1st WOW

[BrewFanatic]

BF,
in your OP you said that you fermented in a *five* L ashburton PET.
Did you make the liquid up to 4 1/2 L - a gallon, or 5 L ?
Very impressive results, I'm running the figures through my mind
for my 12% version.
PS. You asked about airlocks on the tescos PET. I put a small freezer
bag over the top, held there by one of the rubber bands that the
posties drop everywhere. Haven't had any problems yet.
GOP.

That's correct i used Tesco Ashbeck 5L water bottle to brew. And have done a few times since. Works a treat and you get good quality water to boot.
What i did was i drilled a hole in the cap big enough to fit the black rubber o ring (same ones used on the Young's FV lids) and put an airlock on. Works just fine. Yes i brewed to 4.5L and topped up with water once i had degassed.

One thing, when you rack after fermentation is finished, try to rack it in a glass 1G DJ. Reason being is once i added finings, due to the ridges in the ashbeck bottle, i ended up with sediment trapped in them. Not a huge issue, but can cause sediment to be mixed into the wine when syphoning.

 

[goodolpete]

"One thing, when you rack after fermentation is finished, try to rack it in a glass 1G DJ."
I always do, because I use a winesaver vacuum pump on the DJ to
degas the wine before stabilising/fining.
GOP