Started my first batch!!!

[d-will11]

I'm making hard lemonade (Yooper's recipe) in a 1 gallon batch. I think it started out pretty well. I made a starter and got up to a few cups with some serious foam building, and I added it to the must 12 hours after making it. OG was 1.080. So exciting!!

 

[lukebuz]

Now you wait. Months and Months of waiting. I think you should start a few more batches...

 

[d-will11]

Now you wait. Months and Months of waiting. I think you should start a few more batches...

For my next batch, i'm going to do a welch's white grape peach. I'm going to wait until I move the lemonade to the secondary. Then, i'll start the other one.

 

[RegarRenill]

For my next batch, i'm going to do a welch's white grape peach. I'm going to wait until I move the lemonade to the secondary. Then, i'll start the other one.

Start watching craigslist for carboys. Lowes/Home Depot for 5 gal buckets (or ask the bakery dept at your grocery store)...having multiple projects going helps eliminate th urge to "meddle" with a batch...I can't find juice in glass gallon jars around my area, but you might be luckier than I...$4-5 and you get the juice and a gallon carboy! So basically the juice is free

 

[d-will11]

Good idea regnarrenill. I'll have to keep my eye out for it.

Side note on my batch going right now, I added the starter this morning and there still isn't activity. Does it usually take more than a day to get going after adding the starter to the primary?

 

[d-will11]

Update: it has been almost a full 24 hours since pitching the starter. It is bubbling a lot! Looking good!

 

[d-will11]

I went to take my SG on day #2 and the SG is higher than what I started with. The guy from my local brew store gave me Red Star Champagne yeast for this batch. Its bubbling a lot, and I think the SG is inaccurate because of all the bubbles.

Is this common? What should I do?

 

[RegarRenill]

The carbonation could be skewing your readings, try going is gentle swirl or a gentle stir with a sanitized spoon. It could also be that the sugars weren't thoroughly mixed when you took you initial gravity reading. Do NOT shake vigorously unless you want to paint your walls in your wine...also be careful if you add nutrients to a fermenting wine. You may get a reaction like dropping a Mentos into Coke. Best bet is to remove a small portion of your must and dissolve nutrients in that, then add back to your must. This is also a good idea when adding kmeta and sorbate when stabilizing...

 

[d-will11]

First batch is bubbling away in the carboy.

I started a second batch a few days ago.
1st SG=1.085
2 days afterSG=1.064
and 2 days later, today, I checked the SG and it was down to 1.000 (still in the primary).

I racked it because I know it still has to settle out and everything, but is it a problem that the SG got down so low in the primary bucket? What is the next step since the SG is so low already?

 

[jensmith]

Sometimes it ferments out that fast. Not a big deal. You racked it already so now you just wait. And wait some more. In a few weeks or a month you will need to rack it off of the leese again. It will continue to ferment the last little bit for another week anyway.


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