# How many carboys is too many?



## Madriver Wines (Apr 29, 2009)

My wife's friend Jane stopped by the other day with more Carlo Rossi bottles. Two more 3L and another 4L! I now feel it is my duty to make something to fill them. The question is when do you have too many carboys? Lets take a poll.


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## Tom (Apr 29, 2009)

Well I voted!
You NEVER have enough. Don't ask as I lost count.. but, 30+...Most are full..


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## Madriver Wines (Apr 29, 2009)

Yeh, I had a feeling that the results would follow the line it has take lol.


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## cpfan (Apr 29, 2009)

madriver

if all you have is 6 small jugs, then you have NO carboys (ie 3 or 6 US gallon puppies). At least that's my view.

I currently have three 23 litre carboys full of wine, one primary with 23 litres of wine in it (and some grape skins), and I have bottled two 23 litre batches this week.

Steve

Steve


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## smurfe (Apr 29, 2009)

You ain't even close my man. If I remember, I have two six and a half gallon, ten six gallon, eight five gallon, five three gallon and probably twenty five to thirty one gallon carboys Plus two eight gallon stainless steel conical fermenters. I know others that have many many more than me.


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## St Allie (Apr 29, 2009)

Wow Smurfe..

that's damn impressive.. Where do you store it all?.. 

Allie


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## smurfe (Apr 29, 2009)

St_Allie said:


> Wow Smurfe..
> 
> that's damn impressive.. Where do you store it all?..
> 
> Allie



Evidently in every spot/space my wife complains about.


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## Racer (Apr 29, 2009)

I'm the only wine drinker at my place, but find 1 6.5 gal., 5 6 gal., 2 5 gal., 5 3 gal., and 4 4 lt. carboys almost enough for me. Except around harvest time that is.


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## Vanterax (Apr 29, 2009)

I only have 3 5gallons carboys with 2 being in use right now. Then again, I just recently started making wine so you have to give me time to ramp up. 

That said, I can see myself buying more in a not too distant future. Where will it stop? I'm not quite sure. So I don't know how many will be too many...


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## Tom (Apr 29, 2009)

smurfe said:


> You ain't even close my man. If I remember, I have two six and a half gallon, ten six gallon, eight five gallon, five three gallon and probably twenty five to thirty one gallon carboys Plus two eight gallon stainless steel conical fermenters. I know others that have many many more than me.


I must say thats impressive. That equals about 170 gallons that can be fermented at the same time!

Lets see here we have 30-6 gallon, 6-5 gallon. 3-3gallon amd 5-1 gallon. Just bottled 5 cases today leaving 18-6 gallon carboys full. I have another 72 gallons of Chilean juice coming this Sunday. Looks like I will be busy this Sunday
Soon fruit season next.


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## Wade E (Apr 29, 2009)

Enough for me but no where near as much as some of you but like Racer im basically the only wine drinker in the house with the exception of my wife drinking some of my choc/rasp port! I have 6-6's, 3-5's, 2-3's, 8-4ltrs, and 3-3ltrs.


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## Madriver Wines (May 1, 2009)

We are just getting started but so far we have 6-5gal,2 glass and 4 are plastic, 3-4L, 1-1gal and 9 3L. I am enjoying experimenting and the 4L are perfect. I have to take the 3L in order to get the ones I want. They are handy for excess to use for topping off. But at only 4 bottle deep they come up alittle short. Hey Smurfe is it against the rules to drink the remenants after topping off or are you supposed to save it again ?


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## Wade E (May 1, 2009)

Those 3 liters are great if you are making 4 liter batches after racking off sediment.


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## Skyhawk (May 1, 2009)

I'm rather like Tom in that I have 32 5-gallon carboys, and 5 6-gallon carboys (1 in plastic). I also have a 50L neutral barrel, which is soon to be paired with another brand new barrel next month.

Keep in mind that I bulk age. Normally, the youngest I bottle has already been racked 4 times and has sat a year. I don't normally degas, file, or filter. Hence why I have so many carboys. I only have perhaps an average of 300 bottles filled at any one time that are continuously recycled. So in the end, nearly everything I drink has spent minimum 1 year in bulk, and about 1 year in bottle - even the whites.


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## manku007 (Jun 18, 2009)

At this stage I feels that I will cry .... Not because of happyness that I have so many carboys ..... But you know I have only some bottles in which I make (experiment) wine making with the help of balloon method. 

I don't know were to buy carboy type of thing in India in my city, hard to find....


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## Madriver Wines (Jul 5, 2009)

Just to show how bad I have this *disease* here is an update only a month or 2 later!!
1 -6 gal glass, 8- 5gal ,4glass and 4 plastic, 4-4L,1- 1gal., 12 -3 L, 3- 1.5L I think??
At this rate I can see how Tom and others end up with a truck load of carboys lol. I am having a great time along the way though.
My Loganberry was a hit at the cook out last night. I brought a bottle of the Plum and a magnum of the Loganberry. Only left with one empty bottle??? _Sister_ has the disease too.
, Steve


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## CGI (Jul 9, 2009)

I have six 6-gallon carboys. Generally for personal use that is plenty to have 2-3 batches on the go... for me that's a lot.


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## Nubz (Jul 9, 2009)

i wouldnt have any problems taking care of any leftovers/overflow anything you decide you dont all have room for anymore lol


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## Madriver Wines (Jul 10, 2009)

Nubz said:


> i wouldnt have any problems taking care of any leftovers/overflow anything you decide you dont all have room for anymore lol


 I hope you were talking to me. CGI drinks like a fish lol. Extra is not in his vocabulary.


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## CGI (Jul 10, 2009)

Madriver Wines said:


> I hope you were talking to me. CGI drinks like a fish lol. Extra is not in his vocabulary.



 Yeah, I guess my post didn't paint me in a positive light. LOL! I meant, 6 carboys is plenty no matter how much I was in the mood to make.


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## Madriver Wines (Jul 11, 2009)

We all exagerate some what ha ha just messing around C


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## Winot (Aug 5, 2009)

Just starting this hobby: So 2 x 3gallons, 9 x 1gallon and 1 old style from a antiques store just under a gallon. 

Probably close to my limit - though 2 x 5gallons would be handy some time soon.


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## Madriver Wines (Aug 6, 2009)

I have way more wine going than I can drink. I thought that was the goal?? The only way I could have any age for more than a month or two is to have plenty on hand. Besides the empty carboys look so lonesome to me!!


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## Bazin (Aug 6, 2009)

I've got 5 23L Carboys, which is enough for me at the moment, but I can easily see that being not enough in the future.


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## Stumpman (Aug 25, 2009)

I can handle 305 gallons over here, I don't feel like braking it down


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## Tom (Aug 25, 2009)

Well I have 28 6 gallon, 6 5gallon, 3 3gallon, and 4 1gallon carboys. 21 are fermenting or aging now.
That's NOTHING. I have a member of my wine club has 45 6 galolon carboys FULL / aging.


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## Stumpman (Aug 26, 2009)

I'm getting tired of all the glass and room these things take up, I'm thinking go in bulk, do 30 and 55 gallon drums. I could not imagine having 45 6gals, thats alot. I'd hate to have to wash all those at once


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## Madriver Wines (Nov 26, 2009)

Stumpman said:


> I'm getting tired of all the glass and room these things take up, I'm thinking go in bulk, do 30 and 55 gallon drums. I could not imagine having 45 6gals, thats alot. I'd hate to have to wash all those at once


 No kidding. Your house would look like a carboy warehouse. I would probably be single as well.
n Happy Holidays, Steve


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## xanxer82 (Nov 26, 2009)

I think Carlo Rossi jugs are great. Perfect size for experimental batches.
The wine that comes with the jug isn't much good for more than cooking with but the glass makes it worth it.
Deciding if you have too many isn't that hard. How many out of your carboys are currently empty? When more are empty than full then it's too many and you need to get them filled then it won't be too many any longer.


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## Wade E (Nov 26, 2009)

I have way to many but way to many is never enough cause I just can never get around to bottling 1/2 this wine in time before I really need to start something else that is running very low or already out on the shelve of something that goes fast which usually resorts to having to get another carboy. With my Black Currant bushes in Im thinking I may have to resort to a 100 or 150 liter variable capacity tank now for that.


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## rocket man (Nov 26, 2009)

Madriver Wines said:


> Besides the empty carboys look so lonesome to me!!



Look lonesome... Heck mine start talking to me if their empty more than a few days. They say "Fill me, Fill me".


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