When I do eventually get a fermonster and try it, I'm not too worried. Think of all the "micro" oxidation that happens during barrel aging. As long as their isn't an open highway to more and more oxygen to contact the wine, I would think you'd be fine. You could purge the headspace with some type of heavier gas, but I think it would, over time, eventually be replaced with oxygen with an airlock attached.Jim: how'd you feel about headspace during the peak of fermentation? Despite information to the contrary, I can't help but think one of these kits is going to end up blowing the lid off the Fermonster. Its 7.0 gallons, right? I've been looking at the Speidel fermenter, which is 7.9gal. More expensive, but plenty of room there. I wonder what the extra headspace would do over the length of the EM.
Jim: how'd you feel about headspace during the peak of fermentation? Despite information to the contrary, I can't help but think one of these kits is going to end up blowing the lid off the Fermonster. Its 7.0 gallons, right? I've been looking at the Speidel fermenter, which is 7.9gal. More expensive, but plenty of room there. I wonder what the extra headspace would do over the length of the EM.
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She is referring to whole grape EM which would include seeds etc.
Thanks for your reply.Skip the week in the bucket with loose skins, do the whole thing in the fermonster - you did get the 7 gallon one? I don't think loose skins matter when they will be in that long.
That can be a plan.I've been puzzling over this m'self. I have possession of: a Big Mouth Bubbler and an older Rosso Fortissimo kit. I have been planning to try an EM on this kit. My problem is that the Big Mouth Bubbler is, I believe, exactly 6 gallons. The plan I have been hatching from reading this and other EM threads is to: ferment in a bucket to start. Do not add the full amount of water, but short the kit about 3 liters. Let this go in primary until major foaming subsides. Transfer about a gallon of liquid to a glass container. Transfer the rest, including skins, to the BMB. After fermentation is well settled down, top off the BMB using the wine from the gallon jug. Then let the must, err, Macerate for an Extended period of time .
If I follow this protocol, the wine will be a bit concentrated (from shorting the 3 liters of water). I could remove the skins, and water it back to the intended strength. Or I could wait until that time and see how the wine is, and decide to leave it a bit thick.
Whaddya think of this plan? At this point, I have no intention of purchasing another fermentation vessel.
I've been puzzling over this m'self. I have possession of: a Big Mouth Bubbler and an older Rosso Fortissimo kit. I have been planning to try an EM on this kit. My problem is that the Big Mouth Bubbler is, I believe, exactly 6 gallons.
That can be a plan.
Here is an alternate one. Since it is a big kit, dropping volume might be a kind of loss of resource (4 bottles loss and risk of off balance) :
Do as per instruction to full volume with all the ingredients in. Before pitching yeast, draw 3L of juice (no skin) out and store in fridge. Pitch yeast into the bucket batch until the fermentation slows down and transfer everything to BBM to continue EM. To some point, (say 2~3 weeks), take out the stored juice, warm up and pitch yeast to start another fermentation in 1 gal carboy, if you like, you can connect headspace to the BBM with a hose to feed CO2 to the EM batch and share one air lock since that batch is to the end of EM and at risk of oxidation. (not sure if it is achievable for BBM, but can be easily done in Fermmonster. Or you can do the small batch separately as long as the timing is coordinated nicely to finish both at almost the same time. After the small batch fermentation is done. Rack both to a 6 gal carboy to continue the rest tasks. In this case, no volume loss. How do you think?
I have to scratch my head over what use a BMB has? Is it designed for 5 gallon ferments? If so, that's silly since most kits I've seen are 6 gallon.
I have to scratch my head over what use a BMB has? Is it designed for 5 gallon ferments? If so, that's silly since most kits I've seen are 6 gallon.
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