bubbles in my wine

[murray123]

First time making wine, I have a 54 liter demijohn that i started fermenting in early october. MY SG is under 1, i dont really ever see any air bubbles coming up though my airlock (maybe i jsut dont watch it long enough) but when looking at the wine there are tiny bubble that come up to the surface. At times there is a tiny amount of foaming at the top of the neck (about 1/4") and sometimes there is none. Is this normal?


Thanks

 

[Julie]

Welcome to winemakingtalk. You need to degass your wine, do you know how to do that?

 

[murray123]

no i do not know. when and how would i do it. I am making merlot if that matters

 

[areader89]

I've never done it yet, going to have to soon. I'm going to make something out of a plastic coat-hanger..put it into shape so it acts like a mixer...and attached it to a drill to draw all the gas out of the wine. Do it for about 30-45 minutes until i dont see anymore signs of co2

 

[Julie]

degassing your wine is as simple as just stirring it up, this will release the co2 that is in your wine. Those are the bubbles you are seeing. Like mentioned above, you can take a coat hanger or you can buy an attachment for your drill at a brew shop or you can buy a vacuum pump. Depending on how long you are planning on aging your wine but every time you rack your wine, keep the hose up towards the top of the carboy so the wine splashes into the carboy, this is another way to degassing. If aging for awhile, you have a good chance of having your wine degassed with normal rackings.

 

[cajuncampfire]

How soon should you degas?

 

[Julie]

after it has completed fermentation

 

[grapeman]

If you have not sulfited the wine yet with k-meta, you could also be seeing a natural malolactic fermentation. What you describe as small bubbles rising around the outside and a small ring of bubbles describes an active mlf pretty well. Put your ear to the neck of the carboy. If it sounds like rice krispies snap crackle, popping, it is likely mlf. The reason why it can come and go is minor temperature differences. It is very sensitive to low temps and works best above 65F. If the temp drops even a degree, it will be suspended, but not done. Don't fret if it is this- that is a good thing, especially with Merlot.

 

[murray123]

yes i did not use any sulfites. it has been doing this for quite some time. How long would it last if it is malolactic fermentation. I dont really see anything escaping from the air lock. It is in my basement, not sure hwat the temp is at this point but its probably around 65 maybe a little cooler. Thanks for all the replies so far

 

[jamesngalveston]

I have a blackberry that is going through mlf, it has been about 2 mos.
you want see anything escape through the air lock, and the final stages...
the bubbles are so tiny, you can barely see them, when they reach the top of the wine they explode....just not enough to move the water in the air lock.

 

[murray123]

1 more question. if it is gas isnt it a bad thing to open it up and stir it? I was told that exposing it to air would be bad

 

[murray123]

so do i need to wait until this ceases until i bottle? was hoping to be able to have this bottled by christmas

 

[Julie]

opening it up to degass will not have it exposed to air long enough to oxidize it and you can't bottle it with co2 present, you will have corks popping

 

[murray123]

so whats the easiest way to find out if it is MLF or Gas?

 

[grapeman]

You can try and degas. If it is mlf, the bubbles will still be produced more. Like I said, take the airlock off and put your ear to it. If it sounds like Rice Krispies, it is likely mlf. If it is that, warm it up a bit so it will finish in probably a few more weeks. If you don't hear the snap, crackle, pop, it is probably just C02 and a degassing will take care of it.

 

[murray123]

I hear the snap and cracklkng. What would I need to warm up to? Do I just heat up the room?

 

[jamesngalveston]

you could warm up to 75 to 78 degrees...that should speed it up, you can also rack a few more times and top off with another wine..that will speed it up to finish.

 

[murray123]

Basement is about 60 deg...
No heat down there but ill see what I can do

 

[jamesngalveston]

you can put a heating pad around it, are blanket are something...to warm it up some....

 

[grapeman]

Can you bring it upstairs where it will be a bit warmer? 68-72 would be warm enough for it to finish up. You could place a brewbelt on the carboy to warm it up. Some guys will build a little chamber with a bulb in it for heat but it is getting hard to find a bulb that will give off much heat.