few questions for the experts

[Gr8p]

I am part of the growing "beginners" club of wine making. After spending about 200 dollars to get this ball rolling I've completed stage 2 of a concord batch from grapes out of my garden and now i have completed stage 1 w/ some pears I picked from a local farmer. My question to you is :

1. I racked for a second time my concord grapes cause the bottom had almost 2 inches of sediment. When taking off the air lock it smelled like rotten eggs but once i reracked the wine it smelled fine and the wine tasted rather good (will need some sugar cause a little tart). Is this normal? Was the air space between the wine and airlock what was stinking?

2. I just racked out of primary to secondary, some pear wine. I followed a recipe out of my recipe book that came w/ the wine kit so i didn't test the acid. I tested the remainder that didn't fit in the 3 gal carboy and i think it was around .7. First time i tried the acid test kit and the sample went from pear color to a orange color. Hoping it will be fine w some aging?????

 

[seth8530]

I am part of the growing "beginners" club of wine making. After spending about 200 dollars to get this ball rolling I've completed stage 2 of a concord batch from grapes out of my garden and now i have completed stage 1 w/ some pears I picked from a local farmer. My question to you is :

1. I racked for a second time my concord grapes cause the bottom had almost 2 inches of sediment. When taking off the air lock it smelled like rotten eggs but once i reracked the wine it smelled fine and the wine tasted rather good (will need some sugar cause a little tart). Is this normal? Was the air space between the wine and airlock what was stinking?

2. I just racked out of primary to secondary, some pear wine. I followed a recipe out of my recipe book that came w/ the wine kit so i didn't test the acid. I tested the remainder that didn't fit in the 3 gal carboy and i think it was around .7. First time i tried the acid test kit and the sample went from pear color to a orange color. Hoping it will be fine w some aging?????

On question 1: The rotten egg smell you got could come from sulfur production during an angry fermentation. When you racked it you could of worked some air into the wine thus binding the sulfur and getting rid of the smell. Just something to consider.

Question 2: .7 sounds like an OK acid level to me for a wine. However, which indicator did you use? Phenelphelene (sp) should turn a very light pink colour once you hit your endpoint. If it turned orange perhaps you overshot the mark. Kind of hard to tell w/o knowing your indicator and the original colour of the wine.

 

[Gr8p]

yeah. it was sp. I'll have to keep trying the acid test. Practice makes perfect

 

[jamesngalveston]

I agree with seth , it was probably the sulfur...could have been low on nutrients during ferment,etc.. i would watch it closely, make sure it doesnt come back...maybe rack again, just to be sure.

Pears are really low in acid, I wouldnt even bother testing them. It makes one good wine.

 

[salcoco]

if you left the concord on the sediment longer than three days, the sulfur smell is form the sediment which is dead yeast along with skins seed etc from the grapes. you are lucky that it did not ruin your wine.

 

[Gr8p]

thanks for your insights. I am enjoying this new hobby and looking forward next year to mix and match w/ apples, pears, and grapes...oh my!

 

[Gr8p]

next question on Racking. I racked the pear after one week and the SG was at 1.010 so i thought it was ready. I thought i was to leave the wine in the carboy for up to 3 weeks before i reracked again. Do i rack after 1 week if i start to see alot of sediment on the bottom to avoid the sulfur smell?

Another question : when i racked the grapes a second time i lost some juice obviously w/ 2inches of sediment. Do i add tap water or leave the larger headspace?

 

[seth8530]

I would not rack again unless you start building up a lot of sediment.

As far as topping off I would top off with a similar wine or perhaps sanitized lead free marbles. I would avoid water unless there was no other choice.

 

[Scott]

If you need to get a jug of Mogan David Concord to top up with, shouldn't be enough to change your wine and you will have a new 1 gal carboy!