# Mourn with me



## asherz515 (Dec 30, 2010)

Seriously. I just was moving my pear wine that's been bulk aging for 4 months. The whole bottom of my glass carboy popped off. The wine poured out everywhere and is a total loss...I think I'm in shock and have no idea how it happened. I think I'll go drink some of my skeeter pee it's time to start mourning


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## Julie (Dec 30, 2010)

holy crap, you most definitely have my sympathy. this is horrible


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## Wade E (Dec 30, 2010)

Wine flags everywhere to 1/2 mast please!!!!!!!


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## Dirtydog420 (Dec 30, 2010)

Pear is one of my favorites... My sympathy for your lose...


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## Runningwolf (Dec 30, 2010)

Holy Moley sorry to hear that. Can you give us any details when you get a chance. Was it sitting on concrete? Italian or Mexican carboy or one of those from Amazon?


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## djrockinsteve (Dec 30, 2010)

I'm always afraid of that happening. I'm careful to grab from underneath and pull close to me. That's 45 pounds inside there.

Sad to hear that.


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## asherz515 (Dec 30, 2010)

Seriously I'm at a loss  just wish I had the whole thing on video...oh well luckily I have others bulk aging but it was my first wine. I'll have more pears next fall so I can start another then


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## djrockinsteve (Dec 30, 2010)

Around the corner there is an older couple with a huge pear tree in their back yard. Massive amounts of pears. They gave me bags and bags last year.

Earlier this year a windy storm came thru and broke the tree really bad. They had it trimmed but it will be awhile, if at all until there are more pears.

Happy that you can at least get more. Still doesn't make up for the loss that can't be replaced.


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## RedNeckWino (Dec 30, 2010)

Our prayers go out to you. Was it at least a virgin that was sacrificed? May the wine gods be pleased!


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## Catfish (Dec 30, 2010)

wow. that just really sucks


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## asherz515 (Dec 30, 2010)

Runningwolf said:


> Holy Moley sorry to hear that. Can you give us any details when you get a chance. Was it sitting on concrete? Italian or Mexican carboy or one of those from Amazon?



The carboy was one I bought of craiglist so I don't know where it came from. It was 4 months old and I had just racked it the week before. I picked it up by the bottom of the bottle and held it close to me....thats when the bottom fell of and started pouring out the bottom which soaked my shirt jeans and everything. I handed it off to my husband who tried to save it but by the time he got it to the bathroom it had completely emptied. It was my first wine but thanks to all you folks I have others aging...and this skeeter pee is fantastic 

The only thing I can think of is the bottle must have been old or something.


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## asherz515 (Dec 30, 2010)

djrockinsteve said:


> Around the corner there is an older couple with a huge pear tree in their back yard. Massive amounts of pears. They gave me bags and bags last year.
> 
> Earlier this year a windy storm came thru and broke the tree really bad. They had it trimmed but it will be awhile, if at all until there are more pears.
> 
> Happy that you can at least get more. Still doesn't make up for the loss that can't be replaced.


Luckily I have 2 pear trees so there will be plenty next year I have one more aging at this moment. It is just hard especially with whole fruit the work that goes into it to have it all wasted...I guess its just added experience for a newbie


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## deboard (Dec 31, 2010)

That's terrible, sorry to hear it. Although this hasn't happened to me, just the thought of it made me switch to Better Bottles. If something like this happened to me it would likely be on the carpet upstairs, and I might not live through it after my wife saw it!


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## Wade E (Dec 31, 2010)

Just glad you didnt get hurt. This is one reason I use a electric vacuum pump to rack all my wines so that I never have to lift a full carboy and either hurt my back or have the bottom fall out on me and lose all my wine. That could have been catastrophic had the whole carboy gave in on you slicing you up like a chunk of roast beef.


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## Catfish (Dec 31, 2010)

Just thinking about losing all that wine in a split second scares me. I think I may go to better bottles also.


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## Duster (Dec 31, 2010)

I feel your pain, I almost cried when I dumped my crabapple and that was because it didn't taste good.


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## millwright01 (Dec 31, 2010)

Glad to hear you didn't get hurt or cut. Feel sorry about loss of wine. Flags at half mast for your loss here. I'll tip a glass for you tonight as well.


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## xanxer82 (Dec 31, 2010)

Sorry for your loss. Glad that you weren't hurt.
Perhaps stress testing carboys in the future can help. Fill it up with water completely after purchase... Water cleans up easier than wine.
If it's being stored on the floor, use a camping mat to provide padding and insulation.
Best of luck in your winemaking endeavors.


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## JordanPond (Jan 1, 2011)

Would insurance cover replacing carpeting If you had a carboy or red wine let loose on a carpeted floor?


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## Wade E (Jan 1, 2011)

Hmmmm, wine insurance, theres a new avenue!!! hehehe


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## Redtrk (Jan 1, 2011)

Note to self: I just learned something today. Always pick up the carboy from the bottom. 
Sorry to hear about your loss of good wine and the mess you must have had to clean up.


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## Wade E (Jan 1, 2011)

Picking it up that way with this one could have been a nightmare as it could have sliced her hands up very bad.


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## Catfish (Jan 1, 2011)

asherz515 said:


> I picked it up by the bottom of the bottle and held it close to me....thats when the bottom fell of and started pouring out the bottom which soaked my shirt jeans and everything.






Sounds like holding it from the bottom didn't help too much. Has this ever happened to anyone else on here.


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## jtstar (Jan 1, 2011)

I think I would still be crying in my wine if it happened to me sorry about your lost


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## AlFulchino (Jan 1, 2011)

i can sympathize w your loss...this fall i was outside on our patio carrying a six gallon carboy of peach wine that was part of the excess from the big tank....i had it gripped by the neck and the bottom....but being plum tired ( or just peach tired) while walking my mind said that i had it and my body told me something different....i felt it slipping, knew it was going down and couldn't do a damn thing about it


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## BrewPahl (Jan 1, 2011)

Im so sorry for your loss! Maybe next year use one less pear in your recipe


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## RedNeckWino (Jan 1, 2011)

if the house insurance covers the carpets....see if they can do something about a new carboy. This is a classified disaster isn't it?


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## rodo (Jan 1, 2011)

I have never lost a carboy but when I first started making wine I was cleaning bottles by boiling in a kettle of water and then rinsing. I grabbed one that had not cooled enough after coming out of the kettle and when the cool water hit the bottom of the bottle it popped off just as neat as could be.


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## asherz515 (Jan 3, 2011)

Thanks all for your sympathy. I did grab the bottle by the base not the top. The only thing I can think is the carboy was old and maybe there was a crack in the base. When I picked it up the whole bottom just popped off so I think the weight of picking it up caused what was a small crack to split the whole bottom. 
Yes it did make a mess on my carpet, luckily it was in my basement/cellar so for the most part no damage was done. Other than the loss of wine. I started another SP and cheap juice concentrate to make up for it. 
It was just a crazy occurrence and I was wondering if any one else had ever heard of it.


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## asherz515 (Jan 3, 2011)

xanxer82 said:


> Sorry for your loss. Glad that you weren't hurt.
> Perhaps stress testing carboys in the future can help. Fill it up with water completely after purchase... Water cleans up easier than wine.
> If it's being stored on the floor, use a camping mat to provide padding and insulation.
> Best of luck in your winemaking endeavors.



I had it on a shelf...do you think that not having it on some type of rubber mat caused a crack? I have it on a wood shelf in my basement. If so I will move my others.
The weird thing is I had racked and re-racked the wine several times in the same bottle as well as degassed. It was at the end of a 4 month age when I moved it and it broke.


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## jiml (Jan 3, 2011)

I currently use all better bottles. I have considered switching to glass because I could vacuum degas. However, incidents like this scare me away.

Sorry for the loss of wine. Especially your first wine.


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## jtstar (Jan 3, 2011)

Between rackings did you wash out with warm or hot water that is what might have caused it to crack


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## JohnT (Jan 3, 2011)

I feel your pain! 

I remember, I think it was around 1985, I had made 20 gallons of wine (chardonnay and Cabernet) into 4 carboys. I then promptly went to Mexico for a 10 day vacation. 

When I got back I found out the hard way that the table I placed the wine on could not hold the weight of the wine. The table colapsed and 3 of the 4 carboys broke. The spilled wine simply ran down into a dry well, leaving nothing behind but glass shards. 

The amazing thing, though, was that one carboy did not break and managed to keep the stopper and fermentation trap in place. Although the carboy was laying on its side, none of the wine leaked out.


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## asherz515 (Jan 3, 2011)

JohnT said:


> I feel your pain!
> 
> I remember, I think it was around 1985, I had made 20 gallons of wine (chardonnay and Cabernet) into 4 carboys. I then promptly went to Mexico for a 10 day vacation.
> 
> ...


 Now that is way worse...I better make sure my shelf is strong enough. Luckily you saved one.


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## WeLoveCab (Jan 3, 2011)

jiml said:


> I currently use all better bottles. I have considered switching to glass because I could vacuum degas. However, incidents like this scare me away.
> 
> Sorry for the loss of wine. Especially your first wine.



This seems pretty isolated besides someone mentioning dropping one, a table collapsing and a boiling water incident glass carboys on a whole seem to have a pretty good track reccord. 

Based on how many people here use glass carboys and the volume of wine which is made by the collective glass carboy community here... I would say this is a very remote incident. 

Sad and traggic as this might be, I don't think this should be a case for anyone to say "Whoaaaa I'm switching to better bottles today!"


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## asherz515 (Jan 3, 2011)

WeLoveCab said:


> This seems pretty isolated besides someone mentioning dropping one, a table collapsing and a boiling water incident glass carboys on a whole seem to have a pretty good track reccord.
> 
> Based on how many people here use glass carboys and the volume of wine which is made by the collective glass carboy community here... I would say this is a very remote incident.
> "



I agree it was a fluke. I have 3 others in glass carboys and am not switching to plastic yet. Though plastic does have its advantages I think this was a isolated incident.


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## Runningwolf (Jan 3, 2011)

asherz515 said:


> I agree it was a fluke. I have 3 others in glass carboys and am not switching to plastic yet. Though plastic does have its advantages I think this was a isolated incident.



I just hate to love those Better Bottles. I have four 5 gallon ones I use for cold stabilizing and emergencies. I wish I had a few six gallon ones but the five's were dirt cheap or I wouldn't have any. I just marvel every time I pick one up, wash them or throw them under my wine table. I'll continue to buy glass as thats my preference for all the other reasons not listed here but If I can get a few six gallon BB's for $15 or less I will.


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## jiml (Jan 3, 2011)

asherz515 said:


> I agree it was a fluke. I have 3 others in glass carboys and am not switching to plastic yet. Though plastic does have its advantages I think this was a isolated incident.



I haven't been in wine making very long but I have done a lot of searching and reading. I have read page after page how just knocking the glass while full can break it.

Unfortunately, I work in a very tight area and in our walk in closet. If I busted a glass carboy in our closet, my wine making would be over for the foreseeable future.

I am not saying glass isn't the way to go. There are pros and cons to everything. Everyone has to evaluate their situation to make the best choice for themselves.


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## Sirs (Jan 3, 2011)

true plastic won't break open like the glass does but it can split. They both have their pro's and cons, myself I prefer glass but have plastic also. Glass has been used many more years than plastic look at how many years and how many thousands of glass bottles were used for water bottles I think their track record is pretty good...... Also I'm really sorry for your lose as I had one get busted on me around thanksgiving,it's an awful feeling to see all that work go flwoing out across the floor


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## wvbrewer (Jan 4, 2011)

You have our deepest sympathy. I am sure it would have been great.


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## Dirtydog420 (Jan 5, 2011)

I have three 3 gallon and two 5 gallon glass carboys.. Im starting to buy Better Bottles... I plan to just have a good mixture of both types eventually...


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