[Dandelion]

Hi,
I tried to make wine for the first time last year. My equipment is quite basic and I don't intend to get too technical about it all. I followed my simple recipe by the letter (Elderflower) and everything went as described and the wine (drunk nearly a year later) was lovely! Thus encouraged I've made a Dandelion wine this year. Secondary fermentation has gone beautifully. The only problem is that it never seems to be ending. It has slowed down a lot: from a constant string of bubbles in the airlock to a bubble you have to hang around and wait impatiently for. But it hasn't stopped. After 6 weeks (double the amount the recipe stated fermentation should be active) I have despaired and racked the wine off into a clean demi-john, adding a Campden tablet and topping up with a mixture of cooled boiled water and white wine. I've refitted the airlock, rather than a simple rubber bung, just in case. In the first few minutes the bubble went backwards (the wrong way round) indicating that air was being sucked into the airlock! Then the water in the airlock levelled out and now I'm back to where I was with the very occasional bubble. Do I just persevere?

[St Allie]

Hello and welcome to the forum,

I've had the same problem myself. Your problem might not be the same but check anyway.. at least we'll have isolated whether it's just gassy.

The solution I used was to degas it, mine was an apple wine that just seemed to go on forever. I gave it a stir and it foamed a bit so I put a solid bung in and gave it a slight shake to start the gas moving, carefully releasing it via the bung without overflow..I basically shook it every day for a week or so til no more gas was coming out, cleared and bottled it.. it was fine. ( this was a 1 gallon glass carboy.. so easy to shake)

Allie

[Dandelion]

Okay Allie,
Thanks - I'll give that a try!

[Wade E]

The sucking back of the airlock solution is usually due to barometric pressures as if a storm was a brewing in your area. Do you have a hydrometer cause this very inexpensive tool will tell you if its done and just gas or if its still fermenting, without it your just playing a guessing game and are goint to end up with bottle bombs this way which means that corks will pop or bottles will bust open with refermenting wine eventually and bekieve me 1 bottle exploded is a very big mess to clean up. Please do your self the favor and get this tool forr abot $5.00!!!!!!!

[arcticsid]

I'm curious how you stayed drunk for nearly a year. Please post that recipe ASAP!
I'm being sarcastic as usual and of course.
Troy

[Dandelion]

I wish...!
Thanks for spotting that unintentional little joke - made me laugh too.

[Dandelion]

Oh and by the way - my wine has finally ceased all activity (level water in the airlock for 3 days now...). I'm thinking the little daily shake might have helped. About the gas going the wrong way round - yes we did have a stormy night recently and it might have been that day I noticed the airlock doing the reverse of what it is expected to do. I'm leaving the wine in the demi-john for now with the airlock on, but if all continues to stay still I shall bottle it properly later. I do take the point that exploding bottles are no fun. I have had that happen once with a glass bottle of something (can't remember what but it wasn't wine) and it sounded like a bomb had gone off. Very messy too, you are right.