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I had worms floating in my cherry wine must this past October. I dipped out about 50 of the larva, probably cherry worms, not fruit flies. I had picked the cherries from my bushes, pitted them and froze in gallon bags. I don't want worms in my food either, so I spent 10 minutes getting them...

" some sulfites do occur naturally in wine." Thanks. I learn something new every day.

Many folks are allergic to sulfates, as is my wife. Any level of sulfate is too much. It is not a necessary ingredient in wine. If God wanted sulfates in the wine, it would be in the grapes.

I make apple wine from my orchard, Apples are ripe in September and October. I pick them, wash in a 5 gallon bucket, cut out bad spots and run through my crusher. They are then dumped in a 17 gallon foodgrade trash can; water and sugar added, and pectin enzyme, nutrient and 5 campdon tabs...

Wow! We all need a friend like you. Solve the problem, rack, bottle and lable... I've made a lot of pear wine- I just don't worry about it. Some years it is more clear than others.

Our Concord grapes in Missouri also look good. But it has been an odd year. There was a heavy frost on April 27, when grapes and many fruit trees were in full bloom. The grape leaves and berries in the top half of the plants were killed, as were the peach, plum, apricot and cherry blooms...

Why do you bother to "pit" the cherries? Why would the pits make a change while in the must? I never remove apple or grape seeds.

I just received my soil test from Logan Labs in Ohio. The test was $27 for 18 different minerals, pH and organic matter. There is an extra charge if you need them to make a recomendation for you. The dollars that you save by not using the wrong fertilizer will pay for the soil test. I do a...

I use plastic 5 gallon (water) jugs to hold my wine during fermentation. Two of the jugs are almost 20 years old. Should I worry about them breaking due to age. They look just like the jugs that all the wine shops sell. Last fall, I had 2 five gallon buckets crack; one cracked at the top...

"I recently pruned my itasca back to 3 or 4 buds because it’s the right thing to do" Why?? The goal for a first year grape plant is to grow to the top of the trellis wire. I do not prune until dormancy and then only side shoots. The main leader is allowed to grow as fast as possible. If...

During January, I also made a wine rack. I bottle all of my wine in 1 1/2 liter bottles and increased the size of the rack to fit them. My total cost was about $50.

Mid-Missouri zone 6b. I also spray my grapes (Concords and table) with dormant oil when I spray my fruit trees. Sometimes I spray a mix of dormant oil and copper.

Just a retired mid-Missouri farm boy here. I grow Concord grapes amoung other things. Tonight, I'm having a bottle of that Concord wine started September 2022. It could age a while longer, but it is very "drinkable" (is that even a word?). I read about Concords being too acidic, too foxy and...

I don't like anchors either; they are always in the way. I use "H" braces made from 6 inch post each 9 feet long, with a 8 foot piece of used 2 inch oil well pipe as the horizontal. Then I buy stainless steel dog bowls , paint them brown to stop the shine, and fasten them upside down on the...

I use at least 9 foot post and put top wire 5 1/2 feet above ground. I also buy stainless steel dog bowls (Walmart $5) , paint them brown to stop shine and screw upside down on post tops to keep out water. Posts will last a lot longer. The horizontal brace between post is a 8 foot piece of 2...

I use Star San to clean my wine making equipment. To sanitize fruits, I fill a 5 gallon bucket 1/2 full of water and add the recommended Star San. Then I add my fruit to the water mix and let set as I process each apple, pear, peach, etc. Star San is not poison, so no worry.

Seems like you are missing a lot of good information right there in your back yard. If I was starting a new vineyard, I would go to the "local" vineyards, taste the wine, taste the grapes, talk to the folks, ask for or buy some cuttings and start my own grapes. The cost of cuttings may be...

Last fall, I made apple wine much the same method as ChuckD. I ground 6 pounds of apples and added about 2 1/2 pounds of sugar. I also skimmed out the fruit from the must with a kitchen strainer and put the liquid into a 1 gallon jug. The wine turned out great; slightly bubbly and what I...

While you folks were running around, I finished picking my apples and pears. They will mostly go into wine.

In past years, I used Campton tablets but last year switched to Star San; and I like it. I have always made wine from fruit or grapes. I weight out the amount of fruit (apples, pears, peaches, etc), place in a bucket and cover with a solution of Star San. After 10 or more minutes, I start...