Question:
Hi El Bastardo! Welcome to the group – I hope you’re soon brewing as much as the rest of us. Best of luck with the first. Regards, Patrick
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi, I’m making my first batch of wine, following the instructions in a booklet titled, "Making Homemade Wine", by Robert Cluett. The last comment it says abouting making the must is, "Add to the must some Campden Tablets, which will keep it free from debilitating organisms." Elsewhere, it describes how to start the yeast culture, and then says once it gets going, to add it too the newly-made must, which will have the freshly dissolved Campden tablets in it. When I bought the Campden tablets at the local winemaking store, the clerk warned me not to put the yeast into a must until at least a day or two after adding the Campden tablets, because they kill all the living organisms in the must, including any yeast. So if Campden tablets kill all the bugs in the must, why do the instruction in the booklet tell me to add in the yeast right after dissolving the Campden tables? Any answers or other info about what Campden tablets do would be helpful. Thanks in advance, Andy
Response:
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I’m making my first batch of wine, following the instructions in a booklet titled, "Making Homemade Wine", by Robert Cluett. The last comment it says abouting making the must is, "Add to the must some Campden Tablets, which will keep it free from debilitating organisms." Elsewhere, it describes how to start the yeast culture, and then says once it gets going, to add it too the newly-made must, which will have the freshly dissolved Campden tablets in it. When I bought the Campden tablets at the local winemaking store, the clerk warned me not to put the yeast into a must until at least a day or two after adding the Campden tablets, because they kill all the living organisms in the must, including any yeast. So if Campden tablets kill all the bugs in the must, why do the instruction in the booklet tell me to add in the yeast right after dissolving the Campden tables? Any answers or other info about what Campden tablets do would be helpful.
El Bastardo: What you’re doing by adding Campden tablets is stunning any competition in your must. In other words, in order to stack the fermentation deck in favor of your yeast and against any bad microbes, you add a certain level of SO2 that your yeast can tolerate and reproduce in, but the bad guys can’t. Waiting before adding your yeast is a good idea in order to create this sort of an environment. Too much SO2 will disable your yeast in addition to the bad guys, so be careful not to overdo it. Salud, Martin J. Crane
Response:
They do not kill the yeast. But I don’t use them at all. I am allergic to it. I am scrupulously careful about cleanliness, and the yeast you use should inhibit other weird yeasts. If all else fails, at leat you have vinegar. So far, I have not had any vinegar except when I wanted it. Good luck, Dorothy CAse
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi, I’m making my first batch of wine, following the instructions in a booklet titled, "Making Homemade Wine", by Robert Cluett. The last comment it says abouting making the must is, "Add to the must some Campden Tablets, which will keep it free from debilitating organisms." Elsewhere, it describes how to start the yeast culture, and then says once it gets going, to add it too the newly-made must, which will have the freshly dissolved Campden tablets in it. When I bought the Campden tablets at the local winemaking store, the clerk warned me not to put the yeast into a must until at least a day or two after adding the Campden tablets, because they kill all the living organisms in the must, including any yeast. So if Campden tablets kill all the bugs in the must, why do the instruction in the booklet tell me to add in the yeast right after dissolving the Campden tables? Any answers or other info about what Campden tablets do would be helpful. Thanks in advance, Andy
Response:
elbastardo:pretty much dorothy is right on. in case your wondering re price: i get 25 campden tabs at the springfield smoke shop in springfield oregon for .70 cents. not a big deal. campden tablets: to sterilize fruit juice or perserve wine.contains 57% sulfur dioxide. pkged. by f h steinbart co. , portland, oregon. (don’t sweat the small stuff) dorothy said it best: she only makes vinegar when she wants it. put me in that group. Have Fun.
Response:
Andy, The timing of ingredients is very interesting and I’ll give you my beliefs and prejudices! When I first started winemaking I read that on day one you should add fruit, sugar, camden tablet, citric acid, pectic enzyme and water. Addition of both yeast and nutrient should be delayed until day two. Adding the (crushed) camden tablet like this at the start will kill off any other yeast like organisms or bacteria which might spoil the fermentation process. They react with natural acids to generate SO2 which is a sterilising agent (and a bleach used for newspaper!). Adding the wine yeast 24 hours later will be long enough for the SO2 levels to have died down – the yeast will then start with no competition and flourish. Be a little careful of camden tablets if you suffer from asthma. Nutrient apparantly inhibits the action of the pectic enzyme in extracting flavour and destroying pectin. Hence add it on day two. Don’t omit the nutrient unless you know the fruit has sufficient as you can create higher members of the alcohol family which are toxic and give nasty hangovers. The citric acid on day one helps to prevent oxidation (eg apples going brown) but not always wholly successfully. I always avoid boiling or freezing because they encourage pectin problems, but others will recommend it! I’m sure others will have differing views on all of this – there is no one answer but you will find what works for you. Just have fun! Phil Brady – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi, I’m making my first batch of wine, following the instructions in a booklet titled, "Making Homemade Wine", by Robert Cluett. The last comment it says abouting making the must is, "Add to the must some Campden Tablets, which will keep it free from debilitating organisms." Elsewhere, it describes how to start the yeast culture, and then says once it gets going, to add it too the newly-made must, which will have the freshly dissolved Campden tablets in it. When I bought the Campden tablets at the local winemaking store, the clerk warned me not to put the yeast into a must until at least a day or two after adding the Campden tablets, because they kill all the living organisms in the must, including any yeast. So if Campden tablets kill all the bugs in the must, why do the instruction in the booklet tell me to add in the yeast right after dissolving the Campden tables? Any answers or other info about what Campden tablets do would be helpful. Thanks in advance, Andy
Response:
Hi, I’m making my first batch of wine, following the instructions in a booklet titled, "Making Homemade Wine", by Robert Cluett. The last comment it says abouting making the must is, "Add to the must some Campden Tablets, which will keep it free from debilitating organisms." Elsewhere, it describes how to start the yeast culture, and then says once it gets going, to add it too the newly-made must, which will have the freshly dissolved Campden tablets in it. When I bought the Campden tablets at the local winemaking store, the clerk warned me not to put the yeast into a must until at least a day or two after adding the Campden tablets, because they kill all the living organisms in the must, including any yeast. So if Campden tablets kill all the bugs in the must, why do the instruction in the booklet tell me to add in the yeast right after dissolving the Campden tables? Any answers or other info about what Campden tablets do would be helpful. Thanks in advance, Andy
Response:
[snip] So if Campden tablets kill all the bugs in the must, why do the instruction in the booklet tell me to add in the yeast right after dissolving the Campden tables? Any answers or other info about what Campden tablets do would be helpful.
Most people wait 24 hours after adding camtabs to add their yeast. If you are only using a small amount of camtabs, you can add the yeast right away without doing to much damage. One thing you should note, though, is that exactly how camtabs are used varies from person to person. Some do not use them at all. Others only use them after they rack, as this helps to prevent oxidation and infection when your brew/wine’s fermentation has slowed. A few only use them shortly before bottling as a preservative. Finally, there are those that spread them over ALL the steps as an added bit of insurance. Basicly, use them when you feel your brew is/might be infected or when you think oxidation is/might be occuring. -= Clogar
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