My first batch- Couple of questions...

[Troezen]

Hello all, I'm making my first kit (Selection International Chilean Malbec/Shiraz with grape skins)

I've followed the instructions implicitly, and I've been extremely careful about cleaning (I used oxyclean) then rinsing extremely well and then sanitizing (I used a 3tbps k-meta per gallon of purified water solution)

However, I'm curious about a couple of things. First, the room that my wine is being made in has an ambient temperature of about 74 degrees. Is this too high? The wine must itself is sitting at about 75-76 degrees at all times according to my stick on thermometer.

Also, there's a faint sulfur smell in the room, which I associate with the normal smell of fermentation but my girlfriend thinks really stinks. The wine must doesn't smell like anything but grape juice and alcohol. I should also say that just before she came home I opened my 5 gallon bucket with the gallon of K-meta and water solution to sanitize my equipment before I punched down the grape skins which may have added to the smell in the room.

I definitely notice it, it's faint, but it's there.

Here's the yeast I'm using btw (came with the kit):

http://www.lalvinyeast.com/RC212.asp

My SG started at 1.096 adjusted for temperature and after 2 full days is 1.052 so I don't think there are any issues here. As I said I've been extremely diligent about sanitizing, my hands, my equipment, everything gets doused in the k-meta solution then drip dried for a moment before using it.

Can anyone comment on this? Am I being too sensitive to the smells? The wine must is looking good, and when I smell closely it smells really nice to me. It's the room that has a faint smell to it. It's bubbling away, has a nice fizzy sound to it which I assume is just the CO2 being produced by the yeast doing their thing.

Anyway, I'd appreciate some comments to help me a) get some peace of mind or b) avert a problem early on.


Thanks in advance

 

[robie]

74F is fine. At 1.052, the wine internally should be a few degrees hotter, due to fermentation.

The smell is likely just fermentation. Some of us like that smell, some of us don't.

Make sure the SG continues to drop. each day. If it doesn't, let us know. There is a condition - H2S, which makes a wine smell like rotten eggs. A good fermentation already smells a little like that, but you will know if you get H2S; it won't be very suttle.

 

[cpfan]

I knew a couple once who said that the only time the smell of fermentation bothered the wife was when she was pregnant.

Hopefully it's just the leftover smell of the sanitizer.

Steve

 

[ibglowin]

Give the wine a little stir along with the punch downs to help dissipate the H2S that is being produced. Also make sure to add any yeast nutrient supplied with the kit at the correct time if so included. Sounds like things are going just fine.

 

[GrandpasFootsteps]

I have grown to love that smell when I walk into my wine making area. I wish the same joy for you and your girlfriend.

In the future you will probably have some that smell stronger and some that smell weaker.

The temperature is fine. Temperature is definitely one of the more forgiving aspects of winemaking. It may affect the duration of your fermentation, but as long as it is reasonable it won't mess anything up.

Kudos for keeping you and your gear sanitized.

 

[Troezen]

I have grown to love that smell when I walk into my wine making area. I wish the same joy for you and your girlfriend.

In the future you will probably have some that smell stronger and some that smell weaker.

The temperature is fine. Temperature is definitely one of the more forgiving aspects of winemaking. It may affect the duration of your fermentation, but as long as it is reasonable it won't mess anything up.

Kudos for keeping you and your gear sanitized.

Thanks for the input. I actually really like the smell, my girlfriend not so much! And yeah, I'm pretty crazy about sanitation even in my every day life so it's a natural extension for wine making!

Give the wine a little stir along with the punch downs to help dissipate the H2S that is being produced. Also make sure to add any yeast nutrient supplied with the kit at the correct time if so included. Sounds like things are going just fine.

Thanks that's something I haven't done yet, I'll give it a bit of a stir. No yeast nutrient with this kit.

I knew a couple once who said that the only time the smell of fermentation bothered the wife was when she was pregnant.

Hopefully it's just the leftover smell of the sanitizer.

Steve

Oh my, don't even start I mean we have been together for 8 years but this is the last thing I'd wish for right now It'd get in the way of my winemaking!

74F is fine. At 1.052, the wine internally should be a few degrees hotter, due to fermentation.

The smell is likely just fermentation. Some of us like that smell, some of us don't.

Make sure the SG continues to drop. each day. If it doesn't, let us know. There is a condition - H2S, which makes a wine smell like rotten eggs. A good fermentation already smells a little like that, but you will know if you get H2S; it won't be very suttle.

Thanks a lot. This is pretty much what I was hoping/thinking. I enjoy the smell myself, and when I put my face close to the bucket it smells nothing like that at all.

 

[Flem]

Everything sounds perfect to me. Keep up the good work!! Good Luck!!