What is the “trick” to retrieving a hydrometer from a carboy?
Well the trick is to pull a sample of the wine out of the carboy and then test it. Then drink that sample for quality control. If you dropped the hydrometer into the wine already and are trying to get it out (in one piece), I would leave it until it is time to rack the wine off. Then rack the wine gently and flood the hydrometer out with water before you wash out the carboy. top After you steep the grains and then you sparge, are you supposed to squeeze the grain bag out (if so how hard) or just run the hot water over the bag? If we are talking about specialty grains in the kits or a recipe that uses grains and extract, I don’t usually squeeze the grain bag at all. Rinsing through them will be all you need to do. Squeezing the grain bag could lead to harsh flavors by allowing more grain solids into the boil. That’s just my $.02! top Should red wine be aged in an oak barrel? If so, for how long? Oak barrels are nice and romantic, but can be a bit of a maintenance headache. If you are ma
