I have brewed beer for many years, but am just now getting into making wine. Question is when I added yeast to the wort for beer I shook fervently and even pumped on oxygen. I am 're a ding up on winemaking and Lo I have Sen is to sprinkle the yeast on and ouch it down at least.daily. Would it be appropriate to shake, rattle, and roll the must?
Not sure what you asked there in the last sentence but the kits I’ve used said to just sprinkle the yeast on top of the must. If you have the grape skins in your kit it will tell you to push them down and stir them in once and awhile during the fermentation process. Shouldn’t need to aerate like you do with wort.
Giving the kits a good stir should suffice. The yeast does need oxygen, but how the yeast performs / thrives / multiplies / enjoys it’s stay etc. has far less impact on wine flavor than it does on beer.
You probably also noticed very different temperature ranges as well. No temperature control needed.
I would highly recommend using some sort of temp control if you venture into the realm of mead.
I am not using a kit. I am making it from homegrown muscadines. I have an old freezer converted to beer fridge I used to age my beer in. My house is about 73 to 75 degrees and I know it will heat up during fermentation.
I would highly recommend using some sort of temp control if you venture into the realm of mead.[/quote]
In the case of mead I would also add oxygenate like hell!
If from fresh pressed I still don’t see any reason to worry about it not getting enough oxygen. Just pressing etc. is going to get you where you need to be.
If you are going to worry about helping the process on it’s way, most people would turn to yeast nutrient / enzyme blends etc.
73-75 F ambient is perfect for most wine yeasts. Like I said, no temp control beyond that is really necessary. At the lower end of that (72/73 F) you may even need to add a heating belt to help things move along.
Wow, Thanks guys, the plan is forming.
