Dumb Question re: Wine Thief

You mean to pick up a sample the same way we all used straws to pick up samples of chocolate milk in school? I would think so, assuming the volume is big enough for a hydrometer reading.

 

My wine thief is essentially a big plastic tube with a 1 inch diameter with small openings on either ends (in three parts: http://home-brewing.northernbrewer.com/brewbeer/Wine-Thief ). It works exactly like a chocolate milk straw.

Prior to acquiring this piece of advanced technology, I used a dollar store turkey baster, which, in retrospect was just as good.

With either approach, it takes me a couple efforts before I draw and retain enough liquid for my hydrometer tube.

 

That's exactly what my method was/is. I find it takes a dip or two fewer with the thief when drawing from a carboy, but it's hardly air tight and thus drips.

No reason copper tubing shouldn't work, but I like the ease of cleaning you get with disassembling a baster or 3-piece thief.

 

I bought a stainless steel turkey baster so I can use it with both regular beers and funky/sours. Easy to sterilize (bake it). Works better than my old wine thief as well.

 

I have a nice glass one that I use. Sanitizes well, and takes around 3 pulls from the carboy to fill my hydro tube.

Bad side, it's glass, and I've had it roll off a table and shatter. I treat it like my hydro's. I keep two on hand.

 

I wonder if the preferred sanitizers we use today are okay to use on copper.

 

A good point which piqued my interest so I looked in to it.... Being an acid-based sanitizer you are correct in thinking it could dissolve or leech metallic flavor from copper, however, at the proper ratios and in the timeframe we soak items, there should be nothing to worry about.

In fact I found this thread, with this particular response that quotes the manufacturer

I suppose if you are really worried about it, just use iodophor.

As to the topic, I like the idea. OP, if you feel it's easier, go for it.

 

I use a sanitized eye dropper to grab the one or two drops necessary for my refractometer. I can usually get that in one pull.

 

I have and love the wine thief you have. I sanitize and pull a sample, then sanitize my hydrometer to take a gravity reading right in it and put 90% of that sample back into the bucket or carboy and take a little sample for myself. Easy way to take a gravity reading without wasting too much of your beer.

Edit: I use a refractometer for my OG. That is awesome! 2 drops and not temp correction needed b/c mine has ATC built in.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-5898-Stainless-Steel-Baster/dp/B0000CFTOE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1383763938&sr=8-3&keywords=turkey baster

That's how I roll.

 

Plug the numbers into my spreadsheet or BeerSmith and out pops FG! I printed a table that I generated from my spreadsheet that provides a simple lookup. x-axis=original Brix, y-axis=Final Brix. FG is in the cell where they meet. Easy-peezy!

 

Shake it or jerk it up and more will enter the thief. This sounds horrific but I don't know how to explain it... ha-ha.

 

Same with cleaning out an auto siphon. The valve catches it on the way down and you bring more up with each thrust.

 

That is a beautiful thing, but did you read the reviews on Amazon? Someone's mother got one for a wedding gift and she'll pass it down to her children. We still have the knife set we got for our wedding 24 years ago, that's about it!

 

You aren't any kind of brewer unless you pass your baster down to you son.