Noob Here

[Greenchicken]

Hi everyone I am from NC ... I used to make beer many years ago then got lazy and quit making it but still have all the equipment.

I like making the Welches wine, first batch turned out great and now I am making 2 gallons in the beer fermenter and it appears to be coming along nicely.
I know how the beer making works but I am real new to the wine stuff so I have a couple of questions.

1 First batch of closet wine (welches) tasted perfect, actually made it in the bottle even though I had the equipment... Why is there no residue or yeast in the bottom of the container?
My wife and her friend raved over the stuff and I was just trying to make something , I didn't think they liked it but my wife drank 3 glasses and the neighbor drank 4 and they were pretty lit up lol but both said it was so good and neither woke up with a headache.

I am making 2 gallons of the Welchs now and 1 gallon of Cranberry wine in the instapot....
How long should I wait before transferring the 2 gallons to the carboy? Should I still use a airlock on the carboy after I transfer it? And how long before I can just put the cap on the carboy 1 gallon bottles?

I have big beer bottles as well and a capping machine... Can I fill these glass bottles and cap them like beer? One more question... I also have the PET bottles (plastic) that come with the beer kit (a bunch of them ) are those ok to use to store wine. As far as the sanitizing, I already know how to do all of that , I need to get my gravity reading skills back up to par but I will figure it out. Been reading here a couple of days, interesting forum, thanks for having me.

 

[hounddawg]

Hi everyone I am from NC ... I used to make beer many years ago then got lazy and quit making it but still have all the equipment.

I like making the Welches wine, first batch turned out great and now I am making 2 gallons in the beer fermenter and it appears to be coming along nicely.
I know how the beer making works but I am real new to the wine stuff so I have a couple of questions.

1 First batch of closet wine (welches) tasted perfect, actually made it in the bottle even though I had the equipment... Why is there no residue or yeast in the bottom of the container?
My wife and her friend raved over the stuff and I was just trying to make something , I didn't think they liked it but my wife drank 3 glasses and the neighbor drank 4 and they were pretty lit up lol but both said it was so good and neither woke up with a headache.

I am making 2 gallons of the Welchs now and 1 gallon of Cranberry wine in the instapot....
How long should I wait before transferring the 2 gallons to the carboy? Should I still use a airlock on the carboy after I transfer it? And how long before I can just put the cap on the carboy 1 gallon bottles?

I have big beer bottles as well and a capping machine... Can I fill these glass bottles and cap them like beer? One more question... I also have the PET bottles (plastic) that come with the beer kit (a bunch of them ) are those ok to use to store wine. As far as the sanitizing, I already know how to do all of that , I need to get my gravity reading skills back up to par but I will figure it out. Been reading here a couple of days, interesting forum, thanks for having me.

Welcome to WMT greenchicken, do you have a hydrometer, usually, when one starts a wine you add sugar to get the amount of alcohol wanted, and to see when your ferment is over, usually anything below .996 then remove from primary to secondary carboy/vessel, and airlock to allow for degassing, and to let your gross lees, (dead yeast) and let your fine sediment drop out, my first batch i used plastic carboys, got hospitalized, my nephew kept my airlocks full, was 11 months straight in hospital, the another year before i was good enough to get back to my wines, they were fine, so mine back then went 2 years sitting in plastic carboys, and were fine, as to why you had no gross lees ,how long from making to drinking? plus using a cleared juice greatly reduces the lees,
Dawg

 

[hounddawg]

Hi everyone I am from NC ... I used to make beer many years ago then got lazy and quit making it but still have all the equipment.

I like making the Welches wine, first batch turned out great and now I am making 2 gallons in the beer fermenter and it appears to be coming along nicely.
I know how the beer making works but I am real new to the wine stuff so I have a couple of questions.

1 First batch of closet wine (welches) tasted perfect, actually made it in the bottle even though I had the equipment... Why is there no residue or yeast in the bottom of the container?
My wife and her friend raved over the stuff and I was just trying to make something , I didn't think they liked it but my wife drank 3 glasses and the neighbor drank 4 and they were pretty lit up lol but both said it was so good and neither woke up with a headache.

I am making 2 gallons of the Welchs now and 1 gallon of Cranberry wine in the instapot....
How long should I wait before transferring the 2 gallons to the carboy? Should I still use a airlock on the carboy after I transfer it? And how long before I can just put the cap on the carboy 1 gallon bottles?

I have big beer bottles as well and a capping machine... Can I fill these glass bottles and cap them like beer? One more question... I also have the PET bottles (plastic) that come with the beer kit (a bunch of them ) are those ok to use to store wine. As far as the sanitizing, I already know how to do all of that , I need to get my gravity reading skills back up to par but I will figure it out. Been reading here a couple of days, interesting forum, thanks for having me.

sorry, i have heard others on hear using beer bottles, but i have zero experience using beer bottles or beer making,,
Dawg

 

[sour_grapes]

Welcome to WMT!

 

[PandemoniumWines]

my hubby donated all his old "mr beer" plastic beer bottles to me for my wine. I use them for the quick drinkers like skeeter pee or kit wines. No worries. And you can absolutely bottle wine in beer bottles and cap it. Nice generous single servings there.

 

[Greenchicken]

Welcome to WMT greenchicken, do you have a hydrometer, usually, when one starts a wine you add sugar to get the amount of alcohol wanted, and to see when your ferment is over, usually anything below .996 then remove from primary to secondary carboy/vessel, and airlock to allow for degassing, and to let your gross lees, (dead yeast) and let your fine sediment drop out, my first batch i used plastic carboys, got hospitalized, my nephew kept my airlocks full, was 11 months straight in hospital, the another year before i was good enough to get back to my wines, they were fine, so mine back then went 2 years sitting in plastic carboys, and were fine, as to why you had no gross lees ,how long from making to drinking? plus using a cleared juice greatly reduces the lees,
Dawg

2 weeks on the first batch of welches and it was great, this was a test run so I plan on aging longer for future batches. I have 2 gallons of welches in my beer fermenter, it has an area above the bottom of the drain spigot for for stuff to settle in the bottom , it does not have a standard water airlock, it has a lid that is weighted enough to release co2 on its own.. So I assume I will be able to leave the wine in there the whole time (about 2 weeks) before I bottle it the same way as I dis when making beer. It's a 5 gallon tank so I will be making a full batch next time if this one works good.

Ok just a couple of questions on the gravity meter because it's been years....
Check gravity of welches before adding sugar?
Check gravity after fermentation process is over and then do the math , am I correct?
Here is a pic of my bottles, the one on the left is a Japanese beer bottle 16 oz cappable and the one on the right is a screw top pet bottle that came with the beer making kit , these should be fine for storing large quantities if I choose to make up some more? They are dusty and need to be sanitized.

Thanks...

 

[Chuck E]

Ok just a couple of questions on the gravity meter because it's been years....
Check gravity of welches before adding sugar?
Check gravity after fermentation process is over and then do the math , am I correct?

Check the Specific Gravity AFTER adding the sugar. Make sure the sugar is well dissolved. The yeasties will consume all the sugar in the batch.
You are correct on taking a Specific Gravity reading after fermentation. Doing the math will give you your ABV.

 

[Greenchicken]

my hubby donated all his old "mr beer" plastic beer bottles to me for my wine. I use them for the quick drinkers like skeeter pee or kit wines. No worries. And you can absolutely bottle wine in beer bottles and cap it. Nice generous single servings there.

good because I have a zillion bottles and caps

 

[hounddawg]

2 weeks on the first batch of welches and it was great, this was a test run so I plan on aging longer for future batches. I have 2 gallons of welches in my beer fermenter, it has an area above the bottom of the drain spigot for for stuff to settle in the bottom , it does not have a standard water airlock, it has a lid that is weighted enough to release co2 on its own.. So I assume I will be able to leave the wine in there the whole time (about 2 weeks) before I bottle it the same way as I dis when making beer. It's a 5 gallon tank so I will be making a full batch next time if this one works good.

Ok just a couple of questions on the gravity meter because it's been years....
Check gravity otassiumf welches before adding sugar?
Check gravity after fermentation process is over and then do the math , am I correct?

Thanks...

check your SG at the start and add sugar to get the ABV you wish, if your hydrometer has a triple scale you then look to the scale to get your ABV, ferment dry, age, then adding potassium metabisulfite and potassium sorbate per package, backsweeten to suit your taste,

 

[Scooter68]

Your timing on getting back into the fermentation of beverages is excellent. If you want to try Fruit wines now is the time when berries are to be found in the woods and thickets and the fruit stands have plenty of fresh fruit. (I personally like to search out the places for 'overripe' fruit which translates to fruit high in sugar and ready to ferment into fantastic wines.)

For me the two key tools of wine making are the Hydrometer and my pH meter. In fruit wine making the acidity varies and can impact both the fermentation and the life of a wine (More acidic keeps better).

 

[Greenchicken]

Check the Specific Gravity AFTER adding the sugar. Make sure the sugar is well dissolved. The yeasties will consume all the sugar in the batch.
You are correct on taking a Specific Gravity reading after fermentation. Doing the math will give you your ABV.

gotcha could not remember before or after the sugar thank you

 

[hounddawg]

you need at start to use your hydrometer to get correct ABV, UNLESS YOU WANT ROCKET FUEL. most want from 11 to 14 ABV,,
Dawg

 

[Greenchicken]

Your timing on getting back into the fermentation of beverages is excellent. If you want to try Fruit wines now is the time when berries are to be found in the woods and thickets and the fruit stands have plenty of fresh fruit. (I personally like to search out the places for 'overripe' fruit which translates to fruit high in sugar and ready to ferment into fantastic wines.)

For me the two key tools of wine making are the Hydrometer and my pH meter. In fruit wine making the acidity varies and can impact both the fermentation and the life of a wine (More acidic keeps better).

yea I am starting out with the simple stuff now , it's been years since I have made beer and remember most of it but beer is so cheap I just like Miller Lite mostly anyway but stuff like the Welches wine is simple and cheaper to make than buying wine and the wife and her neighbor friend love it so I will just keep making it for them. I will drink a little of it but I am more of a beer person but we like to keep the women happy over here. I am gonna shop more in a little while.

 

[Greenchicken]

48 hours fermentation so far on the Welches closet wine

 

[Scooter68]

There are some easy fruits to make into wine. Mango and Pineapple makes a great wine and clears very quickly, Doesn't have to age for a year to be good either. Peaches are also great but slow to clear - if you like white wines they are great. Blueberry, Blackberry Both easy to make and pretty quick to clear - they taste better with aging so if you start a batch now they will be ready to bottle in about 9-12 months. That's the one thing that puts off some beer makers - the time from start to drink.
Avoid Watermelon & Strawberry unless you have someone to coach you through them. Watermelon is especially quick to spoil even as fermentation is starting.
In any case welcome back to WMT.

 

[Greenchicken]

There are some easy fruits to make into wine. Mango and Pineapple makes a great wine and clears very quickly, Doesn't have to age for a year to be good either. Peaches are also great but slow to clear - if you like white wines they are great. Blueberry, Blackberry Both easy to make and pretty quick to clear - they taste better with aging so if you start a batch now they will be ready to bottle in about 9-12 months. That's the one thing that puts off some beer makers - the time from start to drink.
Avoid Watermelon & Strawberry unless you have someone to coach you through them. Watermelon is especially quick to spoil even as fermentation is starting.
In any case welcome back to WMT.

yea, I am just going to stick with juice wines now... Thanks