Alt fermentation containers

[Lordniteshadow]

Can you use a pressure cooker with a rocker as a fermenter? Because i have a four gallon one

 

[Lordniteshadow]

here is a pic

 

[Jim Welch]

If the vessel is stainless steel I don’t see why not. I don’t think you’d want to use an aluminum one though, wine is fairly acidic and it may well leach aluminum from the pot. You could just cover it with a towel instead of the lid.
If you’re talking about allowing it to build pressure I’d say perhaps, I know beer can be successfully fermented under modest pressure but not sure about wine.

 

[Jim Welch]

A quick internet search for yielded this thread from a UK homebrew forum where a person fermented wine under pressure.

https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/threads/anybody-tried-fermenting-wine-under-pressure.83683/

 

[Lordniteshadow]

A quick internet search for yielded this thread from a UK homebrew forum where a person fermented wine under pressure.

https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/threads/anybody-tried-fermenting-wine-under-pressure.83683/

thank you for the link

 

[winemaker81]

If the pressure cooker is not stainless steel, do NOT use it.

Assuming it's SS, I'd lay a towel over the top.

@Jim Welch's article spoke of speeding up fermentation by containing the heat. That may not be desired, as while hotter fermentations can extract more color, the wine loses aromatics.

 

[Lordniteshadow]

ok thank you a lot

 

[Jim Welch]

Yes, I saw that in the OP, but I took it to reference beer making under pressure, specifically lagers which normally require a fermentation temperature around 45-55 degrees F. I’ve not done that but from what I’ve read folks make good lagers in the 70’s under pressure. Plus the higher temperatures greatly speeds up a lager fermentation, I’ve made a couple lagers and the nearly refrigerated temps leads to a very long fermentation relative to say a Belgian style which is my favorite beer to make.
At any rate he stated he fermented (a Rose) at 26 degrees C which is about 77 degrees F, not too high I believe. He has a picture of his fermenter in a refrigerator, no doubt he uses a temperature controller for his brewing chamber, that’s what I do to except I made my own giant fridge.

 

[BernardSmith]

But the higher the temperature in wine making, the poorer the wine is likely to be - Ssee Daniel Pambianchi's recent article in The Wine Maker magazine. So, sure making beer under pressure may result in a beer that is ready to bottle faster. But wine ain't beer. Being able to bottle a wine sooner is not necessarily a good thing..

 

[Steve Wargo]

For those worried about the type of container that you are using as your fermenter. There are plastic food-grade plastic bags (5-gallon) that you can use, that will protect your must from the container. Also makes for easy clean-up, especially for the beginners that aren't able or don't want to invest too money into the hobby as yet.