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Still no bubbles... I may have to dump it. :-(

I'll be freeing up a carboy to rack this into tomorrow. My Black Mead will make it's new home in some gallon glass jugs to bulk age. I grabbed an autosiphon from the brewshop a while back, it rocks!

You are more brave than I. Perhaps that will come to me with experience. I have messy roommates, two cats and two dogs in my house. I'm more than a little nervous about contamination. My other 5 batches worked just fine with airtight conditions. As for the rotting berries... I wont argue that...

I picked up some gallon jugs from the redemption center for $0.50 each. I also have a bunch of drilled stoppers that fit nicely into the jugs. I oxy-cleaned the hell out of them, so no worries about random nasty flavors and crud. I'll also sanitize everything before I start racking. I'll be...

Why would I do that? It only leave space for wild yeast and bacteria to float in. Yeast produces CO2 which is heavier than O2. This means that any air that might make it into my fermentor wont make contact with the must, but might drop spores and other baddies into my must. I realize that yeast...

I recently bought 4.5 gallons of store brand apple juice, 1 gallon of Pom Wonderful, 4 cans of frozen apple concentrate and some white sugar. Poured most of the juice into my primary, mixed all of the additives by shaking them in a jug of juice and pouring it in, bumped up gravity and volume by...

Racked to secondary on 2/24. There was an almost cinnamon nose during racking, which is odd because I used no spices.

I like to make country wines. I leave the grape wines to the experts in Italy. (I prefer Italian wines, though the French do a good job) My favorite homebrew wines so far are Strawberry, Strawberry Rhubarb, Blueberry, Apple and I even enjoy Sumak. I expect the body to be light on the...

Not necessarily better. One gets better flavor at 65° than 75° for most wine yeasts, but the yeast works faster at 75-80° Yeast also works faster in a lower acid environment, but most wines taste like poop without enough acid. Furthermore, fermentation doesn't effect the ripeness of the...

I'd love to see your recipe.

You don't control the speed of fermentation, that's up to the yeast.

I was also wondering about using agave nectar in wine. I was shopping for honey when I noticed that I can get it agave nectar for $3 per pound and it has 3 times the sugar content as honey. 16 grams per tsp vs 16 grams per Tbsp. I'm thinking about adapting a Skeeter pee recipe...

This is a Jack Keller ricipe. I used sulphides to avoid spoilage during fermentation. I also pitched the same night that I prepared the must. I guess watermelon juice goes bad VERY quickly, which could be the reason for the bad luck y'all have experienced.

I broke down and bought another primary for my watermelon. I'll rack my strawberry into gallon jugs to clear and use the better bottle that its in for my cyser's secondary. I think this will happen Tuesday.

It's been in the primary for 3 days. I only open and stir my primary once, on day two. The fact of the matter is that yeast are anaerobic except during the time that they are reproducing. I also use a sealed top and airlock for the whole fermentation process. C02 is heavier than air, so...

About 10 lbs of white sugar Watermelon juice to 4.5 gallons OG approximately 1.120 Acid blend, yeast nutrients, pectic enzyme, Red Star Champagne Yeast. To get the juice from the melons I scooped them into a blender and pureed. Then poured through a mesh strainer. After draining a bit I...

Thanks. I'll think about adding a little more honey or juice when I rack to clarify. The wort/must calculator is handy.

Though I didn't mention my OG, which was about 1.1 I plan to top up with water when I rack it again. I want it to still have a little residual sweetness, but not be candy. Thanks for the headsup on Vintners Harvest purees. I have a can of Oregon Fruit cherry puree. I plan to get a few more and...

I assure you, my hydrometer is correct. Currant affair is a bit watered down. 22% juice.

I'm interested in planting some currants here in Maine, but have no land for it. That will have to wait for another year. Fortunately for me I know of several wild Blueberry, Raspberry and Blackberry patches near me. I also have an in with some local strawberry farmers, and can pay a cheep...