clearing of dark wine

[n2tazmania]

I have made 3 batches of Muscadine. The first was out of bronze Muscadines. The other two were made from the black beauty Muscadine. One of them was made from juice only. The third was made with the skins in the must. The third batch made with the skins in the must is really dark. My question is how do you know if a dark wine is clear and everything has settled out?

 

[ellijaywinemaker]

Shine a flash light in the side of the carboy and you will be able to tell.

 

[Sirs]

I've kinda wondered that myself as I got some that as far as color goes appear to be black when in a bottle or glass they appear to be really clear, but in the carboy you can't see nothing thru them

 

[n2tazmania]

Tonight I tested with a flashlight and I can't see any hint of light through it. It tastes fine to me and looks good in a glass but is there anyway to be sure that things have settled out?

 

[fowlmood77]

Just out of curiosity, how long did you leave the must on the skins?

 

[sly22guy]

How long ago did you start these? And what are your sg readings? How many times have they been racked?

 

[n2tazmania]

I left the skins in the must for 6 days. The racking from the primary to the secondary was on Oct 31st. Initial S.G was 1.08 when I racked it was .0993. Degassed week of Nov 15-19. Racked again on Saturday and added sorbate.

 

[sly22guy]

Id say the earlies you would even consider bottling is march-april. but more like mid to late summer. Not too familiar with Muscadines but general rule of thumb is a year to a year and a half on reds before bottling.

 

[grapeman]

You can draw out a sample of wine and place in a glass. You can see that way if it is clear or not.

A flashlight in a carboy doesn't necessarily shine through it. What it does is show up fine particles. You can see them if they are suspended in there. If it looks clear, you can bottle it, but like previously said it may continue to drop a bit more for next next year. If you put it in punted problems, the fine particles will just settle off to the sides of the punts.

 

[Savana123]

Hi..

Hi... You can look into the carboy with the help of torch light. If you are unable to see it properly and unable to judge the wine clearly then just take out a cup of wine from it. If it is clear then everything has settled down and if it is still black, then nothing has settled down. These are the simplest way to check.

 

[fowlmood77]

I just bottled some about a month ago that bulk aged for over a year. It did start out darker than it was when I bottled it. That is why I asked how long you left it on the skins because I left mine on the skins too, but it is in no way dark now.