"J Scott" > wrote in message
news
> I'm a newbie and about to start my first batch of wine. I would greatly
> appreciate some advice from you guys who have some experience. I'm
> starting out with a 3 gallon batch. I have a pretty good understanding of
> the primary fermentation. Once I finish my primary and move on to
> subsequent rackings, I know I have to monitor specific gravity and etc.
> using a test jar and my hydrometer. My first question is this. If my
> test jar and hydrometer are cleaned with sulfite solution, is there any
> reason why I can't return the wine sample to the carboy provided I keep
> aeration to a minimum? If I shouldn't do this then my next question is
> about topping up to compensate for the loss of wine. After several checks
> I'm going to have less volume over a period of time. If I add water to
> top up then I'm going to be changing my acidity, specific gravity and etc.
> What would you suggest in regards to topping up to eliminate the air
> space? Thanks so much for the suggestions!
>
> By the way... my first wine is going to be apple made with pure juice from
> the store. No additives or preservatives. Any veterans of this method
> have any tips or advice? Thanks!
>
> Jeff
There are two things that could make the sample you take out such that you
should not return it. If you add chemicals to the test sample such as
during a acid test, do not return it. The only other thing that would
prevent your returning it is if you drink it. That should be part of the
sampling. Taste it. Eventually, after a number of batchs, you will learn
to recognise things about the wine by tasting it as you make it.

As far as topping up, you do not need to top up if the wine is still
fermenting, i.e., in going from primary to secondary or if you rack while
fermenting in secondary. The CO2 comming off will protect it.

During bulk aging, if you are talking about adding a cup to replace a little
loss, water will not effect things much. Some people plan on this by using
a little extra fruit and a little extra sugar converted to alcohol so a
little extra dillution during racking is perfectlly OK and planned for. Jack
does this in his recipes.

Then if you have a good cellar, you could top with old wine. Some old books
say this will help the wine clear.

Finally, you could rack to smaller carboys so it still fits. I use a lot of
1 gallon and 1/2 gallon jugs. Any left beyone that does not fit that way
goes in the frig and is drunk.

I recomend against marbles. First you have to be sure the marbles are not
made with leaded glass. Second they are expensive and it takes a lot of
them. If you need to make up 2 inchs in the carboy, you need to add about 3
inchs of marbles. That is a lot of marbles. Third, it is hard to rack wine
out of them The sediment sits on the marbles and wine is between the
marbles. You will loose a lot of wine or you will have to pour the last of
the wine into another container, top it with something, and then let it
clear again.

Ray