My first kit is having some issues in the bottle....

[Reilly]

I bottled my first kit 21 days ago. A WE Chardonnay that was pitched in January '13. Now I notice there is some sediment in the bottles and some whisps when the bottle is moved.

This is not what I was expecting but now how to fix it??

Would if be ok to uncork all and pour back into a carboy to get the sediment out and try to degass? I was not planning on drinking for another 45-60 days anyway so another 21 days in a carboy won't hurt my feelings.

 

[robie]

Was the wine clean and clear when you bottled it?

Have any of the corks been trying to come out on their own?

When you open one of these bottles, do you get a big pop as if there is a lot of pressure in the bottle?

 

[Reilly]

It was clear as a bell. I transferred to my bottling bucket from the carboy and left (or so I thought) very little sediment behind. The corks have not moved and I have not opened a bottle yet to tell if there is any pressure build up.

I guess I will go open a bottle and see what happens.

 

[Reilly]

There was not any more pressure than expected when the cork was removed. However, after sampling a glass I decided to shake the bottle with my thumb on the top. There is much CO2 build up and and a nice pop when I removed my thumb.

I guess it was not fully degassed. Lesson learned.

At least it tasted pretty good. Young but certainly not terrible.

 

[BernardSmith]

I have never made wine from kits and to date have only made wines from fruits and flowers so my experience may be very different but even clear wine and wine that appears to have no obvious CO2 in it can still drop sediment over time. Carboys are not inexpensive but in my opinion the only way to be sure that you will be bottling sediment free wine is to age the wine at least 6-9 months in the carboy , longer if possible. I guess I am not as fearful of oxidation as many are (but then I am not spending huge sums on fine grapes) so I am not averse to racking every two or three months and then deliberately racking a few weeks before I want to bottle and then racking again to another clean carboy just before I bottle in order to reduce the possibility of bottling sediment. From what I know of kits (only through reading their online instructions) the idea seems to be to get people to bottle quickly so that the faster you can transform the kit from juice or must to bottled wine the more kits you are likely to buy and so the more they are likely to sell... but the plain truth is that crystal clear, non carbonated wine cannot be hurried. It takes time..

 

[jswordy]

How to fix it? When you are ready to drink your wine, set the bottle upright to chill. When you drink it, leave the last 3/4 inch in the bottle with the sediment. Ta-da! Or else decant it into a decanter.

 

[Reilly]

Any suggestions to drive off the CO2?

 

[Arne]

Like Jim says, decant it and the co2 should air off. If you get some issues with the corks pushing out or pressure when you open a bottle, then it mite be time to try and get rid of the co2. Arne.

 

[robie]

Sounds like you might have bottled it fairly soon, like when the WE instructions said to bottle.

Many of us leave the wine in the carboy, with an air lock attached for another couple months after the instructions say to bottle. When doing this, I have never seen a single instance where there wasn't more sediment fall out that would have ended up in the bottles. I would suggest you always follow this advice and don't get into a hurry to bottle.

As mentioned, you can decant the wine in a wine decanter. This will allow the CO2 to blow off in an hour or 2. One can tell when the CO2 has left, the wine will begin to taste much cleaner and better.