Any Home Brew Wine Makers here?

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Seadog

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There are several stages of fermentation. Getting enough yeast for must and the right temperature is important. Fruits are usually added after the fermentation has mostly taken place otherwise the yeast will eat up all the sugars and you won’t have any fruit flavor.
I’ve made sure to add sugar to help the fermentation and boost the alcohol %. No matter how long I let it sit or rackit, it always has this nasty yeast taste. One of these days I need to get with someone that’s good making wine or beer.
 

Seadog

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swampratt

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I had the yeast taste and found reducing the yeast amount and using the Fleischmanns yeast fixed that.

1/2 teaspoon for 3 quarts of juice and the 2 cups or even 2.5 cups of sugar dissolved in the juice.

Juice in the gallon jug then sprinkle the yeast in on top of the juice.
DO NOT mix the yeast in.

Do not shake the bottle.
My bottle with bubler sits in a room at 70-78 degrees and is covered with a dark towel or put in a closed closet.
I DO NOT use Rapid rise yeast.

My neighbor followed my directions but left the juice in his garage where temp swings were huge and it was a fail.

The more you rack it the more the yeast smell and flavor will be eliminated.

I do not know if I rack mine correctly but what i do is take some of that hard clear plastic tubing
that hooks to the back of your refrigerator for the ice maker.

I insert that into the fermented juice about middle of the juice and siphon it into another jug.
Making sure not to suck anything off the top layer and stay away from the bottom layer of the bottle.

I do have juice left in the bottle after that but it is the stuff near the bottom or the top I want quality not quantity.
If you are pouring from one bottle to the next you will get that settled nasty crud.

I also do not let the juice just siphon straight down I aim the stream at the side of the bottle so it enters smoothly.

I read somewhere you can bruise the wine and shaking it during fermenting will make it vinegarish.

I have not tried that.

So tell me what is different in your process?

You must add sugar to straight fruit juice like welches or you will not ferment well and it will be very bitter (dry).
 

HiredHand

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Maintaining fermentation temp is critical for producing drinkable beverages. Otherwise your yeast will produce undesirable compounds or won’t complete fermentation. There are several phases to fermentation as well. Initially the yeast being reproducing, next they begin the active part where they turn sugar into alcohol and C02, then comes cleanup where some of the compounds made during active fermentation are further processed by the yeast. The whole thing usually takes about two weeks.

Yeast type is also important because certain types of yeast tolerate higher alcohol levels or ferment better at different temperatures.

The welches grape juice without added sugar is probably completely fermenting all the sugar into alcohol and CO2 which is why it’s dry. By adding sugar before you start fermenting, the yeast probably reaching an alcohol level where they stop fermenting before all the sugar is consumed.

Mead will ferment completely bone dry then honey is added after fermentation completes which is called back sweetening. Sulfites are added before back sweetening to ensure the yeast won’t start fermenting the honey that’s added.

You’re right about minimizing aeration during racking, the oxygen will cause deterioration of your wine or beer.
 

Seadog

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I had the yeast taste and found reducing the yeast amount and using the Fleischmanns yeast fixed that.

1/2 teaspoon for 3 quarts of juice and the 2 cups or even 2.5 cups of sugar dissolved in the juice.

Juice in the gallon jug then sprinkle the yeast in on top of the juice.
DO NOT mix the yeast in.

Do not shake the bottle.
My bottle with bubler sits in a room at 70-78 degrees and is covered with a dark towel or put in a closed closet.
I DO NOT use Rapid rise yeast.

My neighbor followed my directions but left the juice in his garage where temp swings were huge and it was a fail.

The more you rack it the more the yeast smell and flavor will be eliminated.

I do not know if I rack mine correctly but what i do is take some of that hard clear plastic tubing
that hooks to the back of your refrigerator for the ice maker.

I insert that into the fermented juice about middle of the juice and siphon it into another jug.
Making sure not to suck anything off the top layer and stay away from the bottom layer of the bottle.

I do have juice left in the bottle after that but it is the stuff near the bottom or the top I want quality not quantity.
If you are pouring from one bottle to the next you will get that settled nasty crud.

I also do not let the juice just siphon straight down I aim the stream at the side of the bottle so it enters smoothly.

I read somewhere you can bruise the wine and shaking it during fermenting will make it vinegarish.

I have not tried that.

So tell me what is different in your process?

You must add sugar to straight fruit juice like welches or you will not ferment well and it will be very bitter (dry).
Mine will start of very similar. I’ll get a gallon of whatever juice. Pour off 3 cups. Then get 3 cups of brown sugar. Pour the sugar into the jug. Then pour the juice back in to about an 1 1/2 from the top. Have to shake it up good to get that sugar dissolved.

Now with the yeast I proof it. Probably been using to much yeast. More like half a pack. Get some warm water, put some sugar in it and then the yeast. Wait till it foams good and I know it’s working. When it’s ready I dump it into the jug and give it some good shaking to get it mixed up again.

Have a bubbler vent for the jug but it’s buried in a box so I just used a balloon with a few needle whole in it.

Rest is about the same. It ferments in low to mid 70s, I use hoses an will do my best to not pick up sediment or to aerate the liquid going into the new jug.

It always has that nasty yeast taste with the exception of me making hard cider. I know I used a lot less yeast and didn’t let it go but 4 days before putting it in the fridge. Didn’t rack that one either. And it was goooood. Not super strong but you would still get a buzz.
 

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