Something that's been bugging me, Re: Recipes&Kits

[JPerkins]

Hey guys, just wanted to run this past you since its been bugging me.

If you buy a fruit wine making kit you get a 6 gal bucket/5 gal carboy or a 7gal bucket/6 gal carboy. Ok, its understood that the extra gallon is for expansion so your bucket don't runneth over. Just keep that in mind.

Now, most recipes call for getting your starting SG pretty high, like 1.095 or so but the consensus here is to get your SG to 1.090 or so because it will be too high in Alcohol.

So, since I've been doing this I've realized that when you put the fruit in the bag you are displacing a bunch of water. When you pull the fruit bag out you have to top off or your racking destination will be too low (considering that the kits I explained above.) So then you will have to top off diluting your alcohol content.

So having said all that, is it better to follow the recipe so that when you do have to top off your wine isn't watered down?

Thanks for any thoughts/comments because it seems you need an 8 gallon primary for a 6 gallon carboy and/or a 7 gallon primary and 5 gallon carboy when making fruit wines with a fruit bag.

 

[Tom]

Simple,

You need 2 fermentation buckets and split the #'s of fruit as if you were makingtwo3 gallon batch. Once you remove the fruit then the level is where it needs to be. Then racking you can combine to one bucket to finish.

I would not make a concentrated batch where you need to add 1+gallon for topping off.

 

[grapeman]

The buckets you call 7 gallon are basically 8 gallon buckets. They are 7.9 gallon buckets. This only gives you two gallons of space, but should be enough. If it isn't large enough, you can split as Tepe says or get a 10 gallon primary.

 

[Bert]

JP another thing to consider if you try and make a concentrated batch is your acid level may to high for your yeast.....I agree with tepe and appleman and use a larger primary or split it between two smaller ones....Hope this helps

 

[JPerkins]

JP another thing to consider if you try and make a concentrated batch is your acid level may to high for your yeast.....I agree with tepe and appleman and use a larger primary or split it between two smaller ones....Hope this helps

So I guess what I'm wondering then is why the kits are sold like this? I wouldn't mind making 2 primaries but that isn't how the kit is sold. Also, using 2 primaries won't you use twice the yeast?

 

[Wade E]

You dont need 2 packets of yeast, just split the packet amongst the 2 primaries, remember that yeast will multiply itself by around 1 million times its size. I find that most 6 gallon recipes fit in 1 7.9 primary with a few exceptions like apples, plums and a few others.I typically use a lower foaming less aggressive yeast when doing fruit wines anyway to keep the fruity esters.

 

[JPerkins]

Well, here's an example of a strawberry batch I just did. I had the primary full to above the 6 gallon mark, there's absolutely no way more could go in there without having foam come out of the airlock.

I racked to secondary when sg was 1.030. Since I bought the kit I have a 7.9 gallon bucket and a 6 gallon glass carboy. When I removed the fruit and squeezed the crap out of the bag the water level was just under the 6 gal mark on the bucket.

When I transferred that to the 6 gal glass carboy, I easily have about 1.5 to 2 gallons of airspace left. That doesn't seem right to me. It should fill the glass carboy up to close to the neck. Is the glass carboy in reality 7 gallons or more?

 

[Wade E]

Did you get this kit from George? Some wine supply stores pass out smaller primaries. Either that or you have a 6.5 gallon carboy and left too much stuff in the primary. Did you have that to the 6 gallon mark with or without the fruit, it should be without and I almost always still have room for fruit.

 

[JPerkins]

Kit from george, the fruit wine makers kit. As per my post, the liquid once the fruit was pulled was just under the 6 gallon mark on bucket. Once transferred I still have a bunch of space left. Probably a gallon or 1.5 gallons.

 

[JPerkins]

Ok, here's a pic of what I'm talking about. As you can see there just isn't enough juice to bring this to the correct level.

The acid is right, the SG is 1.030 for first racking. I couldn't stuff any more into the primary bucket without it overflowing.

So how in the world am I supposed to use this glass carboy?

 

[grapeman]

How did you come up with the 6 gallon mark on the bucket? On a lot of them it is the plastic ridge a couple inches from the top. The best way to verify it is to use a known measure- quart or gallon and add 6 gallons. Verify where the 6 gallon comes to and mark it on the outside of the primary bucket. You really are short on the wine............ Not sure what to tell you....

 

[Wade E]

Can you post a pic of the primary and where you filled it to by any chance. Also check the bottom of the carboy to see if it say size it is. That is way off!!!!!!!! How much did you leave behind when racking from primary.

 

[JPerkins]

Ok, I just looked at the bottom of the primary and it says 6.5 IMP gallons. Which converts to 7.8 US gallons.

Here's a pic of where the liquid level was when I pulled the fruit out...

The only thing that I can think of is that the carboy is actually bigger than 6 gallons?

I left virtually nothing behind in the primary because I was so low. Even if I put the fruit in the carboy there would still be a ton of room left.

 

[JPerkins]

I tried to look on the bottom of the carboy but there isn't anything readable to me right now. Its full of liquid and white lees at the bottom so its very hard to read if anything is readable there.

Comparing the size to the 5 gallon better bottle carboy I just recently got it seems much much bigger. Its definitely over 5 gallons of liquid.

 

[JPerkins]

Here's another pic of the primary and where the liquid was at after pulling the fruit....

 

[joeswine]

IF all else is well transfer it into 3 3gal. carboy thats all that seam to be there.

 

[vcasey]

Not all carboys are exactly 6 gallons, I have one that is much larger then the rest. If its an Italian carboy I think they may be larger then the old Mexican carboys. You may want to pick up some 1 gallon jugs as well as some of the #2 bungs (so you can use wine bottles) and extra airlocks. That way you are prepared if something like this happens again.
Another good thing to do is when you get a new carboy fill it up and verify how much liquid it holds, before you fill it with wine or beer.
VPC

 

[JPerkins]

Any idea where to get 3 and 1 gal carboys locally? Any stores you know of that carry them?

 

[grapeman]

Since we have no idea where you are from, it is hard to say where for you to get them. I would go for a 5 gallon carboy if it was me you really should be coming close if you were initially at 6 gallons after removing the fruit. I suspect that you have a 7 gallon carboy. Mistakes can happen occasionally.

 

[JPerkins]

I have a 6 gallon carboy ready to go, I already ordered it from george. I also have a 5 gallon but it has my plum wine in it and aging.

I just feel like the glass carboy that came with the kit is a waste because its so large it makes it quite useless to me. I didn't realize this starting out but now its obvious to me. I wish I had ordered two 5 gallon carboys instead of 1-6 gallon and 1-5 gallon because I would rather lose a little wine than top off and dilute the wine.