# 3rd skeeter pee not fermenting, uh oh



## countrygirl

i pitched my beaujolais slurry last night. it had been in the freezer. i moved it to the fridge 48 hours prior and on the counter 24 hour prior. i stirred it real good before pitching it. it had about 1/4 inch sediment and 2-3 inches of wine must on top. maybe the amount was not sufficient, because there is NOTHING today
my first 2 skeeter pees were taken off by this point. 
do i need to pitched another yeast???


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## ffemt128

Give it a little more time. If nothing else happens make a starter. That's how I did my SP since I didn't have a slurry....


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## countrygirl

ffemt128 said:


> Give it a little more time. If nothing else happens make a starter. That's how I did my SP since I didn't have a slurry....



was just using the search function and reading up on that. i've been so fortunate that i've never had to make a starter. looks like i'll learn today, because there is not one bubble in this bucket...
on the other hand, i have beer in another bucket, lol
my husband thinks i've gone off the deep end, lol


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## mxsteve625

Just for your information I have my 9th batch of SP in primary. I have never used a slurry up until this batch and I used a SP slurry. I pitched on 9-6 and as of last Friday I had very little activity...only a noise. Yesterday 9-12-10when I got back from out of town I checked the SG and it was at 1.020. Started at 1.080 so it is definitly fermenting although not as vigourous as my other batches. I am going to keep an eye on it. 

I have a blueberry melomel slurry from the blueberry pimary which I will be using in another batch of Pee in the next couple of days. If I have no luck with that then I will go back to using my trusted LAVIN EC 1118 which gives me very active fermentation within 12 hours at 75 to 80 degrees.

Steve


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## Minnesotamaker

I've imposed a 10 gallon limit per year per maker (too many drunks wandering the countryside). You've made your 10 gallons, you'll have to wait until 2011.







All kidding aside, if you have another packet of yeast handy, you could add it to the must. Keeping it warm and whipping it good with a wire whisk once in a while will also help get it over the hump. Don't take it over 80 degrees though, or you increase the chances of sulfur-dioxide issues.


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## mxsteve625

That's good Lon


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## Runningwolf

What is your temp. You may have to out a brew belt on it if you have one. I agree wth doing a starter. I did this an BHAAM it took right off. Take equal parts of your must and luke warm water in a glass bowl and add some yeast to it. I also added just a pinch of yeast nutrient and energizer to mine.


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## countrygirl

temp is a steady 73 degrees, as everything has been done in my utility room. (bulk agers get moved to the closet). i really think that there was just so little slurry from the beaujolais, that 5 gallons of reconstituted lemon juice has overwhelmed it. i didn't keep the slurry from the chardonnel, dang it. and lon, if u don't get to consume all ur skeeter pee, does the 10 gal. rule count, lol??? i have given all my first skeeter pee away except for what i drank at the beginning, lol. the second batch is due to be bottled this weekend!!!


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## djrockinsteve

So okay here's a question for all of you. If starting a s.p. is tough due to the lemon juice, why not add it after the s.p. has taken off. In addition why can't you wait till near the end to add the remaining or bulk of the lemon juice.

Remember it needs lots of air so don't be afraid to whip it.......whip it good!


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## Runningwolf

djrockinsteve said:


> So okay here's a question for all of you. If starting a s.p. is tough due to the lemon juice, why not add it after the s.p. has taken off. In addition why can't you wait till near the end to add the remaining or bulk of the lemon juice.
> 
> Remember it needs lots of air so don't be afraid to whip it.......whip it good!





Steve Good question and I was thinking the same thing. Seems like you loose a lot of the flavor during fermentation even though some comes back when you back sweeten. I feel when I blended my SP with Cranberry at the end it really enhanced the flavor.


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## countrygirl

djrockinsteve said:


> Remember it needs lots of air so don't be afraid to whip it.......whip it good!



ok, us devo fans are showing our age, lol
i've made a starter with cotes de blanc...will keep u updated


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## djrockinsteve

This past skeeter pee was slow starting. I didn't use a starter. It took and all went well. Just don't want to let it go all week with no hydrometer movement.

Speaking of hydrometer movement, I need one with wings or something. No matter how I put it in it always spins away from me. Can we magnitize the damn thing?


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## Arne

Ya Steve,
You would think since they have figured out how to make the hydrometer stop so you can never read it they could figure out how to make it stop so you can. Think they make em that way just to aggrevate us. lol


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## Minnesotamaker

It's just like the campfire, no matter which side you choose to sit on, the smoke will blow in your direction; if you move, the smoke will too.

The dang hydrometer does the same thing. It turns so that it's facing away from me no matter what I do. Talk about surface tension!


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## Panama

My first batch of lemon I used a mead slurry, and nothing had happened for a couple of days, so I picked up a Redstar Cuvee and spinkled it on top as directed on pack whipped it up and the next morning goin like crazy. Also did not have a slurry for BlackBerry Pee, with the success of the Orig SP taking off, I decided against a starter and did the same, sprinkled on top and whipped her silly, again next day 1 - 1.5 inches foamage. All in all I guess Have had success with just sprinkling the packets on top. Orig SP almost cleared not sure tho, BB Pee taking its time, have been lazy going to rack again tomorroe..

-Panmam


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## countrygirl

pitched starter this a.m., n it's workin this p.m.


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## Panama

Very Nice, sounds like 

-Panama


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## countrygirl

still not alot of foam on top, but definitely fermenting...u can hear it! it has a purple cast from the beaujolais must. wonder what could be used to sweeten this later? just keep it simple sugar? i think it would be interesting to try to bring out a more grapey flavor?


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## Roatan_Mark

I have been wondering the very same thing gang, I did the same thing Runningwolf and had similar results improving taste. But after all it is Lon's recipe. I did modify mine to add the remaining juice (Lime in my case) at or near the end. This last batch I tried a gallon jug of Lime Juice and whipped it to death for two days then added the yeast starter (no lees left to use) and man did it have a heck of a hard start. Here it is 11 days later and it is finally dropping more than 2 points a day now, initial was 1.076 and today the 11th day it is 1.043! Slowest ferment I have ever seen (except maybe for beer). Maybe they use more sodium metabisulfite than other brands... don't know..


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## countrygirl

ok, everything is complete and i racked it over to 5 gal. carboy. it's MUCH cloudier than my first 2 pee's at this point. is it because of using a starter?


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## djrockinsteve

countrygirl said:


> ok, everything is complete and i racked it over to 5 gal. carboy. it's MUCH cloudier than my first 2 pee's at this point. is it because of using a starter?



Yes. You have all the yeast cells from your slurry in there. Add sparkolloid or whatever you use to clear and it will start to clear out in just a few hours.


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## countrygirl

djrockinsteve said:


> Yes. You have all the yeast cells from your slurry in there. Add sparkolloid or whatever you use to clear and it will start to clear out in just a few hours.


was just curious...it's also still working??? after racking. this pee has been different all around, lol


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## Minnesotamaker

countrygirl said:


> was just curious...it's also still working??? after racking. this pee has been different all around, lol



A Skeeter Pee made with a slurry versus a starter can be different due to things other than the yeast. Depending on your parent wine, your slurry may have other ingredients it it that aren't in a typical starter. For instance, if you started your parent wine with some bentonite in it, that will be part of the slurry and it could act to pull some of the haze out of the initial stages of the ferment.


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## countrygirl

this slurry was the beaujolais slurry, but there wasn't alot of it. the color has turned out very purple, not the pink of the blackberry. (2nd batch is very red as i added cranberry concentrate) i can't decide whether to just sweeten or maybe add some welch's purple grape concentrate? would it be too much like grape juice? 
i would like to try a different color of skeeter pee...but i'm thinking about doing julie's strawberry breeze next, and that'll give me another pink pee
any ideas on a wine to do this winter that would give me a different color of pee?


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## Minnesotamaker

How about a flower wine of some type? You wouldn't need to make a 5+ gallon batch. My morning glories are blooming like crazy right now and they make a pretty transluscent lavender/blue color wine.


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## countrygirl

Minnesotamaker said:


> How about a flower wine of some type? You wouldn't need to make a 5+ gallon batch. My morning glories are blooming like crazy right now and they make a pretty transluscent lavender/blue color wine.



i have a large bunch of lavender petunias??? how many does it take??
is it just sugar water, with these in it for fermentation...gotta crush 'em up?


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## Minnesotamaker

Here's a simple recipe
http://www.suite101.com/content/home-made-flower-wines-a52527


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## countrygirl

Minnesotamaker said:


> Here's a simple recipe
> http://www.suite101.com/content/home-made-flower-wines-a52527



the link sends me to a freelance writing site?
but this is what i've done, lol
i picked all the lavender petunias i had and added some morning glory and rose petals...about a 1/2 gallon in all
so the recipe would be:
1/2 gallon petunia, rose, and morning glory flowers
1/2 gallon white grape juice
1/2 gallon simple syrup
nutrient, energizer, kmeta, pectin per guidelines
1 tsp. acid blend
poured the simple syrup over the flowers while still warm and then added the grape juice and ingredients. waited 12 hours and then 3/4 packet premier cuvee...
we'll see what happens, lol


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## Minnesotamaker

What color is it now?


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## countrygirl

Minnesotamaker said:


> What color is it now?



a dark blue green...
and i forgot, i put a smashed up banana in it too...

btw, the skeeter pee is not clearing either....
this has been a problem child, lol


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## countrygirl

racked today at 1.020. it's still lavender/pinkish, but we'll see how it goes.
next question, what can i top this up with?
i've wound up with only 3/4 gallon? maybe some of my chardonel? i've got a little 1/2 gal. left from that racking.
and
i'm degassing the 3rd skeeter pee some more and see if that will help start the clearing. it's not clearing at all


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## djrockinsteve

countrygirl said:


> racked today at 1.020. it's still lavender/pinkish, but we'll see how it goes.
> next question, what can i top this up with?
> i've wound up with only 3/4 gallon? maybe some of my chardonel? i've got a little 1/2 gal. left from that racking.
> and
> i'm degassing the 3rd skeeter pee some more and see if that will help start the clearing. it's not clearing at all



You could use a little water since s.p. is sugar water. Depends on how much you need to top off with.

My Merlot/Cab. Sauv./Syrah slurry skeeter pee is almost thru fermenting. I;ve got the grape concentrate to flavor/sweeten back. The first s.p. is down to the last few bottles.

May have to make skeeter pee a bi weekly thing.


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## countrygirl

djrockinsteve said:


> You could use a little water since s.p. is sugar water. Depends on how much you need to top off with.
> 
> My Merlot/Cab. Sauv./Syrah slurry skeeter pee is almost thru fermenting. I;ve got the grape concentrate to flavor/sweeten back. The first s.p. is down to the last few bottles.
> 
> May have to make skeeter pee a bi weekly thing.



steve, what am i gonna do with u, lol! the 3/4 gallon is petunia, rose and morning glory wine, trying an experiment to get a different or unusual color for skeeter pee, lol!
i guess i got off topic, lol, but didn't want to start a new thread. i'm trying for an odd or iridescent color for the next pee!
(now some people would say u need to go to the doctor if ur pee is iridescent)


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## countrygirl

i tried agitation degassing today...we'll see if any clearing starts on the pee?


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## OldYamaha

Arne said:


> Ya Steve,
> You would think since they have figured out how to make the hydrometer stop so you can never read it they could figure out how to make it stop so you can. Think they make em that way just to aggrevate us. lol


 For some they turn, for others the don't. Some people just have magnetic eyes!!

Harry


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## Arne

OldYamaha said:


> For some they turn, for others the don't. Some people just have magnetic eyes!!
> 
> Harry


 

That quote was some time ago and I still don't have the darned thing trained to face me when it stops spinning. LOL, Arne.


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## Minnesotamaker

If your hydrometer was made in China, it could be that it was made to face the people on the other side of the globe.


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## OldYamaha

*It changes the flavor of the lemon*



djrockinsteve said:


> So okay here's a question for all of you. If starting a s.p. is tough due to the lemon juice, why not add it after the s.p. has taken off. In addition why can't you wait till near the end to add the remaining or bulk of the lemon juice.
> 
> Remember it needs lots of air so don't be afraid to whip it.......whip it good!


 
I am just making my 1st batch of SP, and though I tried to follow Lon's receipe, to make 5 Gal, I ended with my brew bucket at a little over 6 Gal.
other than using 10#s of sugar, OG was 1.082, and EC1118 yeast, it took 4 days to start fermenting, today the gravity was 1.048, and I added my 2nd batch of energizer and nutrient, I have a very vigorous yeast.

I do say that the lemon flavor has made a large flavor change, not unpleasant, but a milder lemon flavor. I might use 1 gallon to flavor with lime juice, and the rest the last bottle of 32 oz of lemon.

At 1.068, and before I beat it with a 5gallon paint stirrer from Lowes(works GREAT, much better than a wire wisk, and the 18volt drill is easier on the arms) the carbination left it very much tasting like Mikes Hard Lemonade.

I'll see how long this takes to go dry. So far it has been 1 week tomorrow(Saturday 4-20).

I do say, I like the flavor very much. Great advice from severel posts on this forum.


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## kzacherl2000

Need some assistance after reading this thread. I started SP on Mon 7/31/12 at 7:30 am. I followed the recipe exactly on the SP site. It was 1.070 when I covered the SP with 1/2 lid, and 1/2 dish towel after reading other suggestions on this site. On 8/1 at 8 am, I gave it a good stirring. I took the slurry out of the fridge on 8/1 as well. On 8/2 in the AM, I stirred 2 minutes, and I added slurry, and stirred again. Covered the same way. After 48 hours, when there wasn't any sign of fermentation, and a reading of 1.070, I stirred it again, then sprinkled a package of EC1118 on top (from reading tips on this thread). Recovered it the same way. It has been another 30 hours since I have done that, and there is no sign of fermentation. I took a reading and the liquid had small bubbles in the wine thief, but the reading is stil 1.070. Temperature is around 74 - 76 degrees. Any suggestions to get this fermenting?


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## Julie

kzacherl2000 said:


> Need some assistance after reading this thread. I started SP on Mon 7/31/12 at 7:30 am. I followed the recipe exactly on the SP site. It was 1.070 when I covered the SP with 1/2 lid, and 1/2 dish towel after reading other suggestions on this site. On 8/1 at 8 am, I gave it a good stirring. I took the slurry out of the fridge on 8/1 as well. On 8/2 in the AM, I stirred 2 minutes, and I added slurry, and stirred again. Covered the same way. After 48 hours, when there wasn't any sign of fermentation, and a reading of 1.070, I stirred it again, then sprinkled a package of EC1118 on top (from reading tips on this thread). Recovered it the same way. It has been another 30 hours since I have done that, and there is no sign of fermentation. I took a reading and the liquid had small bubbles in the wine thief, but the reading is stil 1.070. Temperature is around 74 - 76 degrees. Any suggestions to get this fermenting?


 
Patience, I have had my slurry take up to 4 days before it would start. Stir is real good a couple of times a day and just wait, it will start.


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## kzacherl2000

Okay. I guess I just keep thinking I am doing something wrong. Kim


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## Julie

kzacherl2000 said:


> Okay. I guess I just keep thinking I am doing something wrong. Kim


 
LOL, I know my first time making this stuff I really thought I screwed it up because it just seem like it took forever to start


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## kzacherl2000

Julie, it started bubbling like crazy yesterday!!! Kim


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## Runningwolf

kzacherl2000 said:


> Julie, it started bubbling like crazy yesterday!!! Kim


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