Has my wine gone bad?

Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum

Help Support Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

cmegaf

Junior
Joined
Apr 12, 2015
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
I made the Eclipse wine kit Nebbiolo and had it aging for about 5 yrs now. I just tasted it today and it had a very strong alcohol taste. Almost like brandy. The color had a brownish tint to it. What happened to it? Is there a way to save it? Is this what they call oxidized or maybe baked? It has been in a carboy all this time. :(
 
I made the Eclipse wine kit Nebbiolo and had it aging for about 5 yrs now. I just tasted it today and it had a very strong alcohol taste. Almost like brandy. The color had a brownish tint to it. What happened to it? Is there a way to save it? Is this what they call oxidized or maybe baked? It has been in a carboy all this time. :(

The brownish tint would seem to indicate oxidation. Was the carboy under airlock or a solid stopper? During the aging period did you add any Potassium Metabisulfite?

As for what can be done, there was a recent posting (within the past two weeks) where people discussed possible remedies for oxidized wine. I was not aware of any of the remedies and my belief has always been that oxidation is a one way street. You might search for that posting and give it a try.
 
I used a airlock. I also put a gas layer which I thought would last. I did not add Potassium Metabisulfite. :( I am very new to wine making. This was an expensive lesson. So should I have used a solid stopper and how often are we to add the PM?
 
I used a airlock. I also put a gas layer which I thought would last. I did not add Potassium Metabisulfite. :( I am very new to wine making. This was an expensive lesson. So should I have used a solid stopper and how often are we to add the PM?
K-Meta (Potassium Metabisulfite) acts as an anti-oxidant among other things. I have never heard of any procedure where you can skip adding K-Meta to any wine that you don't plan to drink within the next few weeks.
 
If you are looking at a burn feeling at the back of the throat I would call that the taste of acetaldehyde (ie oxidized ethyl alcohol). Alcohol by itself won’t give that and it is related to the time the reaction has been running and secondly having an oxidative (chemical free radicals) environment. I agree with the posts about brown color and age.
I made the Eclipse wine kit Nebbiolo and had it aging for about 5 yrs now. I just tasted it today and it had a very strong alcohol taste. Almost like brandy. The color had a brownish tint to it. What happened to it? Is there a way to save it? Is this what they call oxidized or maybe baked? It has been in a carboy all this time. :(
Saving it? . . in the home environment no. I know one “organic” wine producer who takes his “aged” stuff and makes brandy. I have tried to disguise it by adding concentrated frozen juice, honey is another flavor mix that might hide it (but make cloudy). . . and about five years back I started running higher K meta target ppm which makes me more willing to take older wines to the vinters meetings without hiding tricks.
Carboy? . . . not necessarily a positive or a negative, I am holding a ten month old mead for another year in carboy but it currently has a solid cork, ,,,, again is it an oxidative or a reductive environment?
 
I used a airlock. I also put a gas layer which I thought would last. I did not add Potassium Metabisulfite. :( I am very new to wine making. This was an expensive lesson. So should I have used a solid stopper and how often are we to add the PM?

I assume you used K-meta when you made the wine. It would have been included in the kit as an addition late in the process. When I age wine for an extended period in a carboy or demijohn, I will typically add 1/4 teaspoon per 6 gallons of wine every 3 to 4 months. I will note that I have never kept a wine for 5 years in a carboy. I usually age my whites for about 6 months and reds 12 to 18 months.

I only asked about the airlock because I was looking for a way air could have penetrated. I always use an air lock (again, for a shorter period than you did) because I am concerned about barometric pressure changes that could force a solid stopper out of the vessel. I would have bottled the wine, at the latest, after 18 months in the carboy.

I am sorry for your bad experience. The important thing is to learn from it.
 
there is another thread in this forum under Beginners entitled "off taste Eclipse Nebbiolo Kit" the last entry describes a fining using powdered milk for oxidized wine. I would try that procedure. I had success with this in old wine kits. you can try bench trial on about a gallon or go for the whole batch. good luck
 
I assume you used K-meta when you made the wine. It would have been included in the kit as an addition late in the process. When I age wine for an extended period in a carboy or demijohn, I will typically add 1/4 teaspoon per 6 gallons of wine every 3 to 4 months. I will note that I have never kept a wine for 5 years in a carboy. I usually age my whites for about 6 months and reds 12 to 18 months.

I only asked about the airlock because I was looking for a way air could have penetrated. I always use an air lock (again, for a shorter period than you did) because I am concerned about barometric pressure changes that could force a solid stopper out of the vessel. I would have bottled the wine, at the latest, after 18 months in the carboy.

I am sorry for your bad experience. The important thing is to learn from it.
Thank you for the advice. I obviously learn from the school of hard knocks :(. But I will be sure not to make the same mistake. I may be slow to learn but at least I learn. Lol...
 
I assume you used K-meta when you made the wine. It would have been included in the kit as an addition late in the process. When I age wine for an extended period in a carboy or demijohn, I will typically add 1/4 teaspoon per 6 gallons of wine every 3 to 4 months. I will note that I have never kept a wine for 5 years in a carboy. I usually age my whites for about 6 months and reds 12 to 18 months.

I only asked about the airlock because I was looking for a way air could have penetrated. I always use an air lock (again, for a shorter period than you did) because I am concerned about barometric pressure changes that could force a solid stopper out of the vessel. I would have bottled the wine, at the latest, after 18 months in the carboy.

I am sorry for your bad experience. The important thing is to learn from it.
Thank you!
 

Latest posts

Back
Top