Question for Turrock

[PHISHBONE]

I started a batch of strawberry-banana with 30lbs of Strawberries and 3 lbs of bananas (no water). Chems and yeast as per bottle directions. Femrneted out in 4 days to .996. Racked to 3 gallon carboy today. Should I add Kmeta, sorbate and sparkalloid at this point or wait a month at next rack?

Thanks for the help. This stuff smells amazing!

Shane

 

[jamesngalveston]

I am sure Turrock will answer, he is very good about that.
If he does not.....I would add the kmeta, and the next time you rack i would add the sparkalloid....after it clears i would add the sorbate.
You shouldnt sorbate a wine that isnt clear.
Not advising, just saying.

 

[Turock]

As long as you added meta before you started the ferment, you can wait until your first rack off the gross lees to add meta. But be sure to add it then, as much of what you added before the ferment has become bound.

Regarding clarification----this is the rule we've always gone by. Give it 6 months to clear on its own. If it doesn't,by then, then you can start clearing attempts. You should always wait for the wine to clear on its own--no sense in spending money forcing it to clear if it will do it on its own.

James is correct--wait on adding the sorbate until you're ready to bottle. It cannot prevent re-fermentation if lots of yeast cells are present. By the time you rack, and the wine is clear, the bulk of the yeast cells will be gone and the sorbate will work on the few yeast cells that remain---and this is only if you backsweeten. Dry wines don't need sorbate.

 

[PHISHBONE]

Thanks for the advice, Turock

Looking forward to trying this. It smells awesome.

Shane

 

[Arne]

You can try it now. It will probably be yeasty and kinda bitterly dry, but it will give you a little indication how it is going to taste later. Arne.