1983 Rhubarb

June 2021This wine was started in June or July 1983. A few friends were visiting and the discussion ended up being about wine. I said, “hey, let’s get rhubarb and make more wine!” So we trooped over to the neighbor’s patch (this was probably 10 or 11 PM), picked a LOT of rhubarb, and went back to the house.

This one went better than the first time. Again, after fermentation was complete (actually, when the foam subsided), the wine went into gallon glass jugs.

But the wine had CO2 in it — I recall uncapping a jug and experiencing a volcano on the kitchen table. I didn’t lose all that much, maybe a cup of wine, but it was a shock and it looked like a lot more. I opened the remaining jugs much more carefully.

Note that at this point I didn’t know what a hydrometer was. This experience is why I strongly urge winemakers to get a hydrometer! It’s the one test a home winemaker can use to determine if fermentation is complete.

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