This fashion season my wine yeast extender sports an electric lime wet suit as it lounges by the woodstove and other heat sources, building up a head of foam for the next batch of wine.
Snug, warm, and oh, so fashionable (Photo: Mark Zeiger).
I needed something to keep the temperature of the bottle stable. I decided I wanted one of those neoprene koozies I’d seen around, and I knew just where to get it: a garage sale. Sure enough, at the Hospice of Haines annual rummage sale in April, I found this cool little neoprene bottle jacket. On the other side, it says “Grand Canyon” over a dancing Kokopelli. When I bought it, it also sported an unsightly stain, but that washed right out.
It keeps the yeast stable at a good fermenting temperature, just as I’d hoped. It also adds a measure of cushioning in case it gets knocked around. I find that the neoprene rinses out quickly and dries fast, which is helpful since the yeast foams out the airlock fairly often.
You may have noticed I switched bottles from my original arrangement. When I started making root beer again as a sideline to the wine making, I saw a better use for that bailed beer bottle, so I switched to an old screw top root beer bottle that would otherwise have gotten recycled instead of reused.