Degassing issues

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LoneStarLori

Veteran wino, newbie vintner
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I am not sure if I am just not patient enough, or this still needs degassing.
This is triple berry DB that I had bottled in Nov. It started dropping a lot of sediment and when I opened a bottle, it had bubbles using my vacu vin.
So at the advise of a few vets here, I uncorked and degassed using the all-in-one with 5 passes. That was last week. While racking today, I am still getting what looks like to me a lot of gas. Using the all in one, this was taken after the 3rd transfer. Is this just part of the vacuum process or is it STILL super gassy?

Lori

DB_degassing.jpg
 
Still looks gassy to me...

I had 5-gallons of Mead, that I hooked up to my vacuum pump...... Took me over an hour to get it degassed, just to 10". My back hurt, feet hurt, head hurt.. I couldn't believe it.

Dont underestimate the amount of CO2 in some of these batches :)
 
you know I was wondering why some have very little co2 and others have a huge amount
any idea why the difference.
 
you want to have some fun.....
take a glass of wine that has not been degassed, drop a mentos in it.
then take some that has been degassed and do the same.
 
I've noticed that kit wines seem to have a ton of gas, Tim V even came up with a method to check the CO2 levels in kits, this may be die to the process the manufacturers use to balance the wine (I ask myself "just how balanced can they be with this much CO2!").
I really don't rack back and forth with the ALL In One over and over to degass, I will rack and wait until the next time I need to rack. Just be careful that you don't create an effect that causes the wine to come to a "boil" when trying to degass, I believe at this point you can do more harm than good, if i'm not mistaken, this can "boil" off some of the Alcohol.
I agree with Deezil, patience is the key.
 
I just got a call from Steve (Mr. Allinone). Talk about great customer service!
We discussed the possibility of the wine still fermenting. He asked if I sorbated, which I did and then he asked how old it is. I believe it is good but will replace it anyway.
He also mentioned possible Malolactic fermentation and told me what to look for. Tiny. tiny bubbles. 3rd was bacteria. NOOOO! I'll put that possibility out of my mind for now.
As he pointed out, since it is still dropping sediment, it must be still fermenting. I have to agree with that. Dropping sediment is the reason i had to un-bottle in the first place.
 
Lori....please do not add sorbate untill it is very clear and do not mix with wine, in powder stage...mix with water first, then add to the wine, after ferment has stopped.
 
Lori....please do not add sorbate untill it is very clear and do not mix with wine, in powder stage...mix with water first, then add to the wine, after ferment has stopped.

James if you add the sorbate as per kit instructions (at least the WE and RJS kits i do) it will always be added to cloudy wine since it hasn't cleared yet. Also why does it have to be mixed with water and not disolved in wine. TIA

cheers
 
you want to have some fun.....
take a glass of wine that has not been degassed, drop a mentos in it.
then take some that has been degassed and do the same.

James,
you have way too much time on your hands.
You need a hobby!
 
no mater what is said someone will say its wrong.
look it up on the net, and not by the people that sale it, but the people that make it.
never add sorbate to a cloudy wine
sorbate will not disolve in wine, only go back to its original synthetic state
of a clear liquid.
sorbate is mixed with water becomes sorbic acid which will disolve in wine.
http://nanaimowinemakers.org/Notes/Sorbate.htm
 
ALWAYS best to pre-dissolve any additives with water or some wine then add to your batch. Insures total mixing. Now,, can the AIO be used to put a vacuum on a carboy? If so, then why not try vacuum degassing rather than racking back and forth? Lots less work, but is it as efficient?
 
ALWAYS best to pre-dissolve any additives with water or some wine then add to your batch. Insures total mixing. Now,, can the AIO be used to put a vacuum on a carboy? If so, then why not try vacuum degassing rather than racking back and forth? Lots less work, but is it as efficient?

I usually just toss additives in to the wine and stir like heck.
However I have done my best lately to try to add to wine. I dont like adding extra water, ever.

And yes the AIO can be used to put a vacuum on a carboy. I have also been told that this may void the warrenty and put undue harm on the machine.
But I have done it with both 1 gallon & 6 gallon GLASS carboys. (usually while wearing my Evel Knievel outfit to fully round out the "degassing on the egde experience:r!)

please note I am not advising you on how to use your AIO !
:ft
 
no mater what is said someone will say its wrong.
look it up on the net, and not by the people that sale it, but the people that make it.
never add sorbate to a cloudy wine
sorbate will not disolve in wine, only go back to its original synthetic state
of a clear liquid.
sorbate is mixed with water becomes sorbic acid which will disolve in wine.
http://nanaimowinemakers.org/Notes/Sorbate.htm

Thx James

I will give it a read.

I have been making wine from kits for almost 25 years so I'm not new at this. It has been my experience that adding it to the carboy directly works fine for me. Lately i have been dissolving it in wine and then adding it to the carboy and this seems to work as well. How do I know the sorbate is effective doing it this way you ask? I recently made the Eclipse Riesling and after adding the K-meta and sorbate, i degased. The next step was to add the F-pack and then the clearing agents. This was a month ago. The wine cleared in days and fermentation did not restart. If the wine companies put it in their instructions it must be fine or they could have a big problem on their hands.

cheers
 
Thx James

I will give it a read.

I have been making wine from kits for almost 25 years so I'm not new at this. It has been my experience that adding it to the carboy directly works fine for me. Lately i have been dissolving it in wine and then adding it to the carboy and this seems to work as well. How do I know the sorbate is effective doing it this way you ask? I recently made the Eclipse Riesling and after adding the K-meta and sorbate, i degased. The next step was to add the F-pack and then the clearing agents. This was a month ago. The wine cleared in days and fermentation did not restart. If the wine companies put it in their instructions it must be fine or they could have a big problem on their hands.

cheers

I agree. People also have to realize that kits are different than fruit wines and it's always best to stick with the directions that come with the particular one you're making.
 

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