So I've been making wine for a while, but this year did something I know I shouldn't have done. After I pressed the grapes, I put the juice in 5 gallon pales with lids on them. I didn't have an empty carboy b/c I hadn't bottled the previous year's wine yet, so I left them in there for a week. Earlier in the week I put everything into the carboy, but it hasn't started pushing up the air-lock yet. Did I kill my wine already?
Did I spoil my wine already?
- Thread starter amadago
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How do you know that the fermentation is complete? Can you provide a finishing SG?
I do not think your wine is ruined. I would, though, taste it and give it a nice heavy dose of k-meta (just to be sure).
I have to test the SG tonight and see. My biggest concern is the enemy - air - knowing the buckets weren't full and might not have had a great seal. However, my other thought was - still early fermenting, not a long long period of time that went by, so hopefully it's ok.
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A week is not a whole lot of time and you may have been still fermenting just a bit. The little bit of CO2 that might have been produced might have slowed any O2 exposure.
Do you know what type of wine it is? A red? A cab?
If a tannic red, then the tannins will also help protect the wine.
All is not lost.
Do you know what type of wine it is? A red? A cab?
If a tannic red, then the tannins will also help protect the wine.
All is not lost.
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Well, not to split hairs....
The CO2 did not "push out" the o2. Gasses do not work that way. What happened is that the O2 concentration was dropped to a lower level.
At any rate, you should be cool.
The CO2 did not "push out" the o2. Gasses do not work that way. What happened is that the O2 concentration was dropped to a lower level.
At any rate, you should be cool.
