On 13 Feb 2005 21:38:57 -0800, "Doug" >
wrote:
> > That was a typo: I meant 0.25 gallon of grape juice. Is that too
> > small?
> No, size really shouldn't matter much. If you had an active
> fermentation going, it really should keep going, at least until most of
> the sugar is gone. That should take at least a couple of days (most
> often 7 to 10). The yeast could run out of steam from (1) lack of
> nutrients (although that usually is not a big problem), or (2)
> temperatures too cold. Your temp should be above 60F (closer to 70 is
> better). If that's not an issue, I'd try adding some yeast nutrient
> (readily available at homebrew supply shops), and/or adding more wine
> yeast. I would think brewer's yeast would work OK, but since yeast is
> so cheap, I never bother with anything other than wine yeast.
>
> If you are fermenting in a plastic bucket of some sort (as most folks
> do for making kit wines, at least), you should be aware that they
> really don't often seal very well. If you can see any bubbling going
> on when you take off the lid, don't worry, even if you don't see
> bubbles in the airlock -- it may just not be airtight (but luckily it
> doesn't need to be).
>
> If none of those possibilities seem to fit, I'd recommend taking S.G.
> readings a couple of days apart. If the specific gravity is not
> changing (dropping) then you have a "stuck ferment." Check out the
> recommendations for that on the usual websites
> (http://home.att.net/~lumeisenman or http://winemaking.jackkeller.net
> ) or in any home winemaking book.
>
> Good luck --
Thank you for the suggestions and also the good luck. :-) I have
dumped out my trial batch, and I hae gone to the Internet to see
how it is all done. I should have done that first! I have also
sent away for a book on the subject. I'll get the correct
chemicals, and try to do it right. I was going to do a raw-hide
(i.e., primitive) attempt, but that no longer appears attractive
to me.
> Doug
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