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Loner

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A friend gifted me with a basket of fresh green apples in April. After crushing and pressing I had 1 gallon of juice. I added 1/2 gallon of water and sugar to 1.100 (got a little carried away). I gave it 2 tsp of yeast nutrient up front with a little pectic enz, acid blend and pitched 1118 yeast. I usually use rc212 with fruit but didn't have any on hand at the time. Eight days later I was dry .990 and in a carboy with airlock along with sorbate and sulphite. I gave it a taste test at the last xfer off sediment and decided to add 1/2 tsp of acid blend and sugar back to 1.000 This was tasting very good at this point. It was a little tart but not too much. This brings us to a few days back, the wine is clear and going to bottle. I was surprised to find all trace of tartness gone and replaced with a smooth silky tasting wine that is quite possibly the best I have ever made. I'm guessing MLF occurred without me noticing. I was under the impression the addition of sulphite when the wine fermented dry would prohibit MLF ?? There in lies the question .. how do you determine if MLF is going on ?
I have a new 8 gallon batch going that went to 0.990 a week ago. I added sorbate and sulphite to it as well. I noticed a bubble thru the airlock last week. A closer scrutiny shows tiny bubbles flowing up the neck of the carboy. I get a bubble every 1.5 minutes. Is it possible I'm going thru MLF with this as well ? The SG has not changed in two weeks so I'm positive this isn't renewed fermentation.
 
A friend gifted me with a basket of fresh green apples in April. After crushing and pressing I had 1 gallon of juice. I added 1/2 gallon of water and sugar to 1.100 (got a little carried away). I gave it 2 tsp of yeast nutrient up front with a little pectic enz, acid blend and pitched 1118 yeast. I usually use rc212 with fruit but didn't have any on hand at the time. Eight days later I was dry .990 and in a carboy with airlock along with sorbate and sulphite. I gave it a taste test at the last xfer off sediment and decided to add 1/2 tsp of acid blend and sugar back to 1.000 This was tasting very good at this point. It was a little tart but not too much. This brings us to a few days back, the wine is clear and going to bottle. I was surprised to find all trace of tartness gone and replaced with a smooth silky tasting wine that is quite possibly the best I have ever made. I'm guessing MLF occurred without me noticing. I was under the impression the addition of sulphite when the wine fermented dry would prohibit MLF ?? There in lies the question .. how do you determine if MLF is going on ?
I have a new 8 gallon batch going that went to 0.990 a week ago. I added sorbate and sulphite to it as well. I noticed a bubble thru the airlock last week. A closer scrutiny shows tiny bubbles flowing up the neck of the carboy. I get a bubble every 1.5 minutes. Is it possible I'm going thru MLF with this as well ? The SG has not changed in two weeks so I'm positive this isn't renewed fermentation.

If MLF occurred with sorbate in your wine, it would be ruined with the taste of geraniums. Sulfite in excess of 50 ppm should be sufficient to prevent MLF.
 
Thanks for the info. I know zilch about mlf but intend to learn.
 
Why are you bottling so soon? Once bottled you are no longer in control of the aging process. Properly airlocked your wine is safe. This soon after fermentation you could still wind up with sediment in the next few months and once it's bottled that's it the sediment is there to stay. Patience, Patience, Patience.

Those little bubbles are most likely CO2 - gassing off. That's why bulk aging pays off. Some wines are very slow to de-gas without mechanical help. That second batch is de-gassing in all likelihood and that's a good thing.
 
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There are commonly used kits available to test for the presence and amount of the the different acids in wine. When I've backsweetened, ive waited until it is clear as day then added the sugar and sorbate. I wanted to make sure the yeast were done (neither sorbate or SO2 kill yeast), then move on to the next step. You will be rewarded for your patience.
 
Scooter, I know about the patience bit. I just bottled muscadine off last years press. The Apple was done early in order to gift the giver of the fruit before he left country again. It turned out amazingly well. Multiple racking with the AI1 pump probably helped.
 

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