Kombucha Batch #24-04
updated 08/26/2024 August 2024 As is my habit, I started this batch immediately after bottling the last one. 08/26/2024 I remembered incorrectly, and instead of 4 Tbsp tea I used 3 in this batch:...
Author: Bryan
When to Drink a Wine?
updated 08/27/2024 The headline for this post refers to how long a wine should be aged, not what time of day is appropriate. In August 2019 NorCal, a respected WineMakingTalk member, started a thread...
Primary Fermenter Size
updated 07/30/2024 A new member on WMT asked about container size, e.g., how big should the primary fermenter be? Overflow This question is a great one — if a primary is too full, a...
Safe Pressure in Wine Bottles
updated 07/27/2024 Inexperienced winemakers (and sometimes experienced winemakers) may get a refermentation in the bottle, producing a light spritz or pushing out the cork. This post addresses what is safe and what is...
How Long to Keep Sorbate?
updated 07/27/2024 What is sorbate? Potassium sorbate is used in conjunction with potassium metabisulfite (K-meta) to “stabilize” wine, to prevent a renewed fermentation after backsweetening a wine. In laymen’s terms, sorbate + K-meta act...
Wine 2024 – Update #02
12 July 2024 My friend Beth reported that the grapes in the Glade Springs VA vineyard have started veraison and she’s netting the vines. Veraison is the first stage of ripening for grapes, where...
Calculating Chaptalization Sugar
updated 06/25/2024 This post is inspired by yet another question on WineMakingTalk, asking about how much sugar to buy to chaptalize 50 gallons of cider. Sugar is currently on sale and the questioner knows...
Kombucha Batch #24-03
updated 08/26/2024 June 2024 As is my habit, I started this batch immediately after bottling the last one. 06/09/2024 I’m using the same ratios as I did with the last batch: 4 Tbsp Lychee...
How I Blend Wines
updated 08/13/2024 A common question among home winemakers: How does one blend wines? I mean beyond the basics of pouring varying amounts of wines 1 through X into a beaker. How is the decision...
Making a Twenty Year Kit Wine
updated 05/24/2024 Recently a friend posted on WineMakingTalk — he wants to make a wine to lay down for twenty-one years, in honor of his new grandson. He makes kit wines, and asked for...