is this a disaster or not?

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khalen

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Hi all

I have just started to make my own wine and today got my apples prepared and after sterilising the bucket placed my apples in with the water and some raisins. My 3yo son wanted to help and put about a teaspoon of sodium metabisulphite into the bucket. I was going to use a pinch to kill any nasties on the friut but I need to know is a teaspoon too much and do i have to buy more ingredients or can I get away with it?

Hope you can help

Khalen
 
It is too much but we need to know how big of a batch this is to determine how to go about fixing this. Is there any juice that will be sacrificed at this time if you took all the fruit out and changed the water at this point? Please list the size and what is in there alreay at this point.
 
Hi, I am not using juice I am using 6lb apples cut into very tiny pieces and added 1 pound of raisins and 8pints of water.

These are uk measurements.

Thanks
 
Just over a gallon by my reckoning. I have a rather boring book ( english!) that lists a teaspoon of metabisulphate to replace the campden tablet. either way..neither additive kills the yeast..potassium sorbate does.

Do a proper yeast starter and hold off on half the sugar for about two days if you can. Apples mainly need you to add pectic enzyme and that won't be troubled by your extra sulphite either.In fact waiting 24 hours for the pectic enzyme to work before adding the yeast is a good idea.

hard to kill apple wine ..
winks

Allie
 
JI have a rather boring book ( english!) that lists a teaspoon of metabisulphate to replace the campden tablet.

This is probably 1 teaspoon of metabisulphite solution equal to 1 campden tablet - a solution being a 1 to 8 volume ratio between metabisulphite and water I think?

1/4 teaspoon of metabisulphite will replace 5 capden tablets.
 
St Allie, Skyhawk is right. 1/4 tsp is actually the equiv. of 3 1/2 campden tablets.
 
thanks guys.. I have scribbled that info into my book.. seems to be a typo.

Phew!!

Allie:)
 
I appredciate all the conversion info guys but I still don't know if I have to throw my batch away and start again.

I don't want to waste time making a batch of wine that will be impossible to drink.

Thanks
 
Several solutions come to my mind.

If the apples and raisins are stil solid and not mashed to pulp
you could drain of the water (which contains just a small amount of flavor at this moment) and add new water.
Most sulphite will be in the water and you can get rid of it that way.

If the apples are already mashed and have become pulp you could make a real strong yeast starter.
http://wijnmaker.blogspot.com/2007/08/gist-starter-yeast-starter.html
Add that to the must. Then see if it will ferment in an open primary covered with a cheesecloth.
Cultivated yeast have a sulphite tolerancy and there is a chance that it will start fermenting in a few hours to days.
The vigorous fermentation will blow off most of the sulphite and stirring the must 3 to 4 times a day will bind remaining sulphite to oxygen.

If the apples are already pulp and the starter does not get the must fermenting in a couple of days proceed like this:
Splash rack the juice for a considerable time. This means that you
transfer the must from one bucket to another. You do that by pouring the juice from some hight into the other bucket and then back into the first. You will have to do that a lot of times. That way the sulphite will bind to oxygen and extra oxygen is introduced into the must which helps fermentation starting.


Luc
 
Thanks a lot Luc .. sounds like I can save the batch one way or the other then!

Thanks
 
Thats what I was getting at about replacing the water, I got side tracked as I was doing about 4 things at once yesterday! do replace the water and if doing gallon batches then a scae will be needed to measure such small amounts of k-meta or just get Campden tablets and crush them up well.
 

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