Other Port in fermenter
- Thread starter uavwmn
- Start date
Help Support Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum:
Wow thats a long time for sure.
Get it off the gross lees ASAP if you haven't already. Hopefully it didn't degas on its own so its still protected. Check the SG to see where it finished, hopefully it finished to dry. If it didn't don't worry as this is backsweetened anyways. Add the KMETA and Sorbate. Degas (if needed still) Add the fining agents, transfer to glass and make sure it is topped up with a similar dry wine. I used an inexpensive Spanish Tempranillo wine to top up my La Bodega Port.
Get it off the gross lees ASAP if you haven't already. Hopefully it didn't degas on its own so its still protected. Check the SG to see where it finished, hopefully it finished to dry. If it didn't don't worry as this is backsweetened anyways. Add the KMETA and Sorbate. Degas (if needed still) Add the fining agents, transfer to glass and make sure it is topped up with a similar dry wine. I used an inexpensive Spanish Tempranillo wine to top up my La Bodega Port.
Thanks, Mike.
I will do just that!! I will let you know what the final SG was.
If it degassed on its own, is that a bad thing?
Kathie
Sorta as the wine is unprotected and can start to oxidize. It also leaves the door open for mold and other bugs to start to grow. Smell the wine, if it smells OK I would give it a little taste. Wine is pretty forgiving to a point. You have a pretty good chance its OK but sitting on the gross lees for that long could cause problems with off flavors and oder. Let you nose and taste buds be your guide.
It is in the primary bucket with the lid on, but not locked down. I may just toss it and start over.
Dont do that please, Im willing to bet my life this is just fine! This is a kit and these get loaded with C02 as Im sure you know, there is no way in hell it degassed itself enough to spoil especially since this is a port with much higher sweetness and abv. It will be fine. Which exact kit is this anyway.
Mike, got it in the carboy with everything in there. Didn't smell bad or have any mold or "floaties" in it. I thought it had almost a vinegar smell to it, but there was more wine smell than vinegar.
Going to bulk age over the summer and bottle this Fall.
I hope it all ends well.
Thanks for the help.
Kathie
Bartman
Senior Member
If the extended air exposure has caused it to oxidize to some degree (which sounds like a possibility from your last post), you might have accidentally created a Madeira-like wine! Madeira has an unusual fermenting process, as wine-making goes, but this could only work with a port, I think. The commercial Madeira I have had (which was very popular in western Europe and Colonial America 300-400 years ago) was certainly port-like - sweet, viscous, and high ABV - but different. You certainly won't find a Madeira wine kit, as it not widely known now and requires some unique fermenting equipment, an estufa (sort of like a sauna for your carboy), unless you have the ability to store your carboy on a ship for several months in the warm/hot Atlantic ocean. It's essentially an accidental pasteurization of the wine, which makes it stable for years without the need for additional metabisulfite (arguably). While you obviously haven't heated your port as true Madeira is, you might have inadvertently created something you like even better and has a better background story to go with it!
here's a link to the Wikipedia entry on Madeira wine - interesting stuff: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madeira_wine
here's a link to the Wikipedia entry on Madeira wine - interesting stuff: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madeira_wine
Bart, thank you for the interesting post!! I hope this wine turns out. I was sick for a while and didn't have the energy to get it in the carboy. Maybe it will taste like a Madeira wine. Since I have never tasted it, I may be on to something.
Kathie
I bet its just fine and tasting green. By the time you fortify it, it will be fantastic!
When do I fortify it and with what kind of brandy? B & B?
I waited till the wine was perfectly clear and ready to bottle (for me that was 9 months) then added the brandy and let it "marry" for 3 months. I then bottled at 1 year in carboy.
Remember this has a flavor reserve pack that gets added after it clears as well. You will need one bottle (of brandy) per gallon of finished wine (assuming it fermented to dry) to bring it up to ~19% ABV (which is very common for a port wine)
I used equal amounts of E&J VSOP and XO Brandy. They are usually available in most liquor stores. Cost was about $12-13 a bottle.
Remember this has a flavor reserve pack that gets added after it clears as well. You will need one bottle (of brandy) per gallon of finished wine (assuming it fermented to dry) to bring it up to ~19% ABV (which is very common for a port wine)
I used equal amounts of E&J VSOP and XO Brandy. They are usually available in most liquor stores. Cost was about $12-13 a bottle.
So your saying this will be one of those "quickie weddings" ! Don't forget to add the Sorbate on this one since it gets back sweetened.
Similar threads
