Did I skip an important step?

[TXfanatic]

A lot of the posts I have read refer to K meta and Potassium Sorbate being needed at bottling time. I didn't read them until I bottled 10 gallons. Now I'm worried!!!

These are the steps we took while making our first two batches:

1)followed the recipe (maybe adding more/less fruit)
2)Stirred the primary daily until it was at 1.030 or less.
3)then the following day without stirring racked it into a carboy leaving the sediment on behind
4)airlock and left alone until visible sediment was on the bottom of the carboy. May have had to rack it every two weeks or so at first.
5) Waited until there was no activity in the air lock or bubbles around the neck of the carboy for a week or so and it was clear (I am assuming all the sugars were used up)

Now here is where I may have made a mistake:
Racked it off
Stirred in a 1/4 tsp of Potassium Sorbate for every gallon
waited another week, give or take a day or two

The following was done same day:
Splash racked: 4 or 5 fast transfers from pail to pail or until I wasn't getting a large amount of bubbles
(may not have been the smartest thing to do and I'm looking for a vacuum pump now)
back sweetened
bottled.

I did not add any Kmeta as my recipe only called for Potassium Sorbate

I do have some settling but I don't have any corks blowing out. I have pulled a few with no pressure (it's been 3 weeks since we bottled)

So....Is K meta absolutely necessary or is it just a good idea?

And how long is long enough to wait to bring the bottles from the shop into the house? It's gonna be a lot easier to clean the mess up in there then the Mrs's laundry room

 

[djrockinsteve]

You should use k-meta as it absorbs some of the oxygen molecules and slows the advancement of bacteria.

It is usually 1/2 teaspoon sorbate per gallon. If you racked all of the sediment (specifically yeast) you would be okay.

Splash Racking introduced air into the wine and may actually oxidize your wine. It would have degassed the wine on the up side.

Keep an eye on the bottles. Refermentation may not start, if at all for awhile. Any bottles warmer than others would referment sooner.

Typically I ferment dry.
Rack, degas and add 1/4 teaspoon sulfite and sparkolloid to clear.
6 weeks later rack off of sediment, add pinch sulfite and age.
6-12 months later rack, back sweeten, and add pinch sulfite and sorbate.
After a few weeks bottle.

 

[DoctorCAD]

The k meta is an anti-oxident. It might have helped protect the wine during your splash racking, but if you didn't add any, not a big deal.

Speculations are that adding k meta will allow the wine to last longer in the bottle, mostly because of its anti-oxidizing properties, but bottles of thousand year old wines have been found that are not spoiled.

I use it, figure why not???

 

[BobF]

You didn't say what fruit ... In addition to the purposes of kmeta that others have mentioned, it also suppresses MLF. This is especially important with sorbated grape wines, even if you don't add MLF culture. Spontaneous MLF in the presence of sorbate will ruin wine.

Fruit used in 10g of wine, along with the time/effort to make the wine would have me opening the bottles, carefully siphoning back into a carboy with kmeta, and re-bottling. I would hate to lose 10g.

But I tend to be CDO ...

 

[TXfanatic]

It is usually 1/2 teaspoon sorbate per gallon. If you racked all of the sediment (specifically yeast) you would be okay.

I noticed a discripency from the bottle vs recipes. I decided to go with the 1/4 tsp
1/2 tsp from here on out for me!

I use it, figure why not???

I will use it from now on. I don't know of a reason not too.

Fruit used in 10g of wine, along with the time/effort to make the wine would have me opening the bottles, carefully siphoning back into a carboy with kmeta, and re-bottling. I would hate to lose 10g.

We don't have 10 gal left. We have had several get-to-gathers since we bottled.
I guess we'll just consume it sooner than later and chalk it up to learning!

Thanks for all the replies/information

 

[Luc]

First look at Sorbate.
Sorbate makes sure that yeast can not multiply. So if you sweeten a wine and there might be some yeast left in it the sorbate makes sure that no yeast colony can start and therefore your wine can not re-ferment.

Now K-meta kills all other nasties. Like germs, bacteria and certain fungi.
Now there are some bacteria that actually feed on Sorbate.
Therefore the two should always be used together.

Now You used Sorbate and no Sulphite. Therfore some bacteria MIGHT begin to start a new
colony and spoil your wine.

Might is the keyword here. It MIGHT indeed also not happen.
But there is a chance and we winemakers like to keep all chances for spoiling as low
as possible.

Your call...

Leave it like it is and all might go welll or your wine might spoil.

Luc

 

[saramc]

I would recommend keeping that wine as cool as possible. This will lull any active yeast in those bottles into a state of hibernation preventing them from refermenting the residual sugar, plus the cold will help retard any bacterial action.
A good rule, when backsweeting: always use k-meta PLUS sorbate