Beginner's diary - Shiraz making

[REDRUM]

Maybe while it's still fermenting down you should just stir the lees every now & then to keep the particles in action, and then when the wine has fermented dry wait for the lees to settle & then rack.

 

[Obelix]

Thanks John.

I pressed it when the Brix was 5. That's above 1000 - may wait next year to ferment to zero before pressing it.

I'll rake it either today or tomorrow.
That will be 5 days after pressing.
Also check the Brix then. Likely inoculate the MLF then - or a few days after.

 

[Obelix]

Maybe while it's still fermenting down you should just stir the lees every now & then to keep the particles in action, and then when the wine has fermented dry wait for the lees to settle & then rack.

Thanks Redrum - I seem a bit late with raking so will skip that.
Do people actually do that? Generally everyone says gross lees is not good.

 

[Obelix]

Right... raked.
The Brix was 0 actually, while there was plenty of activity still going on. (?)

There was around 1 to 1.5 cm of gross lees at the bottom.
When I got close to gross lees the activity was quite strong. I suspect the fermentation may slow down now that it was removed.
As I returned the wine to the clean VCT the MLF bacteria was inoculated.

50L of wine transferred to a beer keg and half a teaspoon of sulphite added. This wine will not be MLF-ed. A bung with an airlock used on the keg - slowly bubbling
The wine in the VCT showed no obvious activity.

 

[Obelix]

I'm confused.
What's fermenting if the Brix is zero?
I fear it may fernent all the way to winegar... :-(

 

[Johnd]

I'm confused.
What's fermenting if the Brix is zero?
I fear it may fernent all the way to winegar... :-(

Sugar. Wine is dry at SG .990, which happens to be -2.58 BRIX.

 

[Doug’s wines]

.990 with temperature correction . Small detail and impact, but it's hot down under right now.

 

[sour_grapes]

I'm confused.
What's fermenting if the Brix is zero?
I fear it may fernent all the way to winegar... :-(

Just to expound on JohnD's answer a bit: Alcohol is less dense than water. So, as the sugars are consumed and alcohol is produced, the wine gets less dense. When it reaches a SG of 1.000, there is water, alcohol, and sugar left. When all of the sugars are gone, the result will be less dense than water.

 

[Obelix]

Thanks for explaining this guys.
Never connected the dots - quite logical when you think about it

I am surprised there is any sugar left by now given a lot of activity
It was going down 5+ per day and now the last 2 seem to be going for a long time.

How long should I expect this to go on for?

 

[Johnd]

Thanks for explaining this guys.
Never connected the dots - quite logical when you think about it

I am surprised there is any sugar left by now given a lot of activity
It was going down 5+ per day and now the last 2 seem to be going for a long time.

How long should I expect this to go on for?

Every ferment / must is different, sometimes a few days, but can easily trickle on for weeks. Bottom line, it's done when it's done. When you've pressed and subsequently racked off of the gross lees a few days later, inoculated your MLB into the wine, control your headspace and let AF finish, it'll be done long before MLF. If you have some wine you aren't adding MLB to, monitor your SG, and when it doesn't change for 3 days in a row (assuming you're below .998), AF is done, you can sulfite and begin aging / clearing.

 

[Obelix]

Every ferment / must is different, sometimes a few days, but can easily trickle on for weeks. Bottom line, it's done when it's done. When you've pressed and subsequently racked off of the gross lees a few days later, inoculated your MLB into the wine, control your headspace and let AF finish, it'll be done long before MLF. If you have some wine you aren't adding MLB to, monitor your SG, and when it doesn't change for 3 days in a row (assuming you're below .998), AF is done, you can sulfite and begin aging / clearing.

I may have done it all wrong then, as I added MLF immediately after raking.

Also - the 50 L separated into a beer keg to mature without MLF - I added sulphite immediately after raking.

The keg has an air lock and I can see it bubbling. For the VCT is hard to say if fermenting as it's not a water airlock but I can imagine it's the same.

 

[Obelix]

John, when you say "control the head space" - I locked the VCT lid about 1-2 inch above the liquid level. The lid obiously has an airlock.

The keg is about 2 inches to the top - but conically shaped - I could hardly fit in another litre of liquid.
Have a silicone bung and a water airlock on top.

Would this be acceptable?

 

[Johnd]

John, when you say "control the head space" - I locked the VCT lid about 1-2 inch above the liquid level. The lid obiously has an airlock.

The keg is about 2 inches to the top - but conically shaped - I could hardly fit in another litre of liquid.
Have a silicone bung and a water airlock on top.

Would this be acceptable?

I don't have a VCT, hopefully someone that does will chime in here, but 1-2" seems to me to be a lot of headspace when the diameter of the VCT is considered, I'd be trying to have the underside of the lid in contact with the top surface of the wine, but don't know if that's practical or even possible.

As for the other vessel, try to have as little air space as possible, just a few cubic cm if possible. See the pic of a well topped vessel for reference...................

Edit: I should have added that while you still have some active AF going on, the headspace is less critical, as your wine is still producing CO2, which protects it. As AF draws to a close, that protection subsides as well, that's why the suggestion was made that you begin to control the headspace.............

 

[cmason1957]

When I have helped out at a local winery and we have racked into and out of their VCT's, we sanitize the lid and set it right on the liquid, no airgap there at all. A 1 inch airgap across a 3 or 4 foot diameter seems like a lot of air.

 

[Obelix]

Thanks guys.
I just followed an instruction from YouTube. I will lower it a bit. Easy.
It cannot sit on the surface while fermenting though.
The airlock sticks out 6-7mm so if it sits on the surface, the CO2 can't escape an actually pushes the liquid out. Maybe when it's done fetmenting.
May add another 1/2 litre to the beer keg to be a bit closer.

 

[Arne]

When it is fermenting strong the size of the airgap is not going to make any or much difference. I just have a towel over mine. When is slows down and you are getting ready to let it sit, clear and age you do not want so much air getting to it then.

 

[Obelix]

When it is fermenting strong the size of the airgap is not going to make any or much difference. I just have a towel over mine. When is slows down and you are getting ready to let it sit, clear and age you do not want so much air getting to it then.

Thanks Arne.
I'll leave it to finish then sterilise the lid and drop it to the surface, or near the surface.

 

[mainshipfred]

When I have helped out at a local winery and we have racked into and out of their VCT's, we sanitize the lid and set it right on the liquid, no airgap there at all. A 1 inch airgap across a 3 or 4 foot diameter seems like a lot of air.

I also help out a local wineries and you are correct about the lid. As long as fermentation is complete.

 

[Obelix]

The $12 ph digital meter arrived yesterday. Run the calibration but it was already correct. Happy so far.
Then done the first stir since the inoculation of MLF and checked the ph.
Reads 3.8. Tried the ph in the non-MLFed batch - also 3.8.

Does this require any action? Seems a low acidity.

The 50L non MLF-ed wine still ferementing - but finaly showing a bit of a slowdown. Used to bubble every 2 secs - now ever 5-6 - finally...

Poured out a bottle for "tasting" from the MLF batch. Maturing nicely. Very promissing.

Don't want to taste the one in the keg - it would impact the head space.

In the VCT I cound see some bubbles - hard to say if it is the yeast or the MLF (or both).

This small batch of Grenache - whuch was pressed a day after crushing - the fermentation fully finished 3 days ago.
It's quite muddy and doesn't taste nice - a lot of particles in it - settling on the lower 1/3 of the container.
Thinking of clearing it up into a Rose. I'm keen to separate it from the particles - the taste is unpleasant.
Is it too early to use egg white?

 

[REDRUM]

Where did you order the $12 pH meter from? I'm thinking I should invest in one...