WineXpert LE14 Riesling - really slow ferment

[TemperanceOwl]

I started my LE14 Riesling Sunday afternoon. Followed directions to a "t", made sure the must was warm (75 F) before pitching yeast. Monday after work it was working, and had a thin cap of froth on it. This morning when I got up, the cap of froth was gone, and it was barely bubbling with tiny bubbles, similar to the bubbles in a Coca-Cola poured into a glass with no ice. Same this evening…it is still working, but very weakly.

Is it ok?? My other two kits were bold reds, and they threatened to erupt out of the primary.

I have heard that whites finish better if they ferment slowly. As long as it has some activity, should i just not worry about it?

Other info: beginning SG was 1.080; yeast used was Lalvin K1-V1116; room temperature since pitching ~71 F.

Thanks!!
- Owl

 

[JMK]

Mine did the same thing at a room temperature around 68. Nice and mellow with awesome aroma! It was down to SG 0.990 in 7 days.

 

[TemperanceOwl]

Mine did the same thing at a room temperature around 68. Nice and mellow with awesome aroma! It was down to SG 0.990 in 7 days.

Oh, great, JMK! Thanks for the response! That's good to hear.

 

[cpfan]

I started my LE14 Riesling Sunday afternoon. Followed directions to a "t", made sure the must was warm (75 F) before pitching yeast. Monday after work it was working, and had a thin cap of froth on it. This morning when I got up, the cap of froth was gone, and it was barely bubbling with tiny bubbles, similar to the bubbles in a Coca-Cola poured into a glass with no ice. Same this evening…it is still working, but very weakly.

Is it ok?? My other two kits were bold reds, and they threatened to erupt out of the primary.

I have heard that whites finish better if they ferment slowly. As long as it has some activity, should i just not worry about it?

Other info: beginning SG was 1.080; yeast used was Lalvin K1-V1116; room temperature since pitching ~71 F.

Thanks!!
- Owl

I don't see a current sg. Might not be a slow ferment, but rather a quiet ferment.

Steve

 

[DoctorCAD]

White wines tend to like lower temperatures, and yeast works slower at lower temperatures.

I did have a Muscat ferment that you could barely see the CO2 bubbles, never even got a layer of foam. It fermented quite nicely.

 

[TemperanceOwl]

I think you all must be right. Tonight it's fizzing gently, but definitely fizzing. The SG is down to 1.056, so it is carrying on.
Thanks for your feedback!
It is smelling very nice tonight.

 

[francois_du_nord]

I just pitched my Riesling Sunday. However, I immediately pushed it into my cool corner. I'm gonna run down now and see what I've got going.

59 deg F and a nice slow ferment. I'm with Dr CAD and of the 'go slow and keep your aromatics' school of whites.

But you have to be ready to have primary work for 2-3 weeks. I then rack to secondary and bring temps up to mid 60's for secondary. But you need to watch your yeast to make sure it likes cooler temps.

 

[heatherd]

Truly, there's nothing you can tell about a fermentation just by looking at it. Your hydrometer is your friend in this situation!

Heather

 

[TemperanceOwl]

The SG was down to 1.002 Saturday (day 6) so I transferred to secondary. It was apparently a "quiet ferment" as Steve suggested. It is still bubbling at a rate of around 1 per 45 seconds or minute. I plan to leave it alone for at least 15 days (Tim Vandergrift's extended schedule) and then check SG again before stabilization and clearing. The SG target per instructions is 0.990-0.995.