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ok Mr luvpie has got two demijohns of tea wine on the go, went in on friday so now on day 3, today i've just opened my larder to find that they are fermenting so well that they have bubbled up through the air lock and are spilling down the side

I can't get hold of him at work and if i let his HB go wrong he won't be a happy bunny, is there anything i need to do? Do i need to open the air lock to let some out or do i just need to accept that it is a bubbly mess in there and hope that he cleans up unlike he did after he made the stuff on friday night

any help would be appreciated, we messed up the last batch of strawberry tea wine by forgetting about it for months and months (it actually turned out to be a good thing as instead of wine we ended up with an exacct copy of pimms ) but i actually would quiet like these two lots to work as they are planned to be festival wine for the summer so just tell me what to do

Sx

Shouldn't really be a problem, but if it is going to be a problem, the damage is already done. I'd leave for him to clean up (and don't accept any excuses!) - it's the only way he'll learn.

This is exactly why I start everything in buckets and only rack into demijohns once the initial rush of fermentation has subsided a bit... Mind you, I don't have anybody else to clean up after me.

fab thank you, his arguement will be that i will drink it so we should share the job :)

the buckets are fine i particuarly found that the kids enjoyed them :D :D :D hence only using demijohns x

Depending on the sizes of bucket and demijohn, could you put the demijohn in the bucket. If it froths over you should have the bucket to catch the overflow.

phil55494 wrote:Depending on the sizes of bucket and demijohn, could you put the demijohn in the bucket. If it froths over you should have the bucket to catch the overflow.

That is one of the best ideas I have heard (or read!) in ages, Thankyou! pbf.

phil55494 wrote:Depending on the sizes of bucket and demijohn, could you put the demijohn in the bucket. If it froths over you should have the bucket to catch the overflow.

i will firmly suggest that to him, or perhaps i'll just whisper it in his ear all night so he thinks it is his bright idea

only works if it doesn't froth too much. This is not from experience, like Dunc I start in buckets and move to demijohns after the initial phase of fermentation.

The bucket is always the best idea until the first vigorous stage of fermentation has died down. But if you can't do that, then follow beginners' rule 1 - don't fill the demijohns to the top. When you're starting the wine off, don't fill beyond the point where the shoulder starts to turn inwards. In fact, an inch or so below that point is even better. You won't always get frothing but, if you do, that usually (there's always the odd case where even that isn't enough) provides enough room to contain the frothing.

If it still "boils over", you won't, in most cases, have a problem anyway, apart from cleaning up. Remember that the froth is actually bubbles of carbon dioxide. All of the space above the liquid in the demijohn is packed full of that gas, and 99% of stuff which falls, flies or otherwise gets into the airlock will promptly die right there, before it can get into the wine itself. So be careful in your clean-up - make sure that the airlock is thoroughly cleaned through, and wipe the inside of the neck of the demijohn.

Eventually, the frothing will die away, and then you can top up with water - but you still need at least a three-quarter inch gap below the bung so that there's no chance of infection by contact.

Mike