a very effective way to "start" skeeter pee

[Daze]

If you have done any reading about skeeter pee you will quickly realize the hardest part about making it is getting it to start. If you make a typical starter or simply pitch the dry yeast directly in to the must the acids from the lemon and the preservatives (sodium benzoate, sodium metabisulfite, and sodium sulfate)slow down the yeast and it can take a week or better before it really starts to take off.

Another solution that is common practice among skeeter pee makers is to simply make the skeeter pee or SP on top of the lees from a previous batch of wine. This is highly effective, however has two drawbacks, first it means you can only make SP when you have just finished another wine or cider, and two if the "starter wine" had any color to it (like a red) those colors can muddy the SP.

I have come up with a third solution that is highly effective and gets the SP going within about 48-72 hours.

After I have mixed my lemon, water, and sugar to create the SP must I sanitize a clear beer bottle and then use it as a container to make a starter with 4 oz of apple juice (I use a 4oz juice box, also I have found yeast seam to really do well in apple juice) and the yeast I am using. I fit the bottle with an air lock and let it sit for about an hour or two, watching for activity. When I have vigorous bubbling I add about 4oz of my SP mix and weight until it starts vigorously bubbling again (usually takes about 6-8 hours) I then add 4 more ounces of SP and once again give it about 6-8 hours. At this point my beer bottle is full, and quite foamy at the top from the activity. I then pour 1/2 of my starter in to the SP must, give the jug a quick swirl and refill the starter bottle with more SP liquid. Again it takes about 6-8 hours for the starter to start bubbling vigorously again and when I get to that point I repeat the previous step only I pour 2/3 of the starter in to the must, again give the must a swirl, replace the liquid in the starter with more SP, and repeat. I continue this process until my jug of skeeter pee starts bubbling on its own, at which point I dump the entire starter into the jug and top it off. I used this technique and made a starter two mornings ago and by this morning only 48 hours later my SP was bubbling away on its own. I have found this technique works extremely well and I believe it minimizes the stress on the yeast so I figured I would share.

 

[JonM]

Nice! I'm planning to make SP and this'll be a big help.

Are you able to get it going and ferment completely with cool temps this time of year?

 

[saramc]

Just follow the temperature range on your yeast and it should be fine, but Skeeter Pee really does ferment better at a warmer temperature, as the recipe recommends. If you opt for a lower temperature it may take longer to finish.

 

[Daze]

I do all my fermenting in my basement which means it is around 60º + or - 4º year round. as to fermenting it out I make mine at a lower ABV, around 6% more like a store bought hard lemonade or wine cooler, so I don't have much issue getting it to ferment out. On this batch I used both nutrient and energizer.

 

[Guthrie]

I was also hoping to make a batch of this with an abv of around 6%. Did you follow the recipe and add less sugar to achieve that or do something else.

And would this stuff be good carbonated?

 

[Daze]

Yes I made a 1 gallon batch and added 450g of sugar (about 2 &1/3 cups) to get the 6% PA. I plan on bottle carbonating mine then pasteurizing.

 

[Guthrie]

When you bottle carb will you be left with any lees in the bottle after pasteurization?

 

[Daze]

yes a little bit but as long as the brew was clear when you bottled the lees will be minimal

 

[Guthrie]

Yeah I'm used to that not a huge deal. Is the drink it self good?

 

[JonM]

Yes I made a 1 gallon batch and added 450g of sugar (about 2 &1/3 cups) to get the 6% PA. I plan on bottle carbonating mine then pasteurizing.

Did you keep the amount of lemon juice the same? (Or proportional, I guess - 1/5 of the original recipe?)

 

[Daze]

I actually used more than the recipe called for. 20oz per gallon is what the recipe calls for. I wanted a stronger lemon flavor so I used almost a full 32 ounce bottle (2 or 3 oz had already been used) and then added a little baking soda (1 tsp) to cut the acid.

 

[JonM]

Awesome - thanks!

 

[Guthrie]

I was unable to find the sparkalloid, is there anything else I can use?

 

[Guthrie]

I was told that using kieselsol and chitosan may work, any thoughts on this.

 

[Daze]

weight until it ferments out dry and use gelatin.

 

[Daze]

Not only did this work well the result is a ferment that is twice as active as any of my other wines. I am getting 1 bubble every second from the airlock.

 

[Buckmaster40]

I have a blueberry wine that has fermented dry in a secondary. Can I use the slurry for skeeter pee or does it have to be from the primary?

 

[Daze]

sure can, but it will probably effect the color.

 

[Buckmaster40]

sure can, but it will probably effect the color.

I have a bigger problem now. I started my sp last night and realized, after I dumped them in of course, that my lemon juice bottles were 48 oz instead of 32 oz. So essentially I already have all 3 bottles of lemon juice in my must at start. Any suggestions on how to get this fermentation to start? I was thinking of adding a little to my slurry at a time. Will that work?

 

[Honda88]

use plenty of nutrient and it will probably get going..Guess you wont know till you try....if you have a bigger carboy you could add more water to compensate for the extra lemon juice basically make a bigger batch....good luck

 

[Daze]

I was thinking of adding a little to my slurry at a time. Will that work?

So you haven't added to the lees from the previous batch??? if not add half and use the other half to make a starter like I did and add and start add and start. that should allow it to get going no problem.

 

[Buckmaster40]

No I haven't added any lees yet because the recipe said to wait 24 to 48 hrs before adding it. I realized I added too much lemon juice before it was time to add lees. I've added 3 cups of the sp must to the lees in the carboy to see if it will kick off. Should I add some nutrient?

 

[Daze]

Look at how I did my starter and do it that way. Add some apple juice or sugar water to the lees and get it bubbling actively, then add more SP mix and let it get going again, then ad more and so on. As to the nutrient, I am of the mind that most wines should get it, especially SP

 

[Buckmaster40]

Ok. Thanks for the help daze.

 

[JonM]

One more Q for ya - how much sugar do you use per gallon to bottle carb? I take it the pasteurization leaves a little sweetness behind?

 

[Daze]

SP needs to be back sweetened, I believe the original recipe calls for 6 cups of sugar to sweeten a 5 gallon batch so 1 & 1/6 C for a 1 gallon batch. Priming only takes about 5 tsp per gallon so the back sweetening will more than prime the SP and pasteurization will be required. If you want to stick to the sweetness of the original recipe and account for the sugar that will be lost in the carbonation process you will need to add 1 & 1/4 C per gallon. I personally will probably add 2 cups of sugar to mine when it finishes so that the acidity is more manageable and the SP is closer to lemonade in taste.

 

[JonM]

Thanks again!

My apple juice and SP starter is chugging away beautifully after two 4 oz additions of SP - can hardly wait to try this when it's ready!

 

[Daze]

well if it is chugging away sounds like it is almost time to start adding half to the full bottle of SP.

 

[twd000]

has anyone tried SP with fresh lemon juice instead of RealLemon? This time of year in southern Arizona people's backyard lemon trees are loaded down and you can get buckets of fruit for free. I wonder how much of the lag time is due to added preservatives in RealLemon, and how much is just due to the natural acidity of the juice?

 

[Buckmaster40]

has anyone tried SP with fresh lemon juice instead of RealLemon? This time of year in southern Arizona people's backyard lemon trees are loaded down and you can get buckets of fruit for free. I wonder how much of the lag time is due to added preservatives in RealLemon, and how much is just due to the natural acidity of the juice?

I haven't tried it but I did read a thread on here somewhere about it. Seemed to remember them trying to figure out how much real lemon juice should be used in place of RealLemon juice.