wine Chokecherry, maybe rhubarb too...

stettoman

stettoman

OK, definitely rhubarb too.
 
Hey, I've chatted with Reggie/WarrantMan a little concerning winemaking, and so far I know just enough to throw a couple of the words around as if I know what I'm talking about. Where I live we're blessed with an abundance of wild fruit and a couple of rhubarb bushes (yes, bushes). I've talked for years about getting into winemaking, and the bumper crop of chokecherry this season has me doing just a little more than talking, to the point where the Darlin' Bride has expressed a desire to buy me a "kit" for Christmas. Well cool....
 
Except neither of us really know where to start, there seems to be 735 "kits" of various capacities and inventories of parts and a price spectrum that kicks our asses. I know from Reggie that I'd need 2 carboys, which means an additional purchase because NOBODY sells a kit with more than one carboy...In fact I haven't seen an all-inclusive kit yet, though the verbage in almost every ad claims "everything you need"....I'd ask Reggie direct, but he does the po'boy method, I don't scrounge so good...
 
I think that all I really need is a brand name or a vender that avid hobbyists trust, I can take it from there. I'd like the first experience to lead to a second one....
 
Wild fruit types we got growing all over:
 
Chokecherry
Currant
Dogwood
Raspberry
Strawberry
Plumb
 
...and the rhubarb, one of the best self generating edibles out there.....
 
 
 
 
You dont need a kit, just choose your favorite fruit and look at some of the recipes out their, see what yeast they use and get it from local brew store. Food grade buckets are cheap at hardware store $5/5gall here at Homedepot. As long as you are clean and its in a clean space you dont need to worry much.
Plum is a nice base with Rhubarb and Strawberry for my taste, so you need to mix and match as is and give it a taste to see what you like, again look at other recipes to see quantities.
 
I have a kit at my house i got as a gift when i quit my sushi making job and started my wine making job.  Iv'e never used my kit but i had planned in making some fruit wines soon.  I use the big boy kit at my job so i haven't felt like making wine at home or mead.  Any questions feel free to message me.  You can ferment in a food grade bucket then rack to a carboy for secondary fermentation.  
 
Heh, I spent my mortal life as a paint contractor, I may not know food grade, but I know 5 gallon bucuts.

I ask about a kit because it'd be nice having the parts without hunting them down one by one. I'm 15 miles from town and 50 from anything resembling a "brew store".

I appreciate the input, be careful what you offer....
 
stettoman said:
Heh, I spent my mortal life as a paint contractor, I may not know food grade, but I know 5 gallon bucuts.

I ask about a kit because it'd be nice having the parts without hunting them down one by one. I'm 15 miles from town and 50 from anything resembling a "brew store".

I appreciate the input, be careful what you offer....
Click to expand...
My kits called the master vinter.
https://www.northernbrewer.com/products/master-vintner-wine-starter-kit


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Well, I have 3 gallons started. It was originally a gallon yesterday, but apparently I OD'd the sugar and wound up with an SG of 1.150.

Tastes really good, now to put some booze to it...

Oh, and I did pick up that master vinter kit. Rhubarb season is around the corner....Thanks for the link, Mike!
 
I'll be damned. My must is fizzing like a fresh opened can of Canada Dry! I pitched the yeast (Red Star Premier Classique/ Montrachet) yesterday between 11 am and noon, and she's already saturated the cloth top from the bubbling....
 
Why I didn't get into this 20 years ago I'll never know, but it's almost as fun as a Secret Satan!
 
Slight foam incident, has been cleaned up and normal bubbling has commenced....
 
wine foam 19.jpg

 
Interesting: This shit smells AND tastes just like bubblegum. I don't remember seeing that anywhere in the brochure.....
 
montrachet yeast will take care of that mix just fine! All my homebrew tasted like hooch though. 
with the exception of my elderberry wine and my rhubarb wine.
 
if you want homebrew that doesn't taste like hooch, the prepackaged "kits" of grape juice that are ready made for fermenting are where its at.
and you really do get what you pay for when it comes to the juice.
 
good luck
 
Joy of Homewine Making -pretty standard book for homegrown fruits
 
Malarky said:
montrachet yeast will take care of that mix just fine! All my homebrew tasted like hooch though. 
with the exception of my elderberry wine and my rhubarb wine.
 
if you want homebrew that doesn't taste like hooch, the prepackaged "kits" of grape juice that are ready made for fermenting are where its at.
and you really do get what you pay for when it comes to the juice.
 
good luck
 
Joy of Homewine Making -pretty standard book for homegrown fruits
Click to expand...
 
 
Oooooh MAN!! I just tested SG--.998, which means it's ready for a racking.
 
No hooch here, Matt! Tastes like a really dry merlot with a Bazooka Joe finish. I don't think I'm going to do any sweetening either, this is good stuff! And it hasn't even been bottled and aged!
 
Thanks for the link, there are so many damn books out there, it's hard to sort through 'em all.
 
WarrantMan said:
stettoman,
 
Made a small I-phone vid for you in ref our last conversation, but for some reason not able to send. So here it is for whatever you may glean...
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbBHNfSiF2c&feature=youtu.be
Click to expand...
 
 
Hey Reggie, thanks for that encouraging vid! I've had my gallon of 13% ABV stuff residing in a cool, dark corner of my studio, temp down to 64F, almost no headroom on the carboy whatsoever. There's a miniscule white ring around the exposed edge, but the wine has gone back to that fruity bubblegum smell, so no doubt we're on track!
 
I did order a 15 dollar acid/ph kit, wanna get my sauce adjusted before I add any sweetening, if I add any at all.
 
Yeah, carboys would be cool, and I'll pay shipping. No point in you having all the fun!!
 
Now, go freak the neighborhood tweakers with a loud offkey rendition of Trower!!
 
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