PumpkinDad
Hobbyist Wine Maker
- Joined
- Jan 23, 2014
- Messages
- 26
- Reaction score
- 1
Hi everyone,
I am making my first kit, a CC Sterling Tempranillo. It smells of sulphur and I'm wondering why. Here's a rundown of the batch to help diagnose.
I admittedly made a few mistakes along the way, but I think they were minor:
* Working area is colder than I like... ambient temp in the low 60s. Fermentation temp was 62-72 degrees (warmer in the beginning).
* Topped up with an extra three liters of water in the primary than recommended due to a measuring error.
I racked at 7 days. SG of 1.001, temp was 64. TA was 6.4g/L. pH at 3.49. At that time, the SO2 measured out at 26 mg/L using a Vinmetrica SC-200.
At 10 days, I smelled a distinct sulphur smell but the secondary was still bubbling so I left it to finish.
Today is day 13. Airlock has slowed to one bubble every 5-10 minutes or so. SG of .998, PH at 3.5, TA at 5.6g/L. I tried to measure SO2 but it was off the charts, at least 100 mg/L. That made no sense to me. Tasted horrible, extremely bitter.
I splash racked to a smaller 5g carboy to take it off the fine lees. Lots and lots of bubbles/foam as I did so. Added the 4g pack of meta as directed (even though I was hesitant to do so. Trust the kit, I told myself.) Added potassium sorbate and stirred. More bubbles/foam. I'm about to add kieselsol/chitosan but before doing so, took a sample upstairs.
I asked my wife and she said it smells like a diaper (it does). I poured a glass and swirled vigorously for about 10 minutes. As I did so, the smell dissipated. It didn't completely go away, but it got pretty mild and you can even smell a gentle aroma of fruit. It is somewhat bland but mild on the front of the tongue, really bitter on the back of the tongue.
Will the K/C clarifying agent take care of this? I was planning on bulk aging for a few months rather than bottling right away so wasn't planning on degassing. That said, would an allinone help?
I am making my first kit, a CC Sterling Tempranillo. It smells of sulphur and I'm wondering why. Here's a rundown of the batch to help diagnose.
I admittedly made a few mistakes along the way, but I think they were minor:
* Working area is colder than I like... ambient temp in the low 60s. Fermentation temp was 62-72 degrees (warmer in the beginning).
* Topped up with an extra three liters of water in the primary than recommended due to a measuring error.
I racked at 7 days. SG of 1.001, temp was 64. TA was 6.4g/L. pH at 3.49. At that time, the SO2 measured out at 26 mg/L using a Vinmetrica SC-200.
At 10 days, I smelled a distinct sulphur smell but the secondary was still bubbling so I left it to finish.
Today is day 13. Airlock has slowed to one bubble every 5-10 minutes or so. SG of .998, PH at 3.5, TA at 5.6g/L. I tried to measure SO2 but it was off the charts, at least 100 mg/L. That made no sense to me. Tasted horrible, extremely bitter.
I splash racked to a smaller 5g carboy to take it off the fine lees. Lots and lots of bubbles/foam as I did so. Added the 4g pack of meta as directed (even though I was hesitant to do so. Trust the kit, I told myself.) Added potassium sorbate and stirred. More bubbles/foam. I'm about to add kieselsol/chitosan but before doing so, took a sample upstairs.
I asked my wife and she said it smells like a diaper (it does). I poured a glass and swirled vigorously for about 10 minutes. As I did so, the smell dissipated. It didn't completely go away, but it got pretty mild and you can even smell a gentle aroma of fruit. It is somewhat bland but mild on the front of the tongue, really bitter on the back of the tongue.
Will the K/C clarifying agent take care of this? I was planning on bulk aging for a few months rather than bottling right away so wasn't planning on degassing. That said, would an allinone help?
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