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Has anyone tried making a Bison grass flavored wine? Bison grass is also called sweetgrass in the USA. I got the idea for trying this from some Zubrowka Vodka that I had in Eastern Europe which is flavored with Bison grass. Wonderful! The FDA in the USA doesn't allow it to be sold here...

Here's a poster on the production and use of pitch for sealing the amphorae in Roman wine production. By Mario Indelicato. He states that the pitch was used for waterproofing. In another paper he talks about the smoky flavor that the pitch imparts to the wine.

In case anyone would like to read it, here is a link to a research paper by Mario Indelicato, who specializes in researching ancient winemaking techniques. You might need to sign up to read it, but I'm pretty sure you can get it free...

@Kkdd Great link! Thanks! Interesting that 1000 to 1200 liters is the "sweet spot" for fermentation. Also, I see that some qvevri makers line the inside with beeswax and some coat the outside with lime or cement. Burying the qvevri in the ground is a good means for temperature control...

@Matteo_Lahm While you are in Italy, you should visit Dr Mario Indelicato of the University of Catania. He would be a wealth of information on ancient Roman wines since that is his area of research. In one of his research papers, he talks about lining the inside of the amphorae with pitch to...

From what I’ve read, the white wines were heavily sweetened. Some red vintages were said to age very well. A highly sought vintage was from 121 BC. Also the Greeks were said to produce some of the best wines.

I've gotten interested in ancient winemaking techniques. Particularly the quality of the resulting wines. In ancient times, there was a thriving trade in wines. Some regions and vintages were especially prized, so it must have been reasonably "good", even though ancient tastes were quite...

Well, my most recent small wine batches finished fermenting yesterday. I did an apple wine from organic apple juice and some white grape wine from Welches juice. I used a Red Star wine yeast. The apple wine fermented dry to 0.990 and the white grape juice wine fermented to 0.991. I...

@BigDaveK , yes, Archimedes used the principle behind the hydrometer to determine if the King's crown was actually gold. Or so the story goes. I'm quite comfortable with the hydrometer and have used various forms of them for quite a few decades. It just occurred to me that taste might work too.

I'm definitely a newbie.and am trying to learn. Does.anyone.use a taste.test to determine when fermentation is complete? I'm using a hydrometer but am hesitant to take too many readings since my batches are quite.small at the moment. I'm concerned that the sampling process.might contaminate...

So far, this forum has been very helpful to me. If I continue with winemaking, I'll definitely.become a supporting member! Regarding fermentation vessels, I was pleased to learn that the orange Home Depot buckets are food grade! The embossing on the bottom says HDPE #2. They will be perfect...

Everyone else, PLEASE continue the thread! All of your responses are helpful !!!

@Cosyden Thanks! On order!

@Jusatele thanks for the link on food grade plastics! I didn't know that the different numbers are for recycling. Good to know. I have a couple of food grade 2 gallon buckets with lids that I got from one of the big box stores. Now I know more specifically what to look for.

@Rice_Guy I just ordered The New Cider Makers Handbook and @cmason1957, I put Pambianchi's books on my wishlist. Thanks!

@balatonwine I would rather not see this thread get sidetracked onto a completely different topic. I'm trying to learn and am getting some very helpful responses. @winemaker81 and the other responders are giving me the information I need. Perhaps your discussion would fit better in a...

Great help from everyone! The personal experiences are very encouraging. I have Jack Keller's book "Home Winemaking" and based on @Rice_Guy "s recommendation have downloaded the Scott Labs Handbook to put on my Kindle. I think that for now, I want to stick with juice wines (kit, frozen...

I've read about two methods for fermenting wines. One uses the same vessel with an airlock And some headspace for the entire fermentation process. The oxygen in the headspace is all that sill be available for initial yeast growth. The other uses an open container for primary fermentation...

Here's what I got for my mango wine. Haven't tasted it yet. I'll sneak a taste when I start it fermenting. AmazonSmile: Iberia Mango Nectar, 33.8 fl. oz., (Pack of 3) I used to travel to Central and South America pretty regularly. They have mangoes growing naturally everywhere! Must be...

My "grocery store juice" wines turned out pretty good! We're quite pleased with them. One is a cranberry/apple, one is cranberry/cherry, and the third is a mix of the two. All three are pretty good, but my favorite is the cranberry/cherry. They're good enough to encourage me to continue with...