Recent content by RylanJacobs

I appreciate the replies! I am going to investigate plastic carboys along with some stainless kegs as others have mentioned. This feels like a setback, but I think my procedures will improve as a result. Thanks to all!

Are these routinely available in 3-6 gallon sizes?

Last night, I racked my chardonnay into a 5-gallon carboy. I had used bentonite a few weeks ago and it was time to rack off. Bottles are in and I was planning a weekend this month to bottle. It tasted great, and was comparable to a retail bottle I opened at the same time. This morning, while...

What kind of filter system do you have/use? This batch is only about 4.5 gallons

Can I ask how this wine progressed? Did you add a second dose of bentonite? I am in a similar situation. My Chardonnay has a protein haze and the first round of bentonite has not cleared it all the way. Curious what you’ve done!

I definitely will test at the end of racking and adjust accordingly. A great learning experience. Also, nice to know that SO2 levels can reach 100ppm and not be detectable. Wine literature indicates this is true up to about 150ppm, but I have never tasted a wine even close to that.

Hey Vinny, The riesling is the first wine I've made that's in the drinking window. I started a chardonnay last Fall that still needs some time. I have been completely enamored with white wines. That is all I plan to make for now. I have my eye on some viognier and chenin blanc this coming...

I racked my Chardonnay off the lees about 2 weeks ago. It is currently in a 5-gallon carboy, and that is the only one I have. I racked the wine off the lees into a 6-gallon carboy. Cleaned and sanitized the 5-gallon carboy, and then racked from the 6-gallon carboy back into the 5-gallon carboy...

I wanted to revive this thread just for a moment. My FWK Riesling is now 12 months old. I tried the first bottle last week and it was VERY good. It was comparable to retail riesling from the grocery store. I made it bone-dry, so it is stylistically very different from most American riesling. It...

I appreciate the reply. I suspect you are right. My initial decision to use Fresco was due to a bad experience with H2S in a Riesling kit. Scarred by the experience, I wanted to use Renaissance moving forward. Fresco was readily available in 10g batches via a supplier I routinely use. It has...

Absolutely! This is chardonnay from Chehalem AVA in Oregon. Purchased as a juice bucket from Wine Grapes Direct, my process was this: Pre-fermentation: added 25ppm SO2 and pectic enzyme. Settled for 24 hours. pH: 3.46, TA: 5.7 g/L Fermentation: Inoculated with Renaissance Fresco (non-H2S...

The TA at fermentation was 5.7 g/L. I haven't checked since MLF, but a quick rule-of-thumb calculation for every would suggest my current TA is around 4 g/L. I guess that would still be quite perceptible. I"m thinking more and more that perhaps this chard is just simply low in flavor, and...

I appreciate the replies. I'll bench test glycerin and give it more time in bulk aging. I'm beginning to understand why so many hot-climate chardonnay makers use oak....it probably helps balance out the high abv and otherwise neutral profile of the grape.

So true. I completely forgot that backsweetening should not occur with MLF!! What is it, geranium (??) flavors that can develop as a result?

I meant to change the thread handle prior to submitting. I originally thought backsweetening would be my only choice. I feel I have more options though.