Backsweetening and bottling timing

[FlamingoEmporium]

OK. What’s the consensus on how long before bottling to backsweeten. i guess right after final racking when any fine lees are racked off so you can stir in sorbate and simple syrup without needing anything to settle ? Should you then bottle right away ? Wait a day ?

 

[VinesnBines]

I wait at least a week or longer - month even. Re-fermentation is the danger. How long have you aged since the end of primary fermentation?

 

[FlamingoEmporium]

Coming up on three months.

Actually a little longer. It was in secondary for almost 2 weeks and I racked off a lot of lees. Now it coming up on three months since that racking.

 

[winemaker81]

I live dangerously. I rack off any final fine lees, add sorbate + K-meta, backsweeten, and bottle. I buy sorbate in small quantities and bin it after a year. So far ... I've had no problems.

@VinesnBines' POV is equally valid. Go by your own risk tolerance and if you are unsure, wait a week or so.

 

[BigDaveK]

I wait at least 3 days for 2 reasons. There's the re-fermentation boogeyman, of course. Twice, however, after a final tasting just before bottling, I added more syrup. I'm seriously wondering about my taste buds. Maybe I need to back sweeten and take a final taste at generally the same time of day?

 

[winemaker81]

Maybe I need to back sweeten and take a final taste at generally the same time of day?

Possibly. It's worth testing.

Couple of points regarding my technique: first, my version of sweet is a lot dryer than most folks. Second, I avoid second guessing myself, and bottling quickly removes that from the situation.

 

[BigDaveK]

Possibly. It's worth testing.

This really got me thinking...
I love spicy food. I love sweet food. I smoke a pipe. Jeeze, I put all kinds of things in my mouth! I wonder how long my taste buds are affected.
At the very least maybe I should cleanse my palate first.

 

[oppyland]

I just bottled some raspberry rhubarb. It had been bulk aging for several months. Racked the carboy into a fermentation bucket, added simple syrup and stirred in stages until I got the flavor profile I wanted, and immediately bottled. I had previously added sorbate and some glycerin. Forgot to add k-meta, so I'm hoping I didn't push the envelope this time.