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Yeast can become dormant for a long time. It is difficult to predict the exact conditions under which it will or will not reactivate. So like @winemaker81 said in another thread, I always add P. Sorbate when I backsweeten.

Pre-fermentation I look at two numbers: pH and SG. It is important to get them in the right range for the wine chemistry. Post-fermentation I don't measure anything. At that point the adjustments are all about flavor, not numbers. But it is also true that Good is the worst enemy of Best. I...

If this hadn't been posted on 4/1 I might look for these. This is actually a great product idea if it was possible to do this.

Just in case anyone isn't clear on this, denatured alcohol it toxic, so don't drink any wine samples that have been tested in this way.

The advantage of a pressure washer is that it can help to clean dirty bottles, not just sanitize them. For only sanitizing, the FastRack bottle rinser works great. And it doesn't cost $200.

For sanitizing bottles I use this: https://www.amazon.com/FastRack-Bottle-Sulphiter-B013S1RZLY-Multicolor/dp/B013S1RZLY/ Fast and easy. Once it is set up and filled with sanitizer, I can sanitize a case of bottles in about 60 seconds. I place them on a rack to drain until I am ready to use them.

Welcome to WMT! Blueberry wine is one of my favorites. If the temperature is too high, the yeast ferments very fast and the flavor is not as good. The old way to make wine, before freezers and air conditioning, was to make it when the fruit ripens. Late ripening apples are ready in the fall...

I planted three bare root apple trees today: Winesap, Enterprise, and Whitney Crab. Along with our Fuji, we should have an interesting variety of apples in a few years.

Campden tablets including a binding agent, so I they contain only 0.44 g Kmeta. For small amounts, measuring by weight is much more accurate.

Did you find a way to compact the lees?

Thanks! I think I'll try cold crashing first, but if that doesn't work, I'll try bentonite.

I am working on an Apricot Vanilla mead, started on 2/5/24. I racked it on 2/12 and again on 3/3. As you can see in the picture, the top portion is clearing nicely, but there is a lot of fruit sediment. The dried apricots were in a mesh bag, which I removed at the first racking. The 1.5 L bottle...

I make mainly fruit wines, and I agree. Most fruit wines taste best with an ABV of around 11-12%. @Dordelli If you add mango juice, that will ferment as well unless you stabilize first. Another option is to add some mango juice at the time of serving as you suggest.

It might be more about supply and demand rather than decreasing wine consumption. There are too many vineyards, so it is driving the price down. It must be heartbreaking for the third generation farmers.

This article shows a small increase in world wine consumption since 2000: https://www.statista.com/statistics/232937/volume-of-global-wine-consumption/ A lot more info on the Australian wine market here: https://www.wineaustralia.com/news/market-bulletin/issue-266 I'm wondering how all this...

How do you know that the problem is too much acid? How much acid did you add in your recipe? To really find out, you need to measure the pH or TA . Most fruit fines taste sour without a little backsweetening. As @Jovimaple suggested, try adding a little sugar to a sample and see if that...

I am wondering as well. There are many variables, including the variety of tomato and the exact degree of ripeness. I used 10 lbs. of tomatoes in an initial total volume of 1.75 gal. That is similar to the amount I use for other fruits, but maybe it is too much for tomatoes.

I bottled my tomato wine yesterday, so I thought I'd post an update: I fermented red and yellow tomatoes separately using the same recipe and yeast, to see what the difference would be. Color: In the middle you can see the two bottled wines. The color is the the same. On the right and left are...

I've had this problem too, especially with one-gallon jugs. It helps if the stopper and the inside of the neck are completely dry. I also discovered that one batch of stoppers that I purchased was a little harder than the others. That one would always creep up. I gradually removed the too-hard...