bottle after primary and clearing?

[Bovillia]

Good evening fellow makers;

I am looking to bottle, in 12 oz glass beer bottles with a cap, part of a batch of apple/cranberry wine from concentrate.
A little background;

I started on Monday morning with 6 cans of Old Orchard Apple concentrate, and 3 of the same in cranberry. I added 3 gallons of spring water, and 4 lb of cane sugar, which brought up the SG to 1.080. I added 2 packets of Lavlin wine yeast after activation. I left the bucket open, and after 4 hours, nothing had happened, so after a run to the local store, i added 2 more packs started with 800ML of 109* water and 1.5TSP of energizer. I left it open to the air for 6 hours, then sealed it all up under an airlock and watched it bubble.

Now for today;
The bubbling had stopped, so i pulled a sample to get the SG, 1.010. I stirred it up, and sealed it back but after 4 hours, no bubbles. So i called the local shop. They had me rack it to a secondary, add clearing agent, and seal it back up.

Now the meat and potatoes;

I intend to let it sit for 48 hours as recommended on the packaging. After that I want to rack it a second time, and now the interesting part. I want to bottle some of it, and leave the rest under an airlock until it is further 'processed' by another device into something very different.

1. Will bottling it so early still allow it to age?
2. Does anyone see any big issues with bottling it and setting it on a shelf after only 2 racking, and 6 days from yeast to bottle?

 

[cpfan]

6 days from yeast to bottles seems like a BIG RUSH to me.

Fermenting from 1.080 to 1.010 yields about 9.3% alcohol. Generally speaking 1.010 is not finished fermenting. Bottling something that isn't finished fermenting is a recipe for exploding bottles.

Someone at your LHBS suggested clearing agents at 1.010? For a WINE?? [Insert your favourite insult here.] I would probably never go back to that store.

Steve

 

[LoneStarLori]

I have to agree with Steve, don't bottle yet. You are a long way from that and doing it now would certainly be a big mess to clean up. Not to mention that it really needs to sit at least a month for all the flavors to marry. So bulk is the way to go.

I am curious as to whether the local shop also recommended putting in additional yeast. Normally one packet will do the job and taking up to 48 hours to show signs of fermentation is not uncommon.

Stick around and I promise you will learn tons of good, tried and true information on this forum. I have only been at it about 6 months and learned so much here, I almost feel like I could open a real winery. lol I like to just read through threads when I'm relaxing. You never know what kind of information you will run across. Mistakes and victories alike.

 

[Julie]

How many batches of wine have you made? You really cannot make a wine that would be at least halfway decent in one week's time. My feelings are the same was cpfan and LoneStarLori. The only other thing I would suggest is not to snap down the lid to the bucket, leave it open with the lid ajar or a towel over the top and stir daily.

And thanks for not mentioning what your "further process" is.

 

[Bovillia]

Thankyoufor your replies. It is the only shop around, so I don't have the option for not going back, and the pries are decent.
As far as adding yeast no, the closest he got was suggesting to add a bit more sugar to 'get more alcohol' but i didn't. I did add the clearing agent 12 hours ago, and my airlock hasn't moved yet.

And Julie, this is my first, it is not intended for drinking as wine, I am going to run it through something to really, really up the alcohol if you catch my drift. The only reason I want to set some back is my friend tried it yesterday and he really likes it as it sits now, so I want to give him some.

 

[Bovillia]

I have to agree with Steve, don't bottle yet. You are a long way from that and doing it now would certainly be a big mess to clean up. Not to mention that it really needs to sit at least a month for all the flavors to marry. So bulk is the way to go.

I am curious as to whether the local shop also recommended putting in additional yeast. Normally one packet will do the job and taking up to 48 hours to show signs of fermentation is not uncommon.

Stick around and I promise you will learn tons of good, tried and true information on this forum. I have only been at it about 6 months and learned so much here, I almost feel like I could open a real winery. lol I like to just read through threads when I'm relaxing. You never know what kind of information you will run across. Mistakes and victories alike.

No they didn't at first, I was afraid i had killed my yeast by putting it in too hot of water because i didn't have a thermometer, so the extra yeast was my idea as an insurance policy.

 

[mromilio]

Hi, as a newbie who hasn't bottled his first batch yet (DD's Dragon Blood has been back sweetened and will be bottled next weekend dde0a), I know my advice may not mean much, but as Lori said, I have learned so much from the experienced, helpful and friendly members of this forum in the month+ I have been here, I feel like a pro. The advice from your LHBS seems misplaced. Search these forums whenever you run into a question, and I guarantee you, you'll be placed firmly on the right track.

 

[tkmorgan]

Also, as for the remaining wine, I don't know if further processing makes a difference, but you would normally be wary of your headspace. I hope you're racking to a carboy just big enough to handle the remaining wine, and not a drop more. The reason bottles have "bottlenecks" is to minimize the amount of wine exposed to oxygen, thus helping to prevent oxidation. If the wine isn't topped off into the neck of the carboy, you're asking for trouble.

 

[Julie]

Thankyoufor your replies. It is the only shop around, so I don't have the option for not going back, and the pries are decent.
As far as adding yeast no, the closest he got was suggesting to add a bit more sugar to 'get more alcohol' but i didn't. I did add the clearing agent 12 hours ago, and my airlock hasn't moved yet.

And Julie, this is my first, it is not intended for drinking as wine, I am going to run it through something to really, really up the alcohol if you catch my drift. The only reason I want to set some back is my friend tried it yesterday and he really likes it as it sits now, so I want to give him some.

roflmao, yes I caught your drift, that is why I said thanks for not going any farther.

 

[Bovillia]

No problem Julie, I am fine with just leaving it all for its intended use, but the Ole Lady wants to bottle some of it and give it to a friend, that's where the question lies, if i do bottle tomorrow, whats the worst that can happen, and will it develop into a 'better wine' with it being bottled so early.

 

[cpfan]

"Visual signs of fermentation are highly overrated"

IE bubbles in an air lock, especially if your wine is in a pail, mean next to nothing. What is the current specific gravity reading? When it has stopped going down for 3-4 days then it's time to think about clearing.

Steve

 

[Bovillia]

"Visual signs of fermentation are highly overrated"

IE bubbles in an air lock, especially if your wine is in a pail, mean next to nothing. What is the current specific gravity reading? When it has stopped going down for 3-4 days then it's time to think about clearing.

Steve

Well the clearing agent has been added unfortunately at the advice of my wine shop, but the SG was, and held at, 1.010 for 1 day before i added.

 

[Bovillia]

Alright, the results are in from the people who got the bottles. It tastes wonderful, and is much like a Zinfandel.