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haha- believe it or not, rhubarb wine is very very nice and so is rhubarb in mead! It’s got a ton of oxalic acid though, so I dealt with that by using some calcium carbonate to drop some acid before fermentation.

No, no- not at all. Just trying to explain why your system isn’t comparable to what we’re discussing with some of the issues with the Brewzilla gen 4 and why something like a false bottom or a different way to drain/lauter is important.

We have different systems with different ‘features’ so it’s not comparable.

That's what I was wondering. I think a better false bottom would be a huge plus, as I got very tired of the bottom drain clogging even with the malt pipe and the HED. I started mashing back in my very old MLT to avoid mashing in the Brewzilla. If there was a decent false bottom, I could...

I've been no-sparge for about 5 or 6 years now. Something John Palmer said years ago sticks in my brain- that a no-sparge wort should be a 'higher quality wort', or something like that. I can't say if that is so or not, but I don't plan on going back to sparging ever again unless I have to...

I've done that- still not thrilled with it and I'm happy enough to do it without the rapt thermometer.

I do a full volume mash, and my efficiency is about 1% lower than when I sparge, so not at all a big deal. I've read journals over the years that will often say that a no-sparge 'results in a higher quality wort', for what that's worth. I agree, and think @Bobby_M said it way better than I...

It's doing recirculation- but also even after the boil when I want to run the pump during chilling. I have tried superslow, fast, throttling it via the valve, throttling it by turning the pump to 25%, 10%, 75%, which sometimes help it 'unplug' but I've just given up. I never go without the...

I had the same issue- the big hole in the bottom was an issue I thought. But I added the optional heat exchanger and it still clogged the hole so I just started using a mash tun. Sort of a waste of an AIO, but it's easy and I have a lot clearer wort (no clogging the pump). I pump from the...

That chloride varies, but it's usable. You would add gypsum to increase sulfate, and forget you even heard the words "chloride sulfate ratio". Here's why. If you have 2:2 that's a 1:1 ratio, but it's so low it's meaningless. If you have 400:400, that's still 1:1 but that will not make a...

No. The point isn't how tight they are packed, although of course you want the grain loose in the bag or malt pipe. It's the process of diffusion that we're looking at. Diffusion is why you use water instead of wort to rinse the grains. If you are batch sparging, you add the water all at...

That said, I myself no longer sparge. I do a full volume mash, and move on. The loss of a few gravity points doesn’t mean much to me, and my last batch two days ago with a full volume mash has an efficiency of 72% so that’s good enough for me. The thing for me is, a full volume mash doesn’t...

Think of it like a washing machine. You add soap, and the agitation and soap and water clean the clothes. The machine drains, and spins, and much of the soaping water is removed. However, the rinse cycle will fill, agitate, and then drain and spin again. That ‘rinse’ gets off anything still...

If it's dropped 22 points, it's fermenting. Give it more time, a good stir with a sanitized spoon, and wait it out. Generally, I use a full packet of wine yeast for most wines, even if they aren't 5 gallons. My procedure is to mix the must and add the sulfite (campden). Then, 12 hours...

I don't do that- in fact, I use a minimal amount of sulfite at every other racking (and at bottling) to ensure that I don't oxidize my wine. During primary, I will stir, knock down the cap, etc, but once I'm at 1.010 or below, I take great steps to reduce potential oxidation.

I make a lot of wine- more wine than beer actually, and make both kits and wine from whole fruit. For kits, those make 6 gallons of wine. I don’t ferment it in a keg, but since the instructions usually have you mix bentonite and hot water, stir to dissolve, then stir in the juice, then water...

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/homemade-pbw-recipe.467655/ I've been doing this for years- but they are ingredients I tend to have around anyway.

Today I went fishing, went scoping for birds in the lakes area and hardwoods, shaped a dough of sourdough for cold retard, and did some agility training with my dog. I watered some of my garden (peppers and herbs), and drank some homebrew. All in all, a great day!

Welcome! I love my Wrangler, so we have that in common. Please let us know if you have any questions and welcome to the obsession, er...hobby!

I like most wines and meads dry- but occasionally a semi-sec dandelion melomel is lovely.