Mlf??

Ok so important question from the pros out there as this is my first time from grapes. I have 100 pounds of Zinfandel at .998 yesterday and wil probably press it today as it didn't do much over night. And 100 pounds of Cabernet at 1.0 10 yesterday so its not ready. So the Zinfandel, after I press it should I do an MLF or just start the clarifying and aging phase? Should I do it on both of them eventually? Is an MLF always good to do? I guess I'm just confused on when you should do one. And just to be sure, after I press it I still need to put an airlock on it rather than just a solid rubber bung correct? And then a solid bung after I rack it off the gross lees next time correct? By the way, the Zinfandel tastes pleasantly tart and fairly bold, very excited! As always thanks ahead of time for your insights and ideas.

Busabill said:

Ok so important question from the pros out there as this is my first time from grapes. I have 100 pounds of Zinfandel at .998 yesterday and wil probably press it today as it didn't do much over night. And 100 pounds of Cabernet at 1.0 10 yesterday so its not ready. So the Zinfandel, after I press it should I do an MLF or just start the clarifying and aging phase? Should I do it on both of them eventually? Is an MLF always good to do? I guess I'm just confused on when you should do one. And just to be sure, after I press it I still need to put an airlock on it rather than just a solid rubber bung correct? And then a solid bung after I rack it off the gross lees next time correct? By the way, the Zinfandel tastes pleasantly tart and fairly bold, very excited! As always thanks ahead of time for your insights and ideas.

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I'm by no means a pro, so I'll leave the MLF question to others. But the question about using an airlock at this time is one that I can address. Definitely put it under airlock rather than a solid bung - unless you want to create a solid rubber projectile. Your wine will be off-loading CO2 at a rapid clip after you press it off the skins and even more so if you do end up doing the MLF.

Almost all commercial reds go through MLF. It seems scary, at first, but is actually a very easy thing to do. No So2, or very, very little, good MLF and let it rip for the month or three it takes to finish.

I am making Zinfandel now and putting it through MLF. You can do it now. Main thing is not to add kmeta until MLF is complete. Continue to add nutrients through the process. Stir occasionally. MLF can take six weeks, but can happen more quickly. What you're looking for is the wine to shift from tart to smooth in taste.

Your Cabernet will need it as well.

Awesome so I feel a little better about it now. I pressed the zin yesterday (never again by hand) and today I will rack off the gross lees and pitch the bacteria. So two questions, how will I know when MLF is done and what nutrients do you recommend for the MLF? Thanks guys!

I've filtered into this thread just so I can read the responses that come forth. I've been reading and pondering about MLF lately myself. Thanks all for as much information about MLF.

To know when it's done you can buy test equipment or you can taste for the change from tart to smooth.

You can eaither use yeast nutrients or there are some MLF-specific ones on the internet. Scott Labs Opti-malo plus is one:
http://www.scottlab.com/product-151.aspx

Heather

Reds almost always benefit from MLF. A commercial starter culture is the better way to go unless you are in a winery setting where you've had a number of successful MLF's before and the area is "contaminated." I agree with adding a nutrient designed for malolactic bacteria - there are several. Also, to gauge completion you need to run a test. Tasting may tell you that some MLF has occurred, but won't tell you when you're done, or if you are stuck. The Accuvin Malic Acid test strips are a simple test you can do on your own.

So I noticed something strange just now. It's been 24 hours since pressing and I'm getting ready to rack off the gross lees and pitch the bacteria when I noticed the wine is degassing and bubbling quite a bit on its own right now. It's fairly warm in this room I noticed about 78 degrees or so. Should I be alarmed at this? Is it just still fermenting? Anyway I thought it was strange. Any ideas?

It's just finishing out and degassing on its own. No worries

You can do MLF together with alcoholic fermentation or just after the fermentation is finished. There are cons and pros for each method.

Doing MLF together with alcoholic fermentation you risk stuck fermentation, because of competition of different bacteria for same nutrients. Doing MLF after primary fermentation you keep your wine without protection of SO2 for quite some time, which might present risk.

I prefer to do MLF after primary fermentation, but both ways are valid.

You will need commercial strain of bacterias (keep them in freezer) and you need to some source of heat (keep the wine around 20 - 22C -> 68 - 71F). I use heaters used for aquariums which have thermostat and they are really cheap.

Hey guys. So my Cabernet was finally ready and I pressed around .996. Gave it a day racked off and pitched the MLB. In this case it is showing no signs of anything with the MLB in it. No off gassing know nothing. Does this sound okay? The MLB I had sat out of the fridge for about 5 or 6 hours the day before when I thought I would use it. Coud it have gone bad?. The last time I used the MLB it was at least bubbling a little and showing signs of activity.

How long has it been since you pitched the MLB?

I pitched the MLB on Sunday and today is Tuesday. Still no signs of anything in the airlock or anything.

MLF "fermentation" is not like alcoholic fermentation. You will not see any sign of the process.

You can check it by measuring amount of malic acid, if it is going down there is mlf process going on.

Eerie (to me) that the MLF subject should pop up again. I've done a lot of reds but never ventured into the MLF arena as I've been satisfied with results without it. However the more I read about it, it seems to be a simple step to take it to a better level, soooooo. Going to give it a go with an upcoming batch of Sangiovese. Question for now is this,,,,,can MLF be performed on wine which has been "post fermentation" treated with K-meta/sorbate/oaked/etc, and is ageing in carboys????

With k meta, maybe depends on how much. With sorbate, no. It will produce a geranium smell that you cannot get rid of.

As I suspected,, reinforced by what I have read. So I will commence MLF as soon as I rack from primary. Guessing that leaving it set for @a month before racking again won't hurt anything.

You should be fine. Just after you rack the wine be very careful with SO2. If there is still the smell of diacetyl let it hang for some time: once you add dose of SO2 you will lock the smell inside the wine.

Hello out there! So keeping you posted on my Zin and Cabernet, first time doing this from actual grapes. Its been 3 weeks since I added the MLB to the zin and two weeks since adding it to the Cabernet. I'm still reading about 150 milligrams per liter on both on my Accuvin test for malic acid. Does this sound about right? The directions say that less than 30 milligrams per liter will show that MLF is done. It has noticeably mellowed and rounded out a lot in taste since adding MLB but the test shows that MLF is far from done if I'm reading it correctly. Does this sound about right? Just let the MLF go? At what point do I just go by taste and rack off and add SO2? Or do I just keep looking at the test and wait until MLF is done by the numbers? Thanks as this has definitely been an experience. Can't wait to taste the finished fruits of my labor!