Wine questions please from Newbie

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zutman

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sorry if this has been covered but here goes with my questions:
ive just started brewing i have built a brew fridge (just waiting for STC 1000) and got all the equipment well almost, when brewing wine: what 5 gal fermenter is the best. buckets, demijohn/carboy, 25 LTR wide neck. i would need 2 i know. oh and glass or plastic, at the moment i am doing a 5 bottle in a small demijohn but would like to brew larger amounts.
the kit i am using beaverdale tells me to ferment, when finished add other chemicals and stir, my head is telling my to syphon off into another demijohn to leave the dead yeast behind then add chemicals ?

ive been reading about how to degas so ive bought a degas tool you put on a drill have i done the right thing ?

I am going to stick with kits till i get my head round it

I am also brewing a st peters golden ale in a bucket (as a first brew) which i think ive got my had round apart from the fast chill not sure what thats all about im going to bottle all my beer/larger as i prefer it all chilled.

Thanks
 
First of all welcome to the forum.

sorry if this has been covered but here goes with my questions:

No need to apologise the members here will be pleased to answer your questions even if they have been asked before.

ive just started brewing i have built a brew fridge (just waiting for STC 1000)

Temperature control is not too much of a worry when wine-making but if you are moving into beer making as well it'll be a godsend.

when brewing wine: what 5 gal fermenter is the best. buckets, demijohn/carboy, 25 LTR wide neck. i would need 2 i know. oh and glass or plastic, at the moment i am doing a 5 bottle in a small demijohn but would like to brew larger amounts.

To be honest i like to use glass not because plastic is inferior but because you can see what is going on especially when clearing, 4.5 litre demijohns are easy to carry i wouldn't want to do the same with a 23 litre glass carboy so my 23 litre Fermenter is plastic.

the kit i am using beaverdale tells me to ferment, when finished add other chemicals and stir, my head is telling my to syphon off into another demijohn to leave the dead yeast behind then add chemicals ?

Follow the instructions if the wine would benefit from racking first they would have told you to rack it. :wink:

ive been reading about how to degas so ive bought a degas tool you put on a drill have i done the right thing ?

Definitely, i made my own from a coat hanger and it was one of the best things i did when starting out.

I am also brewing a st peters golden ale in a bucket (as a first brew) which i think ive got my had round apart from the fast chill not sure what thats all about im going to bottle all my beer/larger as i prefer it all chilled.

Why not ask in the beer forums :wink:
 
Gr8 thanks for the quick reply I will order 2x wide neck fermenters tomorrow and flick over to the beer lot thanks again
 
I started **** about tit, my first wines were country wines, then WOWs, and THEN started making kits.

I've done a few Beaverdale kits, they are outstanding. They are (in my opinion) the starting level when wine tastes like you've bought it, and not made it - not that there is anything wrong with that, the forum 'Easy Rose' is currently in my hand, it's lovely !

I start it off in a 25l bucket, lid just half clipped on, and leave for 5-7 days until gravity drops to 1.010

Then transfer to plastic youngs wide neck 25L carboy, under airlock, and leave a couple of weeks until bubbles are over 2 minutes apart. Gravity is normally 0.990-0.992 or I'll leave until it is, as I like em dry. I bought a 25L glass carboy, but it's way to heavy when full to actually use as mentioned above.

Then I rack back to the original bucket, and add stabiliser, and degass. Then add finings, as instructed. Ready to bottle a week later, and drink a month after that.

I've just done a Pinot Noir, and missed out step 1 (the first 5 days in bucket), and done the whole process in the carboy. Time will tell if this was a bad idea, I'd suggest you do as they tell you at first.

as chippy tea says, ask any question - you won't hear "Please use the search function" on here like you do on car forums
 
I am also brewing a st peters golden ale in a bucket (as a first brew) which i think ive got my had round apart from the fast chill not sure what thats all about im going to bottle all my beer/larger as i prefer it all chilled.

Thanks

Beer kits won't require fast chilling as this is something that is usually done when brewing all grain and refers to the cooling down of wort from boiling to yeast pitching temps.

With kits usually all that is done is add a few litres of boiling water to help mix up the malt extract then fill up to recommended level with cold water, this should then be around the yeast pitching temp.

What you might be getting confused about is crash cooling, this is something that is done after fermentation in order for yeast deposits to drop out of suspension faster and aid in clearing the beer ready for bottling/kegging.

Serving temp is none of the above :) and will only be done once your beer is conditioned and ready for drinking.
 
Thanks for
All your help, yes it was crash cooling and I will do that, I've just got
2 wide neck fermenters and will be starting another wine tomorrow can't wait to try my fridge out.
 

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