Hi everyone.
My first post but have been reading for a while. I'm primarily interested in making fruit wines. The appeal is in experimenting and making something that might surprise people when they taste it. So far I have made a Joes Ancient Orange Mead and an Orange wine. Both turned out quite well but I know I still have a lot to learn. There is something fundamental to winemaking that I struggle to get my head around. It is the idea of having an open container for the primary fermentation for up to 7 days and then transferring into a secondary fermentation container with an airlock. I can't understand what this achieves. I have done some searching on the reason behind this but found very little. I mean we put all this effort into sterilising equipment and sometimes even the fruit, only to put it in a container where it may be exposed to all sorts of wild microbes from the atmosphere. I understand that yeast thrives with some oxygen in the early stages of fermentation, which is why we should shake the vessel or stir daily, but surely leaving the vessel open does not achieve that much oxygenation. In fact some people say that a layer of CO2 protects the liquid from spoiling during the second fermentation, but surely a small draught would displace this and leave the wash open to contamination.
So my question is, why would it be beneficial to do the primary fermentation in an open vessel rather than sealing the vessel and fitting an airlock right from the start?
The only possible reason I can think of is that it makes it easier to stir daily and break up the cap during the early stages (you don't have to open the lid).
Great forum! Thanks for answering my noob question.
Cheers,
Mark
My first post but have been reading for a while. I'm primarily interested in making fruit wines. The appeal is in experimenting and making something that might surprise people when they taste it. So far I have made a Joes Ancient Orange Mead and an Orange wine. Both turned out quite well but I know I still have a lot to learn. There is something fundamental to winemaking that I struggle to get my head around. It is the idea of having an open container for the primary fermentation for up to 7 days and then transferring into a secondary fermentation container with an airlock. I can't understand what this achieves. I have done some searching on the reason behind this but found very little. I mean we put all this effort into sterilising equipment and sometimes even the fruit, only to put it in a container where it may be exposed to all sorts of wild microbes from the atmosphere. I understand that yeast thrives with some oxygen in the early stages of fermentation, which is why we should shake the vessel or stir daily, but surely leaving the vessel open does not achieve that much oxygenation. In fact some people say that a layer of CO2 protects the liquid from spoiling during the second fermentation, but surely a small draught would displace this and leave the wash open to contamination.
So my question is, why would it be beneficial to do the primary fermentation in an open vessel rather than sealing the vessel and fitting an airlock right from the start?
The only possible reason I can think of is that it makes it easier to stir daily and break up the cap during the early stages (you don't have to open the lid).
Great forum! Thanks for answering my noob question.
Cheers,
Mark