[WinslowPorker]

what bottles are you using dizzy? i have a couple of empty tonic bottles (still got some gin in the other bottle  ) and some plastic water bottles?

Also how long did you leave it for? i made mine yesterday and stirred it twice a day so far, but how do you know when to bottle up? or do you just do it on day 4? and did you strain it through a muslin cloth before bottling?

[plumseverywhere]

we bottled without straining - I'd suggest straining!! although ours needs another week before we can open, its already got lots of stuff floating in it (yuk)

I stirred twice a day for 4 days

scarlett (the 3 year old) has asked me to click on the pig  sorry about that, totally irrelevant 

[Wizard]

Now I do not want to spoil anyones fun and pleasure.Some of you seem to want to make a fruit champagne or petal like dandelion or elderflower.
not much will happen in 4 days but if you bottle your fluid in this sort of time it is still fermenting and is likely to explode the bottle all right so I'm using a plastic pop bottle Split half made wine all over the airing cupboard  pantry shelf etc;etc;So lets try doing it reasonably safely shall us.If you are making any pretend champagne which can be very nice pleasant on the palate juice.and use sterilized champagne bottles only The local restruant will let you have some I am sure I've never had any bother scrounging a dozen or 2.I will over the next day or two do a recipe or two in the recipe section as I am always off track I am told I will tell you how to make a nice wine from petals.Just gimme time and do as you like anyway I can only tell you my past experiences all these at some time or other

[dizzy1pig]

i got lots of plastic bottles lined up ready to go..
mmm if i half fill them will they still blow up?
I think my nieces would find thet rather amusing
So before I do it
plastic yes or no            no really got access to champagne bottles if i get them how would i cork them
probably real daft question..

Need my bucket for elder flower cordial now....

[egglady]

i've just finihsed bottling mine and used empty 2l coke/irn bru bottles.  i reckon if i open the lid every day to let out the extra gas, then we should be fine (hopefully anyway).  it's a gorgeous pink colour and really looking forward to tasting it properly in acouple of weeks.

oh and, no, i didnt sterilise the bottles dizzypig, cos i reckon we'll have them finished long before they go off!

[Wizard]

Its a special cork for the job If you have a look at one its tapered backwards and a knob on the top When its soaked it is quite soft and will push into a champagne bottle quite easily Then you wire it to stop it blowing out.Easy enough to get the bottles from the local restaurants but the corks seem to be only available at Home Brew Shops as is the wires.Its all on the net look in Shop 4  home brew's site They do corks and plastic closures also cages for use with champagne bottles

[plumseverywhere]

Its yummy!! really nice 
just on my second bottle to see if its alcoholic or not 

[Greenerlife]

Just had my first bottle.  Well - when  I say my first bottle I mean the inch that was left in the bottle when I had opened it and it went off with a bang spewing most of its contents across my lawn!  The inch left was yummy though!

[Womble]

This sounds fantastic - going to have a go tomorrow if I get the chance! 

One question - I have a couple of demijohns here, with bubbler caps. I'm assuming I can put the initial mixture into there, to sit for its four days. However, after the straining, could I not just put the resulting liquor back into the same demijohn, and with the bubbler cap still on?  That way it could settle in there until the bubbling stops (i.e. fermentation over), and could be safely bottled from there................ or am I missing something, for example does it need to ferment under a bit of pressure inside the bottle to turn out like champagne for example? 

[Wizard]

Hey up Womble I don't see the point Top and tail the Rhubarb and chop it int 3/4" bits.Put all the bits into a clean plastic pail and cover with boiling water.Cover with a damp tea towel and leave to cool to blood heat.Mix a bag of sugar with 1/2 a gallon of boiling water and stir until it dissolves when it cools to blood heat put it into the pail stir well.Put 2 heaped teaspoons of yeast into a mug and add some of the liquid from the pail .When the yeast starts to work (Turns the sugar water all frothy empty the mug into the pail and recover the pail with the damp cloth.Stir daily for a week.strain the contents of the pail through a double piece of muslin into your demijohns sharing it equally Top the demijohns up to the neck with boiled cooled water and fit an air lock.When the wine has all but ceased bubbling and all the debris settled on the bottom syphon off the wine into sterile champagne bottles try not to disturb the lees in the bottom of the demijohns cork the bottles. If it blows the corks out recork it with another clean cork.(You bottled it to soon).Leave for a month then try it see if it is nice.It should be clear as crystal with no bits floating in it

[pottsie]

Hi all,

This is probably a daft question but just made a brew and was wondering if my pot should be covered for the first four days. Was also wondering how i had went for people using 2ltr pop bottles? any explosions or did it work fine?

Was also wondering if anybody new a good elderflower as it's just coming in to bloom here.

Thanks Rob.

[chriso]

Well, I decided to give it a go after such good reviews. I've got a tasty drink but no fiz whatsoever  I don't know what I done wrong apart from sterilising 

[pottsie]

Just on day 4 and it's bubbling like mad, didn't manage to get any champagne bottless so gonna have to use pop bottles, will take the advice of opening it each day to let a bit of fizz out.

Rob. 

[Womble]

Well, I decided to give it a go after such good reviews. I've got a tasty drink but no fiz whatsoever  I don't know what I done wrong apart from sterilising 

+1    :-(

I'm on day 4 now too, and very minimal fizzing. Perhaps there wasn't any natural yeast present - do you think I should add some?

[Greenerlife]

Womble - I'd be VERY wary of adding anything to this!  When I made mine, there was absolutely no sign whatsoever of bubbling or fermentation at all!  Decanted it into bottles at day 5 thinking nothing ventured nothing gained, and now it is unbelievably fizzy!  In fact, if I do it again - I will probably leave it longer before bottling and use my beer-making hydrometer to see the alcohol levels. 

Enjoy!