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Welcome. Sounds like you’re off to a good start. There’s no better place than here to improve your craft.

When are they coming? (He asks knowing full well he doesn’t have time to make more wine).

Not gonna happen! I’m not saying we can’t or shouldn’t go to mars. It’s just that the history of these endeavors is that they take far far longer than even the best estimates (the first moon landing excluded). They have concepts but so many pieces need to come together yet.

Stick around for a bit. While a 1,2,3 recipe can work, I quickly learned that winemaking is a both a science and an art. There are several basic steps and you can introduce variables at any of them… resulting in a totally different wine.

what Brian said. One thing to consider when racking is what is in that sediment. Fine lees consist of dead yeast cells. They won’t hurt anything and can stay in the carboy as long as it’s kept topped up. Gross lees (yeast cells and fruit solids) are more prone to spoilage if left in an...

Yeast don’t read recipes! Seriously, every ferment is different. As long as the SG is dropping, even if slowly, I would leave it until closer to 1.020.

Welcome to WMT. FYI, this is a very old thread but still a relevant question. You could check with a local dairy supplier for milk house hose. I don’t know how to lion but Grainger came up right away when I googled “food grade hose”. They are reputable and had lots of braided PVC hose in...

This is Monday night. Unfortunately it’s cloudy here tonight 😕

You really should get a hydrometer and take a reading… my wines typically settle out the chunky stuff and dead yeast a week or so after the end of active fermentation. At that point rack it off the gross lees and put it back in a carboy, top it up, add k-meta, and air lock it for a couple...

🤮. Taco Bell?

My guess would be that fermentation is done. Off-gassing of C02 can continue for weeks. @mainshipfred is right… the only true test is specific gravity. And welcome to WMT.

??? Please to explain!

I’m not so sure soil chemistry is responsible. My guess would be low growing degree days and lack of hot weather to finish them off. Are you close to one of the big lakes? We had our first killing frost last night. I’m surprised you made it this long!

I would add that many recipes are light on the fruit. If you want to taste the fruit add more of it to your must and less water. I, for instance made a rhubarb wine from 100% pressed juice and there is no mistaking the rhubarb taste. If you want higher alcohol you need to add sugar to reach...

I would pitch the yeast. If it’s rolling along on Tuesday I would just skip the additional k-meta until after primary. A strong ferment is its own preservative.

Welcome to WMT. I hope your ratchet repair is successful, and timely. Stick around a while. This is a great place to interact with other winemakers and potentially up your game!

If it were me I would build an insulated room (or large closet) in the garage and install a window AC unit on an INKBIRD controller. Others on the site have done this. Hopefully they will chime in.

Try pouring with an aerator or pour it into a carafe and let it sit for a while. Some wines are better after they breath for a bit.

Back sweetening is adding sugar prior to bottling to adjust the sweetness. You need to add potassium sorbate as well to prevent the yeast from reawakening and causing renewed fermentation in the bottle.

Did you back sweeten it before bottling? I have found that what tastes right at bottling often tastes sweeter after some bottle aging. And welcome to WMT