Recent content by dloftus

Well, its been a while since I posted to the forum. I have been busy working in the vineyard during the summer and I did save some muscadines to make some more wine. But I need to update everybody on how I finished off my last batch of 10 gallons. I followed the advice from the forum and...

I purchased a SO2 test kit and checked the wine. It is off the scale! The first line is 100 ppm and as I added the wine, the blue color disappeared before I reached that line. I would say I have toooooo much sulfite in my wine, considering the target level is about 40 ppm! I have...

Sacalait, thanks for the input on charging the wine. I thought it would only take about a month, like for beer. It's good to know that it takes much longer or I would have given up and started drinking it too soon.

I did find an article on line that mentions the same thing, aerating the wine to get rid of the SO2. I have also ordered a test kit so I can get a better idea of where my levels are. It looks like the batch is salvageable. I'm happy about that! Wade, thanks very much for the input. Here...

Wade, If I put all the wine back in the carboy, let it set for another four months and then rebottle it, would that help? Is there any way to get the SO2 out faster?

Questions about bottling I racked the wine several weeks ago, to get it off the oak chips and lees and let it clear. I racked one 5 gal carboy last night (still have one to do) so I could bottle it. On this forum someone mentioned that Campden tables (one per gallon) should be added to...

I have read that some people have trouble getting the Campden tables to dissolve in water. What I do is use one of the small 8 oz. jars (meant for making baby food) on my blender. Put in 4 oz. of water and how ever many tablets you need to dissolve. Blend this for a few seconds, let it sit...

It has been a while since I've posted anything, but the wine has just been soaking in the oak chips so there has not been much to write about. Tonight I decided to rack off the lees and oak chips but was surprised to find small bubbles still coming up. I guess the wine continues to outgas...

cold stabilization article Racer, here is one of the articles I came across. I read something else along these line, but can't seen to find it right off tonight. I was hoping some of the zymologists (wine makers) here could give some practical experience...

I understand cold stabilization will also remove acid from the wine. When I looked it up on the web, there appears to be a controversy concerning how it affects the wine, taste and body, etc. What has been the experience of the wine makers on the list?

Oak Chips I posted a couple of photos of the roasted oak chips in the wine to my photo web site. I thought I had the same amount in each carboy when I was putting the chips in, but I missed by a bit. If there is a real difference, I can always combine the two batches when it is time to...

Sacalait, As for the oak, I only used about a cup per 5 gal. because I didn't want to overwhelm the natural wine flavor, only a hint of flavor that would add a nice touch to the overall finish of the wine. I can't wait to see how it turn out. I talked to my wife last night about doing the...

I checked the specific gravity last night and it was .993 or .992 so I figured it was time to rack the wine. I think Sacalait was right that the wine was out gassing and not really fermenting. I added the oak chips (soaked them in Campden for a few minutes) and, I have to say, they had a...

Sacalait, The last time I checked the SG was when I racked it almost two weeks ago. It was 0.994 so I don't think it has gone much lower. The fermentation has been slow but steady and one of the bubbler valves (the orange one in the photos) doesn't even bubble, the other only occasionally...

I took a couple of photos this weekend to show the bubbles and the lees. As can be seen, it is still going, and, the other carboy (which had ceased all activity) is now bubbling about the same as this photo. The two images were taken 11 days after the wine was racked. Here is the link...