Skeeter Pee Headache?

[richmke]

The bottles were washed with OneStep prior to bottling and dried on the bottle rack.

I don't think it is OneStep. I believe OneStep is Sodium Carbonate (CNa2O3) which, when combined with water, creates carbonic acid (H2CO3), hyrdoxide ion (OH-), and sodium (Na).

If you are salt sensitive, the sodium could raise your blood pressure. But, the amount would be so dilute - equivalent to a few grains of salt at the most in a bottle of wine.

 

[NorCal]

Another thought is that it is the Potassium Sorbate that is causing my headaches. Found this: Migraine, a common type of headache, is one of the possible adverse health effects of potassium sorbate.

 

[homesteader26]

I hope you figure this out because a headache from wine stinks!! I get a lot of headaches from alcohol (in various forms) but as long as it doesn't keep me from my life I weigh it against the other effects. I tried my first glass of DB last night followed by 2 more and survived the evening and this morning! I feel your pain - headaches from wine stink!!

 

[NorCal]

I've started another batch, although it is strugglibg to ferment in the colder temps. This time, no tannin, no sorbate. I will sweeten in the glass. Hopefully I can still get the Skeeter refreshment without the headache. I still have some from the last batch that I'll try to see if age has cured the cause of my reaction to the standard recipe.

 

[NorCal]

Finally got the batch to ferment, should be dry by the weekend.

No tannin powder
No sorbate
No Sparkolloid

I added some french oak chips, to give the skeeter some structure. The 1 gallon container is to backfill the 5 gallon Carboy when racked. I'll bottle the skeeter-lite then make a pitcher at a time and sweeten when poured.

 

[wineforfun]

Finally got the batch to ferment, should be dry by the weekend.

No tannin powder
No sorbate
No Sparkolloid

I added some french oak chips, to give the skeeter some structure. The 1 gallon container is to backfill the 5 gallon Carboy when racked. I'll bottle the skeeter-lite then make a pitcher at a time and sweeten when poured.

Is that K&K your logo? It is very cool/unique, especially with the wine bottle in between.

 

[NorCal]

Is that K&K your logo? It is very cool/unique, especially with the wine bottle in between.

Thanks WFF, yea, had the logo made on a web site called Fiver for $5. It contains mine and my wife's initials; K&K

 

[Arne]

Like D.J. says "Cool" I like the label/logo. Good job. Arne.

 

[2020steve]

NorCal what a great label. With the open rectangular space you can add date and type using one label for all your wines.
I was on this thread to get more info on Skeeter Pee and I spotted your label, nice.

 

[QuiQuog]

Is that K&K your logo? It is very cool/unique, especially with the wine bottle in between.

Thanks WFF, yea, had the logo made on a web site called Fiver for $5. It contains mine and my wife's initials; K&K

Ditto on the label, it looks real nice. But that lamp is way cool! I love that thing. That's a man cave item if I ever saw one.

 

[NorCal]

Thanks Q,
I repurposed a pump that I pulled out of the scrap bin. Made this one as well, in the steampunk type look. The gauge is actually a working thermometer pulled out of the bin as well.

 

[wineforfun]

Ditto on the label, it looks real nice. But that lamp is way cool! I love that thing. That's a man cave item if I ever saw one.

haha
Got so involved in the label, didn't even notice the lamp. That is awesome.

 

[heatherd]

I noticed that you added oak to the batch - wood can be an allergen as well. I have a friend who is allergic to oak, cedar, etc. She tends to drink pinot noir and others that are light on oak and tannins.

I find that drinking less than two bottles at a sitting helps too.

Heather

 

[NorCal]

Just an update on my seconds batch. To review, the goal was to make a batch without the elements that could cause my headaches when drinking Skeeter: no tannin powder, no sorbate, no sparkolloid, minimal SO2. The fermentation struggled due to low garage temps and ended up racking into a clean carboy with 1.5 brix. I had a good size tasting at that point, an amount that would have given me a headache from my first batch and I had no headache and tasted just fine! My focus now is getting it do go dry and clear.

I plan on just leaving it alone for a few months. Without a clearing agent and waiting only a few months, I expect to have sediment in the bottle and will need to be sweetened. I plan on sweetening and serving in pitchers with ice, so I can leave the sediment in the bottle.

 

[NorCal]

Inwas looking for something to do, so I thought Inwould play with the Skeeter. I vaccum transferred it 4 times and used a .5 micron filter. It cleared it up perhaps 50% and drove a lot of the CO2 out. I shared some with family members. It never finished and is about 1 brix. It was not sweet enough for some, but others liked it the way it was. The foam is a combination of sanitizer and CO2, but it all settled down.

I thought it was very clean, lemony, perhaps thin. I'm happy the way it turned out. One suggestion was to serve it with sprite, which I thought was a good suggestion.

 

[NorCal]

A wine making buddy made a good point. That I know I can make Skeeterpee absent of headache, but I still don't know the cause. I split the batch up to see if this will help isolate the cause.

 

[NorCal]

Bottled today and partook in a good sized glass of the Sorbate only (I did not back sweeten)...no headache. It still is at .5 brix, so it has enough sweetness to counter the tartness of the lemon. Actually pretty darn good.

 

[NorCal]

It was mid 80's here in Nor Cal and I spent the day doing hard labor. Well, it was hard for a desk worker like me anyway . I easy could have reached for a beer, but rather, I cracked open a Skeeter. Big glass, chipped ice, bar friendly pour and frankly, it was very nice and absolutely no headache.

Based on my unscientific experiment, I am comfortable at concluding that for me, my headaches were caused by the added tannin powder. I really didn't expect that result; I really thought Sorbate or Sparkalloid was the culprit.

Thank you all for your input. I am happy that I can make a version of the Skeeter that I can drink and really enjoy!

My recipe: no tannin, rack and .5 micron vacuum filter 4X at .5brix, sorbate, sparklloid, no back sweetening. Sweeten to taste in the glass, if desired.

 

[IYAOYAS]

glad you are now able to partake in this wonderful beverage with us all without have headaches

 

[kkentert]

Someone mentioned "Mist Style" wine giving a headache when first bottle and it improved over time. I made tangerine pinot grigio years ago. A week after bottling, it was TERRIBLE! Tasted like syrup. forgot about it for at least si months and figured I'd give it another chance. The aged result ended up being very good. Maybe what others are saying could be true. Let it age a couple months and see what happens.

I will say, many wines give me headaches, and when I'm drinking liquor, the sugary things make me terribly hung over. Your body processes sugar the same way it does alcohol (They are almost identical molecularly, and my theory is when your body has to process alcohol AND sugar, you end up with headaches and hangovers. That all said, I've never tried SP (though making it soon)

Hope you can figure it out!