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Spring update...I added k meta since it was about 3 months since the last dose and did a taste test of the 5 gallon carboy and both 1 gallon carboys. The only difference between them is the 5 gallon is mostly free run and had an oak stick for 3 months, and the one gallon carboys are the mostly...

Been very interesting to follow this thread. Thanks to the original poster to start it. I have a question for @winemaker81 . You keep your wine in neutral 15 gallon barrels for 1 year. Do you worry about too much oxygen exposure? I'm thinking about getting a barrel but for the volume of wine...

I read that too. I tried a small batch test run in December because I was in the area where sumac grows. It was late in the season and it had been raining the past 3 days. The berries didn't look good but I cut a few and tried to make a tea anyway. It didn't come out good and I wound up...

I'm planning on making sumac wine this year for the first time. I plan on following this recipe Staghorn Sumac wine. I've read a few threads on here and some things on other websites but still have some questions 1) should I ferment on the berries or make a tea and strain them off and ferment...

My plan is to hopefully make a wine that doesn't suck...still chasing that goal. Maybe a Rhone blend this year. Also plan on making sumac wine since I can forage sumac and it won't cost me anything. I've seen a few threads on here with recipes but if anyone can share some that would be...

Thanks for the replies everybody. The wine and the 5 gallon carboy seems to have developed some kind of a haze and the top half inch. It's hard to describe but If I shine a flashlight on the side it looks like oil floating on top of water but not that distinct. If I rock the car boy the haze...

Thanks for the advice so far. Rice guy, Im not an expert at detecting smells but the best comparison I can make is that it smells similar to a bottle that has been opened for a few days and is starting to oxidize. The taste is something similar to that as well. Interestingly, the carboy in...

I tasted the wine today and it seemed a little oxidized. I added 1.64g of kmeta on 11/5, so it should have enough kmeta, I also pulled a sample when I racked on 11/5 which tasted good. After I tasted it today I changed out the bung from an old rubber one to a newer silicone bung with the same...

If sumac lasts through the winter, can it still be harvested? I'm late to this great but am interested in trying a small batch. I live in zone 7.

Could also be mycoderma... treat it the same way rice guy said. Here's a good link about it and treatment https://techniquesinhomewinemaking.com/white-surface-film/

Update. It's been over 3 weeks since I added MLF bacteria, I decided to rack and sulfite ( I have no way of testing MLF completion). I calibrated my pH meter and tested the pH during racking, which was 3.35. this is surprising since the prefermentation pH was 3.56. If anything I assumed it...

As a side note, according to the technical data sheet for CH16 it takes 1-2 weeks to finish under ideal conditions of pH above 3.2 and temp between 64 and 71. Mine was shipped without ice pack, appeared clumpy. I have no way to test for completion but it fizzed up a lot when I added it, almost...

They said they leave the barrel open for 40 days. What would be the purpose of that?

Makes me feel better about my at times rushed sanitization processes

I racked off the gross lee's last night brought the carboys into the basement and add ML bacteria CH16 this morning. I yielded around 7.5 gallons of wine from 3 lugs. The final SG was 0.994, which would make the wine about 13.5%. I am happy with that number. I was planning on adding oak but...

Looking at the pic after crushing and I noticed a lot of stems. Did you plan to leave a certain percentage in? Maybe that's contributing to the tannin?

The press was a gift from a friend of someone I knew from work. Based on my research it's from the 1920s or 1930. It was made by Giunta bros from Philadelphia. I posted about it in this thread a few years ago Replacement press plates I replaced some of the wood basket and pressing plates...

Pressed the wine this afternoon. The wine I made last year did not taste good coming out of the press. The wine this year tasted good out of the press so I'm hopeful. It was 0 brix (0.998) at the time of pressing. I managed to get just over 8 gallons (6 of free run). The plan now is to rack...

Looks like I'll be pressing today. Brix is 0.5, SG 1.002. Gonna give it a few more hours then press this afternoon. I could probably leave it until tomorrow but the timing works better today. The idea of pitching the MLF bacteria and doing an EM sounds interesting but I don't want to mess...

Evening update... The must temp is down to 73, guess the ice helped. I also have the garage door cracked, temps will be dropping into the 50s tonight so some cold air will help cool it, I'll close it before bed though. The SG is 1.014, brix 3.5. At this rate I will most likely be pressing...