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Definitely a good way to get feedback. Suggest that you decant - then re-bottle your wine before entering. I've learned that it helps the wine open up for the judging.

Both options are interesting. I have a cold room that stays just below 60 deg and has worked for cold soak on other varietals without any ill effects. I had thought of possibly trying some of the juice as a Rose' add-in to my Grenache Rose' that I'm trying as well... Maybe I'll try that route...

Harvest season this year presented good sources for the Rhone varietals. I'm making a GSM blend with my first harvest. The vineyard with Mourvedre had beautiful fruit and a lot of it. Didn't want to pass up free grapes - so decided harvest a second batch and try my hand at making a single...

Thanks for the input. And yes - its that basic whitish yeast film (that I call mold). Headspace is always minimal - about an inch below the stopper. PH is good on the wine in the 3.5-3.6 range. The oxygen exposure could be a culprit as some of my stoppers are getting older and may not be...

If you're making a Rose' (just juice to ferment)- you might think about breaking the volume up and putting it in a mix of large carboys - this will minimize the exposure to air during ferment as most white/off-white wines are usually fermented is temperature stabilized stainless expansion tanks...

I've been making wine for about 4-5 years both in carboys and quarter barrels. I've had issues with white film mold at the top of my carboys in the past - but have been successful in handling it with careful removal (float it out) and a good clean of the carboy neck area (inside and out) and...

Possibly malolactic fermentation? or just some yeast cannibalization? Thinking out loud.

Just a thought... I think the important thing here - is to understand your limitations as a small winemaker. If you can't test your crushed grapes for existing nutrient levels - then it is better to do less when it comes time to add nutrients. In my 5 years of making wine - the only time...

Thanks balatonwine. All good thoughts. I will probably rack the wine on a more frequent schedule to maintain the fresher notes. It is definitely still in the outgassing stage and I have the equipment to check the SO2 (about monthly). How do you perform the degassing? Just a vigorous stir of...

Been making reds for about 5 years now with good success and tried a Rose' last year that came out very nice. Trying a white this year and wonder how often I should rack the wine? Definitely want to minimize exposure time to O2 and can rack under vacuum to help with that. But still wondering...