WOAHHHH!!!!! Those SAMPLES that you take....

[Ange]

NOWEHERE, in the book I have (or in the JJ Berry one I have electronically) can I find what it says about returning/NOT returning that sample to the demi-john??? IF you need to discard, do you then replace that missing with plain water please??

A VERY confused Ange from Lincolnshire...

x

 

[31bb3]

I usually tip it away or drink it it's only a minimal amount so not really worth topping up

 

[Mark1964]

as long as you take a sample with sterile stuff you can return it. I dont bother sterilising and return it anyway never done any harm

 

[Ange]

Thanks Mark1964 and 31bb3, MUCH appreciated, as I'm in the middle of starting a fruit-teabag batch!!

31bb3, either I'm missing something, or it isn't a minimum amount..... it's 300ml 's worth on my test jar, that's filling to about 80% of the size ???

Ange
xx

 

[TRXnMe]

it seems like a lot to me too, especially when it's from a demi john :)

I only ever take samples when the bubbles have stopped, I use sterile kit and return the first sample, if the second sample (a day later) is the same reading I'll drink it, for quality control purposes you see

 

[Ange]

Hi TRXnMe, thank you for response. so - how much do you put into your test jar? The recipe suggests taking the measurement before it starts ferment, then again at the end. Both my books tell me 80% of that blessed test jar!!

Ange
x
PS: I luuuuurve your *quality Control* :clap:

it seems like a lot to me too, especially when it's from a demi john :)

I only ever take samples when the bubbles have stopped, I use sterile kit and return the first sample, if the second sample (a day later) is the same reading I'll drink it, for quality control purposes you see

 

[TonyT40]

Hi Ange

I got a hydrometer that comes in a plastic tube that doubles as the test jar. It takes 50ml. I got the hydrometer from Home Brew Shop Online (ebay). It was about 4 quid. Check this out:-

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hydromete...390430092145?pt=Home_Brew&hash=item5ae7726b71

Tony

 

[TRXnMe]

I don't always take a sample at the beginning, I'm not that fussed about knowing the absolute strength of the brew. If I do then it's a sterile sample jar, mine is about 300 ml, and put the sample back in the jar.

Then, when the bubbles stop, as per my original post :)

 

[Ange]

Thanks TonyT40, I've got a Hydrometer - same make as yours too... only difference with the plastic tube is, it doesn't have a flat surface on the bottom, although I suppose it could be held steady to test....

Ange
x

Hi Ange

I got a hydrometer that comes in a plastic tube that doubles as the test jar. It takes 50ml. I got the hydrometer from Home Brew Shop Online (ebay). It was about 4 quid. Check this out:-

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hydromete...390430092145?pt=Home_Brew&hash=item5ae7726b71

Tony

 

[31bb3]

I only do 23l brews so my test sample is only a small amount hardly noticeable but I understand in a Demi it is more noticeable

 

[The Goatreich]

I don't bother taking readings for my fruit juice wines as it gets complicated working it all out when there's racking off and topping up involved. However when I do 5 gallon beer batches I always drink the sample as an offering to the beer gods.

 

[screamlead]

Get your self a refractometer if you can - ebay about 30 quid some cheaper and some have dual scale ie brix and hydro scale dead easy to use and only 2 drops needed. Best thing i invested in you can pull hot wort directly out of the mash tun and in seconds its cool enough for a reading. All you need for demis is something sterile to dip in the wine pull out and dribble 2 drops on it - job done :thumb:

 

[TonyT40]

Hi Ange

Mine came with a little black cap on both ends so it will stand up. you could always use blutack! If you look in the main picture further down the listing it shows it being used.

 

[fbsf]

My sample tube only takes 100ml, so I tend to "check mine for quality control purposes" :grin: and backfill with water.

 

[Moley]

If your hydrometer and trial jar have been properly cleaned and disinfected then there's no reason why the sample shouldn't be returned to the DJ.

However, when brewing, it is often considered an affront to the beer gods to return a sample to the bucket and almost guaranteed to introduce infections, so you should always take sample, test sample and drink sample. As Tony (Aleman) has often stated, with practice and experience you can omit the middle step.

My trial jar only needs a 100ml sample and has a wide, stable base. It's one of these from IKEA.

 

[screamlead]

My trial jar only needs a 100ml sample and has a wide, stable base. It's one of these from IKEA.[/quote]

Ha ha me too - i even got it here in Ikea Turkey :thumb:

 

[Moley]

Get yourself a refractometer if you can - ebay about 30 quid some cheaper and some have dual scale ie brix and hydro scale dead easy to use and only 2 drops needed. Best thing i invested in you can pull hot wort directly out of the mash tun and in seconds its cool enough for a reading. All you need for demis is something sterile to dip in the wine pull out and dribble 2 drops on it - job done :thumb:

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought you could only use refractometers for measuring OG, because once you've got alcohol in the brew that stuffs up the readings?

Note that even if you measure an OG for wines, if you later top up the jar with water that reading needs adjusting. This means that you have to calibrate every fermenter.

Anyway, never mind thirty quid, let's try 30 pence.

You already have a testing device which only needs a sample of a teaspoonful - your tongue.

Get a pack of 'value' drinking straws from any supermarket, usually around 30p for 100.

Take a straw, dip one end it into the wine, suck the other end. Withdraw straw from DJ while you are still sucking to ensure that none of your mouth contents fall back down the straw into the wine. How much (if any) sugar can you taste? Is it ready for racking or do you replace the airlock and bung and give it another week? Throw the used straw away. Simples.

 

[screamlead]

I've used mine at the start and during with both wines and beers and works for both and seems accurate enough for me as i have also checked it against an hydrometer as well. I have a pic somewhere of a dual scale one which i use to compare the readings brix one side and hydro readings on the other. I also use it with my grapes on the vine too to check the sugar content as to how they are ripening - obviously dont test every one but it gives a rough guide to how they are progressing etc
I also use it when sparging too - especially when i forget how many ltr of water i have chucked in the mash tun to get a quick reading on the wort coming out - as its hot a quick spoonfull cools quick enough for a reading no hanging round for samples to cool then check the sg before and after boiling to make sure its on target - some of my brews have not been. But then boosted as needed with sugar and readings taken again and or more water added to hit the target SG - works for me. :

 

[Ange]

Morning Chaps!

I wanna thank you ALL for your inputs to my post. D'ya know what?? I think I've got myself far too bogged down in the whole thing - I threw caution to the wind, started a Teabag wine yesterday, and sod-it-all... if it don't work, then so be it. I've got VERY *sterilising* conscious, and I've never washed me hands so much in my LIFE - and that's a long time 'cos I'm gettin' on a bit... Still panicky that the end result will be ruined by some type of bacteria though. I'm gonna experiment with the amount of sample wine I put in this jar, so's not to use the 300ml I have been using - crikey, if I test it 3 days runnin' at end of ferment, @ 300ml at a time and discard/drink it, I've effectively used up 1 of the 4.5l in that demi!! Not clever, eh....

I'll carry on reading the comments on the forum and asking/adding when I need to. You've ALL been a great help!! :clap:

Ange
xxx

 

[Moley]

if I test it 3 days runnin' at end of ferment, @ 300ml at a time and discard/drink it, I've effectively used up 1 of the 4.5l in that demi!! Not clever, eh....

Not clever, and not necessary.

This business of multiple hydrometer readings on consecutive days is for novice, kit-mixer brewers, it doesn't apply to winemakers.

We don't work in days, you need to lighten up and get your head on to a different time scale.

You're probably being a little too obsessive about cleanliness, but that can't be a bad thing. I tend to be more stringent when I've spent time picking or preparing ingredients, but a bit more relaxed when I'm just opening a couple of cartons and a bag of sugar.

If you think a wine's ready for racking, do a quick taste test. I take one hydrometer reading for the records, but that's usually after racking.