Adon Palss asked:


I’ve been making my own wines, and though none of them are quite ready to drink just yet, I’m wondering whether or not I should be afraid of food poisoning or anything. What is the percentage of alcohol content where bacteria can no longer survive in the wine? Most of mine are between 5 and 10% currently. I’m not using exactly professional tools and methods here but I’ve heard stories of people doing no more than leaving a bucket of grape juice out to ferment and having it come out fine.

I’ve looked around in various online resources but this topic is somewhat lacking in information. Maybe that’s because it’s not something to be afraid of at all, but I would still like to be reassured before I sample anything I’ve made. I like wine but not enough to be sent to the hospital over it! How do I know this stuff isn’t going to kill me?

constantstatic asked:


I’m sure wine drinkers here can appreciate my problem. I like to drink wine, but every now and again, I’ll find that the wine has reacted with the cork, resulting in an unpleasant tasting wine. This is, as I have found, is an unpleasant but unavoidable chance occurance when using genuine cork. Some winemakers are avoiding this by using synthetic corks, but on some of the more pricy wines, this is less common. I’m starting to get into pricier wines and was wondering, is there a way to tell before you open or purchase a bottle whether or not it has become corked? This would save me a lot of time and headache in the future!