Spontaneous MLF

[Matty_Kay]

Hey all- I have a CA Sangiovese from the fall (juice bucket) that I checked on last night and there are a bunch of tiny bubbles that continually rise to the top of the carboy (6 gallons). It has been racked and sulphited after fermentation, nothing out of the ordinary. I did not innoculate this wine with mlb. Could these bubbles be a mlf or just degassing? The only thing that made me question is that all of the other wines in carboys do not have these bubbles. (same temp, environment etc).

Should I test for mlf?

Any thoughts or steps to take, if anything, is greatly appreciated.

 

[GreginND]

Yes it is certainly possible. You should check for mlf.

 

[Matty_Kay]

Thanks Greg, I'll run a chromatography test and post the results.

If it is in fact a mlf, would you add any nutrient?

 

[GreginND]

I think if you have already added sulfite it will put the bacteria at a disadvantage. Some ml nutrients wouldn't hurt. I usually haven't needed it if I still have lees for the bacteria to feed on.

If you find it is not lactic acid being formed then it could be some other spoilage bacteria or just dissolved co2. In that case I would check so2 and dose it to a protective level.

 

[Arne]

My wines are in my basement and it gets pretty cold during the winter. As things warm up a bit, the basement starts warming up a little. A lot of the carboys that have been still all winter start having a bit of activity. It is usually just the co2 leaving that stayed in suspension because of the cooler temps. Arne.

 

[Matty_Kay]

Thanks all, I do think it is co2 only because the basement was cold for a few days (closed vent) and I opened it, shortly thereafter the bubbles. They didn't look like the real tiny mlf bubbles but larger like the co2 produced. So, I took a taste and was tingly so my guess is co2. The taste was good but needed something else so I added 2 Oz of medium toast French oak cubes.