crystal diamonds??

[uavwmn]

I opened one of my amaronne bottles last night.....and when I got to the bottom I heard this clinking noise! I held the bottle up to the light and there were alot of crystal diamond pieces in there.


What is this? Why did they form? I had this bottle in my wine chiller at 58 degrees.


Is this a bad thing??

 

[pelican]

The crystal diamond pieces are known as "wine diamonds" ! It's crystallization of tartaric acid (technically it's potassium bitartrate crystals) dropping out of suspension, happens especially when wine is chilled.

No, it's not a bad thing.

 

[uavwmn]

Pelican, thanks for the response. So, if I don't put my reds in the wine chiller I probably will not get the wine diamonds?

 

[K&GB]

UAV, you can prevent this in the future by "cold stabilizing" your wine before you bottle. I have a refrigerator in my garage now, and I rotate my carboys through for a month at a time. I keep the temp down around 32* F. Both my En Primeur wines dropped significant crystals, but none of my CC sor far except the Gruner Veltliner. It's in there now and I can see crystals forming on the bottom of the carboy.

 

[uavwmn]

Ken, so I could use this process, then rack the wine off the diamonds.
Do you know if this diminishes the body or flavor of the wine at all?

 

[JimCook]

Uavwmn,


Time also helps, if you bulk age at all. How much time passed between the end of fermentation and your bottling with this wine?


You should not notice a difference in the flavor/body of a wine that drops the bitartrate crystals. In essence, think of it as your wine coming to equilibrium over time (or with temperature variations in the case of cold stabilization).


- Jim

 

[Mark]

I cold stabilize both reds and whites. But I've only had significant amounts of tartrates (as much as 1/4 cup) drop out of high-end 23L kits (Meglioli's in particular) so now I only cold stabilize those. I attribute that to the high juice quality.

 

[uavwmn]

Jim, I normally follow the directions and bottle after the time period after clarifying. This amaronne is over the 1 yr mark. Next time I open another bottle it will be off the wine rack at room temperature. See if there are any wine diamonds in that bottle.


Thanks~

 

[Wade E]

All of my RJS Winery series kits do this and especially the RJS E.P. series. I wish I cold stabilized mine but didnt so I have some of this in all my reds as I made all of them around the same time and bottled them then put them into the colder wine cellar where they all cold stabilized in the bottles! Oh well.

 

[joeswine]

I personnel don,t see that as a real problem,you can call them gems of BACCHUSS GOD OF WINE

 

[uavwmn]

Joe, well that settles it. My pretty little wine diamonds stay and I will name them the Gems of Bacchuss God of Wine.

 

[joeswine]

SEE KNOW PROBLEM

 

[markg]

If I cold stabilize and see the diamonds settle, then either rack or bottle, will more diamonds appear? When a bottle warms, will they dissolve ? Does filtering before bottling eliminate them totally?

 

[K&GB]

maghvac,


I doubt filtering has any effect because the tartaric acid is in solution. The warmer the wine, the more acid can remain dissolved. So, chilling the wine causes some of the acid to fall out of solution, thus forming the crystals. If you leave the wine at near freezing temps for a couple of weeks, I think you're safe from any further crystal development. Now, I've been told that the crystals will dissolve back into the wine if it's warmed before you rack it off the crystals, but I don't know for sure.

 

[Mark]

I've filtered without cold stabilizing and still had some tartrates fall out so I don't think filtering will remove much (if any). But filtering after cold stabilization will keep you from bottling even the smallest of crystals. I haven't noticed any dissolving back into the wine after only 1 day, but given that they don't re-apper would indicate that even if some dissolves back into the wine, it must be a very small amount.