Mycoderma? My first try with grapes and not a kit.

[David Violante]

My guess is that the material at the top is tartrates possibly combined with a protein precipitate, which is not much of a concern at this time. Excessive racking will do more damage than good. I would rack if you have a sulfide aroma associated with heavy yeast lees, otherwise allow to settle clear. The recipe did include some tannin which should help with protein precipitation, but in the end may not be enough. Just relax and allow time to work for now, again you can use fining for clarification if you are in a hurry, but otherwise relax.

Thank you, it just looks so funky to me, like huge cells with nuclei. I'll continue to watch and take a small sample to taste/smell. I appreciate your help!

 

[David Violante]

I was concerned about that picture until I realized you used Campden tablets. I imagine that junk is from the binder in the Campden tablets or not-completely-crushed bits of Campden tablet.

The last time I used Campden tablets was when I racked in January. I didn't use Sulfites this last time. Maybe it's the binder too~ no idea. I'll have to wait and see... Thank you!