IF you are racking to glass for the first time and stirring to be sure you are including all sediment and adding the yeast nutrient and oak, why rack at all? Why not just stir, add the nutrient and and oak and leave it in the fermenter with an airlock?
Racking to glass with all Sediment
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I am always confused!!!
I am talking about the first fermentation stage. Once you have reached 1.04-1.05 SG a lot of kit instructions will tell you to stirr up all sediment, add yeast nutrients and then rack to glass. If kit contains oak, the instructions seem to usually say, add oak chips to carboy, then rack the must with all seditment to glass and oak. My question was, why not leave must in fermenter, stir in nutrients and oak and then rack at 0.0994 and clear. Why the intermittent carboy stage?
JWMINNESOTA
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You are coming to the end of the fermentation, the biggest benefit of racking to glass will be limiting the exposure to oxygen.
There are two stages of fermentation - aerobic (with oxygen) and anaerobic (no oxygen). The Primary is with oxygen, and in the Secondary the goal is without oxygen. If you transfer at 1.05 and DON'T transfer at least some good amount of sediment, you may end up with a stuck fermentation. The sediment contains some of the yeast, some is in suspension yet, but you still want a good yeast population to finish the job!
During the anaerobic fermentation the yeast change their tune, so to speak and produce more of the wine-y stuff you want in the wine, rather than just more alcohol and bubbles. (that's my best technical explanation today, it's been a rough couple weeks at work doing deep dives into finding and then explaining some knotty engineering technical problems...)
During the anaerobic fermentation the yeast change their tune, so to speak and produce more of the wine-y stuff you want in the wine, rather than just more alcohol and bubbles. (that's my best technical explanation today, it's been a rough couple weeks at work doing deep dives into finding and then explaining some knotty engineering technical problems...)
For that first racking I am very aggressive because I don't want tp leave any wine behind. I also don't rack as early as Mosti wants you too because the fermentation is still to active and I would rather keep the wine in the carboy then watch it bubble out. So I just mix the extra yeast nutrient in the primary with the rest of the wine.
VC
VC
Two words..... "Wine Volcano"
Mosti directions followed as directed will lead to one guaranteed if there is Oak in the kit.
The Oak and the yeast nutrient combine to form a vigorous Rxn creating a wine volcano.
I add the nutrient and oak but leave it in primary a few more days to let it settle down a bit more.
I snap the lid and add the airlock as soon as I add the nutrient and oak.
Transfer to glass around 1.010. By that time it seems to be safe.
Mosti directions followed as directed will lead to one guaranteed if there is Oak in the kit.
The Oak and the yeast nutrient combine to form a vigorous Rxn creating a wine volcano.
I add the nutrient and oak but leave it in primary a few more days to let it settle down a bit more.
I snap the lid and add the airlock as soon as I add the nutrient and oak.
Transfer to glass around 1.010. By that time it seems to be safe.
