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I was recently gifted @20qt's of Concord grape juice which was deemed too sweet for the owners palate. As far as I can say, it was made according to a recipe (for grape juice) found on the internet. I believe the makers erred (either typo or mis-read) in adding 1 cup of sugar for each qt...

No difference whatsoever ,,, to the wine! For you the consumer, there's CO2 and sediment to contend with. And if you wish to sweeten, flavor, or oak,, it's nigh on impossible to get past that cork!!! Thus leaving it in the carboy or a barrel (protected of course) for , lets say a year...

I've done several Carmenere buckets and my tastebuds have yet to complain:h

Slightly tilted drum actually increases surface area exposed to air...:ft Not likely to have any adverse affect for such a short time tho.

Damage from exposure to "air" is a relatively long term thing. Kind of like hitting the beach without some cover!! The 10-15 minutes you'll have during rack-overs won't pose any problems. But to make the overall process easier for yourself, consider some more equipment!!

Agree with Paul (sour-grapes). I'd bet that at least 95% of human habitats are constructed of some form of wood product and they hold a lot of us. Simply put a little thought behind your design and you can have relatively inexpensive storage that won't rust!! ;)

At this point your fermentation is nearly complete. Let it go till readings are the same for 2-3 days (.990-.992 typically as low as it will get). Rack to secondary (carboy), dose with K-meta, add airlock. If you wish to back-sweeten (BTW what type of wine??), wait 1 day then stabilize with...

End result remains ,, "Whatever your tastebuds are happy with!"... I've been using Juice Buckets for some time, simply because they are less labor intensive and are satisfactory for my less-than-haute taste buds at reasonable pricing!!! I too have learned some tweaking tricks to compensate...

Don't know just how much of a difference there is, but most here use Potassium Metabisulfite (K-Meta) vs Sodium Metabisulfite (Na-Meta). Getting a good whiff of either would be a "once is enough" experience! At sanitizing strength it is quite potent, but if you were to use a spray bottle to...

Properly mix and add the nutrient. Next day properly hydrate yeast then add to must. Do not be shy about using a brew-belt or other warming device. Temps in the 80's will not hurt anything.. G'luck!!

There are as many different label papers and adhesives as there are wines. So to accommodate them all I razor scrape the label off then 0 or 00 steel wool soaked in goo-gone. Wash off with soapy water, rinse with hot and rack 'em to dry. Oh and that most important other ingredient ,,,, elbow...

Instructions for winemaking are general at best, unfailing at least! White wines do well at the lower temps 60-70F, Reds call for 75-85F to be happy... It's all about the yeasts during ferment. As for aging, as close to a constant temp/humidity as possible works best. If you were tucked away...

Adding fruit/flavored syrup to already fermented wines is common practice to enhance flavors and mouthfeel. Be aware that Sg will bump up a bit so go easy on how much you add. I've had good results with dried Black Currant in a Malbec (1# in 6gal resulted in +.003) and some dried cherries in a...

In the end the Song Remains the Same,,,,, "If your taste buds are happy and they know it, Smack your lips!!" :b

BRING BACK THE DUMBWAITER!!:db

"The top choice by unanimous decision" ,,,,, Start thinking about how to get rid of it before it hurts you!!!! It's not a car... :ft

Was just reading Wiki info on the Pinotage and now have second thoughts. Not a good write-up for the signature grape!! :< Might give the Shiraz a shot:>

Even slight temperature swings can result in a "bung-pop". Eliminate worries,,,,,, stick with the airlock!!;)

Just placed an order w/L'uva Bella for a Malbec Chilean bucket and a Voignier Chilean bucket. Have had some good Sauv Blanc's in the past. May look around in the 'burgh for something from SA as well.

Fun to play along with those kind. Brings out the mischievous side. Almost worth having another computer loaded with all types of malware they can tap into:db