run the risk of fermentation starting back up. This is particularly true with wine yeasts like 1118, which are very strong and resilient.

I don't think most people, if any, are looking to make 18% abv skeeter pee.

I know you keep saying to follow the recipe. But that isn't helpful to people who are asking for first hand experience in how "they" did it. First hand anecdotal experience is why the forums are so powerful IMO - it is why I read and participate in them. Reading the directions doesn't tell you WHY you add the sulphites and sorbate, or that order is important, or what they do. I also don't recall if the recipe addresses carbing this up - unless it has been updated. I know it didn't address it when i first tried this out last year or two ago.
 
Just want to point out that stevia is not a artificial sweetener.. I also have friends with sulphite allergies.. So the tired and true method doesn't always work for everyone..
 
CidahMastah said:
I know you keep saying to follow the recipe. But that isn't helpful to people who are asking for first hand experience in how "they" did it. First hand anecdotal experience is why the forums are so powerful IMO
Click to expand...

Ok then I'll say it straight up: I followed the recipe to the letter and it did not referment. In fact I've had some of it in a keg at room temperature under no pressure and for over 2 months, and it has not refermented.

MC
 
Cidah, MC isn't saying to sweeten without stabilizing. He's saying what so many others have said before. If this is the first time you are making a recipe, follow the recipe. Then make changes.

If you are allergic to one of the ingredients....that is a different story.
 
Clifton said:
Cidah, MC isn't saying to sweeten without stabilizing. He's saying what so many others have said before. If this is the first time you are making a recipe, follow the recipe. Then make changes.

If you are allergic to one of the ingredients....that is a different story.
Click to expand...

Understood - I didn't say he was. I did say it was misleading.

I will repeat. When a poster asks what people are doing, how they did it they typically want to learn from your experience. Often they want to learn why they are doing, whatever the process is, etc. and that was all I was pointing out.

i.e. as edmanster said, some people are allergic, or don't want to use sulphites, etc. Since the receipe includes those people often seek direction on how to side step that process. Everyone's case is different (in this case they were asking about force carbing and how to; which was not covered in the skeeter pee recipe).

Some people, myself included, want to learn why things are done, how they work etc. I have no ill will towards MC, I simply asked him to give his perspective because that is what the poster was asking for. Was just trying to encourage a response that was helpful to the OP.

MC - that is a long way from home for you (SC) :D I grew up about 30 minutes south of Canada, about an hour and change from Montreal. Great city for sure!
 
Ticktock,
I stabilized and then sweetened my first batch. I sweetened some with frozen concentrates (my favorite being limeade). I just split it into 4 L Carlo Rossi bottles, a 5 L wine bag, and some in a 2 L soda bottle. I tried it carbontated and still. I prefer it still. I sweeten to 1.014-20.

I recently made a 1 gallon batch of Welch's White Grape wine and I didn't stabilize it. I just let it clear and back sweetened. It is in a gallon jug in the refrigerator and we've been sipping on it for the last week or two.

You may get away with kegging your batch without stabilizing as long as it is continually refrigerated. I've never done it but I'm sure others have.

Misplaced_Canuck said:
Just follow the recipe, he mentions how to kill the yeast using sorbate/sulfite and how to back sweeten. MC
Click to expand...

Cidah,
How is that misleading? MC is only expressing his opinion based on his experience much the same as you.
 

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