Degassing is often misunderstood. Wine will always have CO2 in it -- the goal is to let the excess out. You can whip and vacuum rack until the sun dies, and you'll still see bubbles in the wine.
In the past few years I degas all wines, but it's a gentle process. I stir (not whip) the wine for 1 minute, changing direction halfway through. That is all that is required. This doesn't remove all CO2 -- it releases a large amount of CO2 and jump starts the process, and the wine completes degassing over the following weeks. Natural degassing can take months, and that's also fine.
I degas as it facilitates clearing -- trapped CO2 will prevent sediment from dropping, so wines clear faster after degassing.
@Want2bwinemaker, you're going to hear the "P" word a lot. Winemaking is a procrastinator's paradise -- while fermentation has some time constraints, post-fermentation is a waiting game.
Kit instructions state you can bottle in 4 to 8 weeks. This is absolutely true. But your better choice is to not bottle before 4 months. I typically bottle whites and light reds in 4 to 6 months, heavier reds in 6 to 9 months, and the heaviest reds in 12+ months.
The hardest part for a beginner is that there is a lot of conflicting ideas that are all valid.
@ratflinger bottles his wines at 7 months. I do a range. We have a few members that bottle everything at 18-24 months (or longer). These are all valid choices. Pay attention to why folks do what they do, and that will help you decide what you want to do.
As a beginner, you're fine with bottling at 4 months. Those first batches are going to evaporate quickly, more quickly than you will believe. That's ok. With time and experience you'll understand the need for patience.
