Adding K-Meta for bulk aging??

[winesnob]

First, I got my WE Estate Selection Crushendo Syrah kit delivered on Friday

. I wanted to bulk age it in a carboy or 9 months. The WE instructions never mentioned bulk aging (maybe they do on their web site), but the instructions on George's site and the information he sent me says to add K-Meta at the final racking. Is this to prevent any further fermentation and to prevent and bad cultures from turning it into vinegar? My real question is, what will the difference be in the wine's final product if I bottled it w/o adding K-Meta after 3 months in the final racking than if I add the K-Meta and bulk age it for 9 months?? I was wondering if anybody did this experiment with this kind of kit?

On a side note, I attempted to buy two 6.5 gallon glass carboys from a local dealer, but did not have any (didn't too much of anything), so I just purchased two plastic carboys from George. This will give me a total of 3 carboys so I can have more than one wine going at a time.

 

[masta]

Congrats on building some inventory of carboys and you soon will be consumed with this hobby like the rest of us and fill that cellar up.

According to Tim Vandergrift of WE there is no real difference between bulk aging and bottle aging of any wine kit. This is true if the carboy is stored in the same conditions as you would with bottles like in the wine cellar: cool temp, no light, minimal vibration.


The Crushendo kits do not need extra K-meta at bottling like other kits since they are designed to be aged longer than 6 months and have higher levels of free SO2 because of more K-Meta included in the kit.


For bulk aging make sure your carboy is topped up well (right to the neck of the carboy) to reduce the exposure to oxygen and also check the airlock often to make sure it has enough water in it.


Good luck and I will discuss with George about modifying the instructions he supplies in regards to Crushendo Kits.


More Info that might help with making a Crushendo Kit:


http://www.finevinewines.com/Crushendo.htm


[url]http://www.finevinewines.com/Wiz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1 446&PN=1[/url]

 

[PolishWineP]

Winesnob,


Welcome to the world of many carboys! When the 2 we ordered from George show up on Monday we will have a total of 30 carboys. This is a variety of sizes, 3-gallon, 5-gallon, 6-gallon and 6.5-gallon. With what we have going and what we'd like to have going, we're still tight and could use more.

There is 1 big advantage of bulk aging vs bottle aging. Once wine is in the bottle the temptation to try a bottle is great. It's easier for us (read Bert) to let a wine come to age in the carboy than in the bottle. (Bert thinks a wine is aged if it has a cork in it.)

 

[grapeman]

Winesnob,


I agree with the PWP. Can't get too many, although you can come close. I only have 2-3gallon, 4 gallon jugs, and 7- 6gallon carboys and only can do about 7 more 6 gallon batches before reaching the 1000 bottle limit for the year - what will I do? I have 3 more batches to start already and haven't even reached the fresh fruit of the summer yet. I may have to freeshe the fruit till fall when I can start all oger agin. Scuze the spallin - too much bottom of the batch cleanup at bottlin a Merlot a littl wile agew. Prette goude stuff. All kidding aside. Don't be afraid to get a few too many caboys and fill em up to age if you have a good storage space for the carboys. Otherwise I've seen your cellar pictures-you've got plenty of room to store bottles.


Good luck with the Crushendo.

 

[earl]

Winesnob


Turning wine to vinegar is done through aceto-bacter. It starts a process called volatile acidity. Volatile acidity likes warm and oxygen rich environments. But you must first have the bacteria, most commonly transmitted by fruit flies, to have this condition. If you are going to bulk age your wines I would ensure you have started with clean and sanitized carboys then store them in the same environment you storeyour other bottled wines. Volatile acidity will present itself with a film on top of the wine then some "ropy" like strands suspended underneath the film.


To bulk age a kit, personally I would go through all the steps except bottling. At the bottling stage I would "bottle" into a properly sized carboy, attach an airlock or bung, and then store it just like a wine in a bottle.


Not adding Kmeta for bulk aging is completely your choice. If I were to bulk age I would add a little extra to ensure a quality product. That little added Kmeta could make up for shortcomings in my cleaning and sanitizing process. Why not try a little expirament and bulk age in 2 three-gallon carboys? Add Kmeta to one and not the other, then try them in 9 months and see which one you like best.


earl

 

[smurfe]

I add K-Meta to all of my kits. I would definitely add it to the final rack and particularly a quality Red. When I make a kit, my goal is to age it 2 years in the bottle. It is tough to do but so far, I am making a "decent" effort although some stock is dwindling slowly. I have a couple kits that are close to a year with only 2 bottles sampled. I have another that I am really trying to save for competitions next year that are probably going to be gone by then.


I normally add the extra at bottling time though but then again, I do not bulk age wines as of yet. The added K-mata (if directions are followed) will add no adverse effects at all. Even adding the extra 1/4 tsp your wine will still not hold the levels of Sulfite's in a commercial wine.


Smurfe

 

[winesnob]

Smurfe, if you can say, what kit(s) do you use for competitions? Do you use a certain kit and tweak it to make it a little better?

Earl, I like that suggestion of using 2 - 3 gallon carboys for experimenting. I think once I've made all the different kits I want to try, I'll start my experimental phase.

 

[smurfe]

Smurfe, if you can say, what kit(s) do you use for competitions? Do you use a certain kit and tweak it to make it a little better?

Earl, I like that suggestion of using 2 - 3 gallon carboys for experimenting. I think once I've made all the different kits I want to try, I'll start my experimental phase.

I haven't entered any yet. In fact I was getting ready to make a post in regards to competitions.It will be next year until I have anything ready to enter. I have a couple grape pack kits Rosso Fortissimo and an Amaronethat will be sent out next year.


I would be confident entering any Wine Expert Selection kit, Estate series or Crushendo kit. I doubt I would enter any Vintners Reserve kits although the Italian Pinot Grigio I made was as good as any commercial Pinot I have ever had.


I was a big fan of the VR Cab kit I had until the other day we drank a couple Selection Cabs that are close to a year old and are great. it is now hard to drink the VR Cab. It is OK and I would now consider it a "table wine" more than anything. Guess I am becoming a "winesnob" as well!

My palette is certainly getting more refined as I try different varietals.


Smurfe

 

[PolishWineP]

Guess I am becoming a "winesnob" as well!

My palette is certainly getting more refined as I try different varietals.


Yeah, but the name is taken so I guess you'll just have to be Smurfe!

Isn't it great the way we improve our palette as we make and drink more wines! And by the way, Smurfe, What wind does go with hot dogs and bologna? Maybe Oscar Meyer should make a "table wine" for their meats!