Didn't degas and brew is tasting bitter

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Mango Madness

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I am on about my tenth brew. Have always done Mango Wine until my last brew which was Lychee and Passionfruit. I only just heard about degassing now on this forum and it might explain why the Lychee brew is so bitter. My question is.... Is it too late to degas the brew? It was bottled a week ago. I did put a teaspoon of dextrose in some bottles in the hope they would turn to champagne. I also don't really strain the brew or syphon it. I just leave it in for a month and bottle it. I did it in a 60L rubbish bin with a towel over the top lol.
 
You are bottling way too early -- it's very likely that you have dissolved CO2 in the wine, plus it's unlikely the wine is clear. Are you getting sediment in the bottle?

What kind of bottles are you using? Unless the bottle is designed for pressure (beer or champagne bottles), it's potentially dangerous to do anything that produces pressure. If the bottles are corked, you'll produce mini-volcanoes and get to clean up mess. If the bottles are screwcap, you are potentially producing grenades if the pressure exceeds the glass's capacity. Bottles not produced explicitly to handle pressure (beer and champagne bottles) are not rated to handle ANY pressure, and can explode.

I suggest unbottling the wine and putting it in carboy(s) under airlock to let it complete fermentation and to clear. Give it 3 months, and you'll see tremendous difference.

If you want to make a sparkling wine (sparkling mango sounds cool!) add 1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar to 5 US gallons / 19 liters of wine, and stir very well. Bottle in beer or champagne bottles, and crown cap. Put the bottles someplace warm (70-85 F) for a few weeks, then age at least 3 months (a year is better, but we all know you're going to open one before then. ;) ).

Regarding bitterness, CO2 can cause that. It's true that most fruit wines benefit from backsweetening, even a bit. This eliminates astringency and enhances fruit flavors. Before backsweetening, add potassium sorbate and potassium metabisulfite (K-meta) to a clear wine. This prevents the yeast from eating the new sugar, which produces CO2 and brings us back to NOT making grenades or mini-volcanoes ...
 
You are bottling way too early -- it's very likely that you have dissolved CO2 in the wine, plus it's unlikely the wine is clear. Are you getting sediment in the bottle?

What kind of bottles are you using? Unless the bottle is designed for pressure (beer or champagne bottles), it's potentially dangerous to do anything that produces pressure. If the bottles are corked, you'll produce mini-volcanoes and get to clean up mess. If the bottles are screwcap, you are potentially producing grenades if the pressure exceeds the glass's capacity. Bottles not produced explicitly to handle pressure (beer and champagne bottles) are not rated to handle ANY pressure, and can explode.

I suggest unbottling the wine and putting it in carboy(s) under airlock to let it complete fermentation and to clear. Give it 3 months, and you'll see tremendous difference.

If you want to make a sparkling wine (sparkling mango sounds cool!) add 1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar to 5 US gallons / 19 liters of wine, and stir very well. Bottle in beer or champagne bottles, and crown cap. Put the bottles someplace warm (70-85 F) for a few weeks, then age at least 3 months (a year is better, but we all know you're going to open one before then. ;) ).

Regarding bitterness, CO2 can cause that. It's true that most fruit wines benefit from backsweetening, even a bit. This eliminates astringency and enhances fruit flavors. Before backsweetening, add potassium sorbate and potassium metabisulfite (K-meta) to a clear wine. This prevents the yeast from eating the new sugar, which produces CO2 and brings us back to NOT making grenades or mini-volcanoes ...
Hi and thankyou so much for taking the time to reply. The last dozen bottles have maybe a quarter of a bottle of sediment which has chunks of yummy mango. These are the bottles I give away. It was a bit bitter but has improved a bit after a couple of months in the bottles.

I've been lucky I guess. A 2L flagon exploded a few years back when my grandad hit it with a hammer after some of the others exploded. Don't ask me why.

Can I ask what a "Carboy" is please.

When you say "Add Sugar", is then just before bottling?

I will look into back sweetening but could I just ask when you back sweeten?

Once again thankyou so much for your enlightenment.
 
Your wine needs time -- give it that time and you'll be happy you did.

A 2L flagon exploded a few years back when my grandad hit it with a hammer after some of the others exploded. Don't ask me why.
Too much pressure. Bottles not designed for pressure, which includes all corkable and screwcap wine bottles, are completely unsafe for pressure. Since they are not designed for pressure, minor imperfections in the glass can be weak spots.



A carboy is typically 5 US gallons (19 liters) to 6 US gallons (23 liters), although 3 gallon carboys are also common. If you're making smaller batches? I purchase Carlo Rossi Burgundy and Chablis in 4 liter jugs for cooking wine, and keep the jugs for use.

I have a few posts on my website that explain things in more detail. A basic winemaking process will explain a lot of things:

https://wine.bkfazekas.com/basic-winemaking-process/
I also have a post on backsweetening:

https://wine.bkfazekas.com/sweetening-wine/
 
Your wine needs time -- give it that time and you'll be happy you did.


Too much pressure. Bottles not designed for pressure, which includes all corkable and screwcap wine bottles, are completely unsafe for pressure. Since they are not designed for pressure, minor imperfections in the glass can be weak spots.



A carboy is typically 5 US gallons (19 liters) to 6 US gallons (23 liters), although 3 gallon carboys are also common. If you're making smaller batches? I purchase Carlo Rossi Burgundy and Chablis in 4 liter jugs for cooking wine, and keep the jugs for use.

I have a few posts on my website that explain things in more detail. A basic winemaking process will explain a lot of things:

https://wine.bkfazekas.com/basic-winemaking-process/
I also have a post on backsweetening:

https://wine.bkfazekas.com/sweetening-wine/
Excellent blog
 
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