I don't know the answer.. however, would you eat one of the grapes "cleaned" by unpotable (which means not fit for drinking) water? I wouldn't... so I wouldn't want wine made from those grapes either...
Scott
I think the only way you could get to 12% without adding sugar is if you took a TON of blackberries and boiled then down until you hit the right starting gravity.. but that would be a LOT of blackberries..
Why are you opposed to adding sugar?
I have never brewed beer, but I've made lots of wine. The fermentation almost never requires a blow off tube, and is usually rather sedate. I've read that beer is much more vigorous.
While it's true a hand corker will work just fine... a floor corker is REALLY nice. I would definitely recommend getting one, even if you just rent it.
So I just "harvested" my first batch, got about 2 cups of liquid out of it. I used a japanese short grain sweet rice. It smells sweet, fruity with very light alcohol undertones. Haven't tasted it yet, I decided to pasteurize it (using the method in the Cider sticky) and refrigerate it first...
There is very little wine that I make that I would ever want to drink without any aging. It's incredible how much better it tastes after even just a few months.
Give some serious thought about letting it age, at least until it is clear.. although you should rack it into a glass container for...