finishing wine

[Mr. George]

i am done racking, but before i bottle i know there is still lots to do where do i start super clear, sulfites, i am lost any tips would help

 

[AlFulchino]

whats the history of what you have done...lets get that out of the way...

 

[ibglowin]

First, welcome to FVW forums!

Tell us a bit more about what you have going and what you have done so far to date.

 

[Mr. George]

I am useing chilean juice glass carboy after primary in both merlot and cabernet varieties i have racked the wine for the third time 60 days ago with approx 45 days between the first degassed and added k/metta along the way at 1/4 tsp. per 6 gal. the wine is very clear know and taste great but i dont know what to do next

 

[grapeman]

It sounds like you are pretty much on track. You don't need to use Super Kleer if it is cleared already. If you only have added one 1/4 teaspoon dose total so far, I would add another soon and if it is clear, you could bottle it. Did you add any oak? If not, do you like oak? If so get some and put it in them and bulk age a bit longer to get the desired oak level. Then you can rack off the oak cubes or whatever form you use and bottle.

 

[Mr. George]

thank every one for helping with your answers; i added k metta twice at 1/4 tsp each time. how about K sorbate though shouldent i add that at some point. and as for the oak i dont know weather i would like it or not i am still that new at this but i did want to try it with the merlot is it realy that easy

 

[ibglowin]

As long as you have been using good sanitary practices. Sanitizing everything with K-Meta before using it and it did ferment to dry 0.998 or less then you don't have to add any sorbate.

Sorbate is an insurance policy that is needed to stop re-fermentation in the bottle especially if you have a sweetened wine that could possibly start to ferment in the bottle.

Those two grape varietals are almost always if not always oaked to some extent. All you need is 2-3 oz of medium toast French or Hungarian Oak chips or cubes. Put them into the carboy and let them sit for a few weeks to a few months depending on what you buy. Taste every 2-3 weeks and rack off the oak when you like the flavor. First you may want to decide how much oak you like.

Be careful, you can over oak a wine so err on the light side. You should be safe if you only do 2-3 oz for 1-2 months and are tasting along the way.

 

[ibglowin]

Here is a little article on The Magic of Oak