Pinot Grigio from juice

[Siwash]

Hey folks, I will be making some starting this weekend. Haven't made white wine from juice in many years. I am going to use ICV D-47 yeast.

What is the ideal fermentation temp for a white wine - I recall going cooler when I last made it - 65 to 70? Should I expect a similar fermentation duration? Should I stir it as often as I would a red? I am assuming I can forego the oak chips. Should I ferment in a wide-rim fermenter or can I place it in a carboy? I recall fermenting in a carboy last time as it doesn't foam anywhere as much or at all.
What other differences can I prepare for?

Thanks!

 

[wood1954]

I would ferment it in an open container so it could be stirred.

 

[BarrelMonkey]

I recently fermented my 2022 white wines in carboys. I think that having a closed container and, ideally, lower temperature fermentation, helps to preserve the aromatics in whites. I don't see why you would want to stir a PG.

 

[Siwash]

I recently fermented my 2022 white wines in carboys. I think that having a closed container and, ideally, lower temperature fermentation, helps to preserve the aromatics in whites. I don't see why you would want to stir a PG.

Yeah as I recall, I thought whites need to be in carboys. Problem is, I am getting a 23L (6 gal) pail and my biggest glass (other than my big boy 14 gall demis) is a 25 L glass.. I also have 7 Litre plastic bucket fermenter. Should I be concerned about overflow from foaming? I don't think they ferment as vigourously. Correct me if I am wrong.

 

[cmason1957]

Yeah as I recall, I thought whites need to be in carboys. Problem is, I am getting a 23L (6 gal) pail and my biggest glass (other than my big boy 14 gall demis) is a 25 L glass.. I also have 7 Litre plastic bucket fermenter. Should I be concerned about overflow from foaming? I don't think they ferment as vigourously. Correct me if I am wrong.

Not going to correct you, but why take the chance? I ferment everything in a bucket, with plenty of extra space. Whites I do use a bucket I can lock the lid down on, not a Brute type. And I add an airlock to them. I also set them on the floor of my concrete basement to keep the tempos down a bit.

 

[Siwash]

I got pails that lock so I have no issue trying your method. It's going to ferment either way, right?

So I should snap the lid down tight instead of leaving it loosely covered?

Lastly, what temps do you prefer? Mid/low 60s? Warmer?

 

[cmason1957]

I ferment everything in my basement at ambient temp. Which is somewhere around 65 F. I don't pay that much attention to it.

 

[Siwash]

I ferment everything in my basement at ambient temp. Which is somewhere around 65 F. I don't pay that much attention to it.

Wow, even your reds? Interesting.

So just to confirm, when I am fermenting the white, I should snap on the lid so it's tightly sealed and airlock it?

Thanks again! And my apologies for the millions of questions!

 

[ceeaton]

Wow, even your reds? Interesting.

So just to confirm, when I am fermenting the white, I should snap on the lid so it's tightly sealed and airlock it?

Thanks again! And my apologies for the millions of questions!

I used to get PG and other whites in juice buckets, drill out the whole a bit in the top that had a rubber grommet to let out pressure, pop in an airlock and add some yeast and other additives, snap down the lid. Fermented it right in the bucket it came in. Never had a spill unless I added some nutrient during the ferment too quickly and it foamed up all at once.

I'm doing a Cab Franc right now in a brute and the ambient house temp is about 67*, it's fermenting really well at this point, just took a little longer to get started, and most likely will take a little longer to ferment than if I did it at a higher temperature.

 

[cmason1957]

Wow, even your reds? Interesting.

So just to confirm, when I am fermenting the white, I should snap on the lid so it's tightly sealed and airlock it?

Thanks again! And my apologies for the millions of questions!

Yes, even reds. If they seem to be taking to long or not going fast enough, I drag the bucket over to where the sun shines in the back door, let it warm up some and don't fret about the ambient temp. One of my favorite locally (missouri) produced commercial wines is a red (La Trompier Noir) field blend of Chambourcin, St. Vincent and Villard Noir fermented slowly and at low temps, around 40 F (perhaps lower, it has been a long time since I talked with the winemaker about this wine). Very, very tasty, full of great fruit notes that come out due to that slow ferment.

And I put a lid on my whites, same as the other Craig posted. In whites, I worry much, much, much more about oxidation.

 

[Siwash]

Should I be killing native yeast with some So2 as I'd do with red? If so, how much and when should I add So2? When the must is still cool? It's coming from a refrigerated environment when I bring it home.

Thanks for all the help!

 

[cmason1957]

Should I be killing native yeast with some So2 as I'd do with red? If so, how much and when should I add So2? When the must is still cool? It's coming from a refrigerated environment when I bring it home.

Thanks for all the help!

For juice buckets, I generally add 1/4 tsp of K-Meta and give it a stir, when I get it home. I think (and this is opinion, not fact) most juice bucket manufacturers add yeast to the buckets or the juice when they fill them. It is probably EC-1118. You will have little to no effect on that yeast. But I do still add K-Meta.

 

[Hazelemere]

Hey folks, I will be making some starting this weekend. Haven't made white wine from juice in many years. I am going to use ICV D-47 yeast.

What is the ideal fermentation temp for a white wine - I recall going cooler when I last made it - 65 to 70? Should I expect a similar fermentation duration? Should I stir it as often as I would a red? I am assuming I can forego the oak chips. Should I ferment in a wide-rim fermenter or can I place it in a carboy? I recall fermenting in a carboy last time as it doesn't foam anywhere as much or at all.
What other differences can I prepare for?

Thanks!

use bentonite 3-6 days into active ferment to remove protein. It will also strip all the sulphite so you'll have to sulphite it fter it clears and gets racked. You can ferment in glass racking mid way through.

 

[Rudy731]

I just did same, started last Sunday in a bucket and today its down to 1.000 and active fermentation has slowed. My basement floor is 65 Deg so that seems to work.

 

[Siwash]

For juice buckets, I generally add 1/4 tsp of K-Meta and give it a stir, when I get it home. I think (and this is opinion, not fact) most juice bucket manufacturers add yeast to the buckets or the juice when they fill them. It is probably EC-1118. You will have little to no effect on that yeast. But I do still add K-Meta.

Interesting...I'm going with ICV-D47 and now you made me wonder how this yeast and any added yeast will react with each other... if EC-1118, will this be a positive reaction? I tend to add a bit more yeast than recommended along with a nutrient so I wonder if ICV-D47 wins out?

 

[Siwash]

Followed the Homemaking wine channel method for making a yeast starter and it seems to have worked quite well! The Pinot G is already fermenting, in about 15 hours after pitching the yeast. Whites are supposed to be difficult to get going at times but this one seems to be happy! I did bring the must up to about 72 but I have since transferred it to a 65F room.

Now it's a waiting game! Figure it will take about 3 weeks to complete..