Methanol - aaaaaahah

Nov 08, 2005 6 Replies
M

I can't seem to avoid getting so far what I think is an abnormal amount of methanol. I am no expert and was trying to do the following


  • Take some cheap concentrate fruit punch like peach or grape punch
  • Add some properly pitched lalvin 1118
  • Add 5-7 teaspoons of white sugar /1L batches
  • Seal it up as to force the yeast to break things down
  • Temp steady at around 80F

note also I have been trying to culture more yeast without buying any more using a bit of sugar, water, and boiled potato juice add 175ml to



1L typically of this culture material warmed up from fridge

I get these occasional 'panicy rushy' feelings feel like irritated eyes, puffy, maybe a slight halo around lights.



Any notes on reduction of methanol



thinking


*Maybe ventilation of alcohol in end of fermentation may make some of the methanol evaporate(moreso as it has a lower boiling point) as the missing ethanol backfills in lower proportion. There may be a best trade-off to avoid production of fusils also...
*Grape musts better than pectin musts. hear white grapes must be de-skinned

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D

Ferment cooler around 65 F. I doubt it is methanol, but more likely fusel alcohols. Most methanol in wine if formed from breakdown of pectin.

And let your wine age for a year or two before you drink it.

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M

If wine makes you feel odd, why is it?

anyway I was fermenting peaches by accident really cause I got the wrong stuff last time. Trying grapes now.

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D

What do you mean "feel odd" You could be allergic to wine. And you can ferment peaches. they make a decent wine.

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M

No one felt odd drinking like 'still fermenting' stuff. Can't find info. The stuff just cleared like recently, and previously I just accepted the post-sediment. Maybe eating the yeast? No weird feelings at all with your wines? I really think it was a bit of methanol.

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J

No odd feelings ever with my wines...

The concentration of fusel oil and other things that can bother you in wines are very low. They can be a problem when distilled though, that's why old style distillers threw out the first part of the distillate and the last part, different things come out at different temperatures.

They make brandies out of every kind of fruit imaginable so I really doubt you are poisoning yourself with young wines but odd symptoms should not be ignored. You did sound like you were descibing allergic reaction symptoms; I am a first responder. You may be allergic to some fruits in that juice so you need to be very careful.

Culturing yeast is tricky, but i doubt that is related.

Joe

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