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Hmmm... Andy started this thread a fair while ago - Have you tasted yours yet?

Sky - it's just fine.

I suspect that the end product may need extra sweetening to approach Tia Maria, but so what?

Actually, I like Tia Maria so much because I fell about laughing when I first translated it into English ...

MKG wrote:Actually, I like Tia Maria so much because I fell about laughing when I first translated it into English ...

????

Sorry - it means Aunty Mary (and, for those who are students of popular brands, Tio Pepe means Uncle Peter).

Whatever - there is now a Tia Maria monster in the kitchen. I thought Sky might have been exaggerating slightly, but she wasn't. The coffee wine has gone off like a rocket, overflowing from the demijohn even though it was only three-quarters full. It's now living in a bucket temporarily, looking and sounding like something from Quatermass.

Does caffeine do strange things to yeast, I wonder?

Mines still going mad lol

Was wanting to start the alcoholic water too but I sent the hubby to the shop on his way home from work to get yeast nutrient and the staff told him there wasn't such a thing ... and I know there flipping well is so I was a little annoyed with them.
I'm going to phone a brewing supply shop up this week and get some mailed out to me.

MKG wrote: Does caffeine do strange things to yeast, I wonder?

Well, it does to some humans... Maybe that's Auntie Mary getting all worked up already?

Hmmm ... now that you mention it, if I stare deeply into the moonscape that is at present living at the top of the bucket, I can just see my Aunt Mary getting totally manic at some north-Italian excuse for a piss-up (there's that mysterious ancestry coming to the fore again). It would more likely have been Great-great Aunt Margaret, but what's in a name? Who cares? - it's all smelling REALLY good.

SHould be Andy's and Dave's 3rd book, really - 500 Wine Recipes Which Will Really Excite/Frighten You.

Mines calmed down a bit now.

Mine was left in the greenhouse over the winter to mature..haven't got the guts to taste it yet, it was so strong and bitter last time and i can't stand biter coffee!!

I'll have to clear the bottles out of the greenhouse at the weekend...migh have a taste then and report back.

Oooh, oooh, oooh. By my reckoning, it should have had about a pound of sugar per gallon left in it, so I tasted it (I know - what a surprise). It's going to be a winner, Andy - it's absolutely gorgeous at this early stage. So, I'm going to let it finish, make sure the yeast has gone and then sweeten it back up to one pound of sugar per gallon. That should not only ensure that it tastes like Tia Maria, but it'll have that "sugar crawl" feel on the tongue.

All I need to do for next time is work out how to deal with three gallons of active yeast froth.

if you add more sugar wont it start working again?

Not if the yeast has been totally stunned by metabisulphite and intense cold and allowed to sink to the bottom. A judicious bit of racking after that usually guarantees a yeast-free wine which can be sweetened. However, it's still worth leaving it in the demijohn for a while after sweetening just in case. If it hasn't restarted after a week, it's safe to bottle.

the.fee.fairy wrote:haven't got the guts to taste it yet, it was so strong and bitter last time and i can't stand biter coffee!!

If it's still too strong - I would try mixing it with a drop of cream... Only just before drinking, though; don't think it would keep to well. But I could imagine that tastes nice! Kind of coffee Bailey's.

Hi All, I have AT LAST got round to making this wine. I made it monday and by tuesday it was going berserk so put the demijohn in the bath!! by today (weds) it has calmed down but still bubbling nicely!! this is only my 2nd attempt at homemade wine so am not sure on a couple of things. Firstly, how long should it ferment for, when should I bottle it and, most importantly..... when can it be drunk
I've also made a batch of the alcoholic water, am looking forward to the end result with that too

It needs 6 months to a year before you taste it, when it should taste like tia Maria; however, we have just opened a two year old bottle of coffee, and it's remarkably like sherry - well worth making. Ferment it until it stops working, rack it off, leave six weeks then bottle.

Thank you Luath Should be just about ready Christmas/new year It's bubbling through every 3 seconds at the mo, which I find quite satisfying! The alcholic water has just started a bubbling too, I'm hoping that should be ready much quicker