Racking

[Ernest T Bass]

As I understand "Racking", it means to "Syphon" (or how-ever you spell it).
My question is: The must is open to air for about a week, so why can't I just pour the must (less the krud) into the carboy and then install the air lock? After it is once put in the carboy, then don't let it be exposed to the air any more than nessary.

Semper Fi

 

[Wade E]

I dont recommend this as it exposes your wine to too much 02. Others do use this method to degas their wine at the same time but for someone with little experience you might oxidize your wine too much thus ruining it.

 

[cpfan]

As I understand "Racking", it means to "Syphon" (or how-ever you spell it).
My question is: The must is open to air for about a week, so why can't I just pour the must (less the krud) into the carboy and then install the air lock? After it is once put in the carboy, then don't let it be exposed to the air any more than nessary.

Semper Fi

Bud:

1) Are we talking 1 gallon or 6 gallons? I'm not planning on picking up 6 gallons and pouring carefully into a carboy. IMO, it'll be all over the place, even if you have a large funnel. One gallon maybe, but I don't think I own a big enough funnel.

2) Strong odds that the sediment (aka the krud) will be disturbed a lot. I'm not that worried about getting sediment into the carboy at that point, but it's not really necessary.

3) I've got a nice auto-syphon rig that I like to use. Actually I have three sizes. Large, uses 7/16" id hose and is great for this step and transferring carboy to carboy. Regular, with 5/16" hose, which I use for bottling. Mini, which has a short stem and uses 5/16" hose that is great for 1 gallon sizes.

Steve

 

[Wade E]

Like Cpfan says, if you dont have an auto siphon this is one tool I highly recommend for a few bucks and it will make your life really easy. From bucket to carboy I just use a spigot mounted on the bucket but for carboy to carboy the auto siphon is awesome.
http://www.finevinewines.com/ProdDetA.asp?PartNumber=4877

 

[Drez]

And miss out on the samples you get from siphoning, no way

 

[djrockinsteve]

As I understand "Racking", it means to "Syphon" (or how-ever you spell it).
My question is: The must is open to air for about a week, so why can't I just pour the must (less the krud) into the carboy and then install the air lock? After it is once put in the carboy, then don't let it be exposed to the air any more than nessary.

Semper Fi

Bud I am one of those who "splash rack" their wine into a carboy. I will add 1/4 teaspoon of sulfite into the carboy, there is a few drops of water left in from rinsing out to disolve the sulfite.

I place a large funnel with a screen in it, carefully lift my 6 gallon bucket and pour the wine in to the shoulders. I'll add a hot mix of 8 ounces of water with 4 teaspoons of sparkolloid. Vigorisly stir the mix (degassing some) for a few seconds. Top off with more wine plus the last 2 ounces of hot water mix and 1 teaspoon sparkolloid. Slightly stir top few inches and airlock.

I'll see clearing within a few hours. Next time I rack (siphon this time) will be in 4 -6 weeks, add pinch of sulfite and bulk age.

This is how I was taught and I have been doing some research lately and have found that adding some oxygen at this time is helpful to reds and whites can tolerate it.

Wade is correct if you don't know what you are doing you can actually harm your wine. With the large funnel I have no spillage aside from a drop or two, maybe.

 

[jboyer]

That is sort of what I've done on my first few batches of wine fruit wine. My primary fermenters were large so I was unable to lift and pour them. I also free floated my fruit pulp and skins. At the end of primary fermentation I used a large plastic pitcher to dip out the wine and pulp. I then poured through new sanitized white pillowcases. The pillowcases filter the wine really well believe it or not. Most of the wine will run through easily enough. Some will be left in then with a lot of pulp as the pulp begins to clog the holes but not come out of the pillow cases. I then squeeze and twist the pillowcase some more as to press the skins and extract everythiing I can but the crud. Ofcourse make sure your hands have been sanitized as well. Every once in a while I will turn the pillowcase inside out and rinse off the crap then resanitize. The thing will be literally full of crud when I do this. I hold the pillowcases inside a sanitized 7 gallon bucket which has a spicket while I'm filtering like this. The lid on my primary is only left open while I'm getting some out of it. Otherwise I keep it snapped shut. The end result seems to work out well especially on my plum wine which had a ton of pulp I filtered out like this. The 6.5 gallon carboy's I have in secondary fermentation only have about 1.5 to 2 inches settlement in them. I run the entire contents of the primary through like this as to get all the yeast and ensure good secondary fermentation. My theory is this should'nt hurt b/c I'm only transferring from the primary over to carboy not carboy to carboy. If I was racking from carboy to carboy I would use siphon.

 

[Ernest T Bass]

Here is what I did, do you think my wine is ruined? I have 5 batches working and all of them were done the same way.
5 Gallons of Pear- it's setting there waiting for it to clear, it has very little
taste, if any at all, but it's sweet and has some acohol.
1 Gallon of Red Grapes- waiting to clear
4 Gallons of muscadine- in carboy and working
1 Gallon Peach- in carboy and working
4 Gallons Mixed Grapes-working in must = 3# Red & 7# Green

From the container (Plastic) to the carboy:
4 & 5 Gallon batches - Used a fruit jar and dipped the must out and poured thru a strainer into a funnel stuck in the carboy. When I got to the krud (lees, I guess that's what we call them) I just picked them up and put them in the strainer and kinda pressed the juice out, and put a air lock on them.
1 Gallon batches - Pretty much the same way, except it was easier.
I stole a taste of the Red Grape, Muscadine and Peach when I transferred them and they taste pretty good. The Muscadine has 2 or 3 inches of krud resting in the bottom, as soon as it quits working I'll rach it to get rid of the krud. It's the Pear that doesn't have any taste.

Semper Fi

 

[jboyer]

Sounds good, I'm sure your wine will be ok. I tried using a strainer and cheese cloths but I think it would have taken forever. I had to filter around 25 gallons of primary at one time. With the pillowcase I could pour and filter about 2 gallons in it at once. I didn't see a lot of lees at the bottom of my primary. This may be because I kept it stirred up real well when transferring. I did this to have the same concentration of everything in each carboy. Pressed some skins for each and hopefully about the same amount of yeast in each. Ended up with 3 full 6.5 gallon carboys. The rest was pulp and skins. I also plan on racking off the 2 inches of settlement I have when it quits working.

 

[djrockinsteve]

When you transfer your wine do not transfer any of the lees (1 exception). The remaining yeasts and skeletons will begin decomposing and sour your wine. What little does transfer over you will get rid of in a month or so with the sediment that has fallen out of your wine.

The only exception is if you pour the liquid part of the lees (wine mixed in) from either 1 or multiple batchs into a carboy, airlock and place in the refer. for a few days. The sediment will fall leaving behind anotherbottle or two of wine you can sample or place in a magnum or 1/2 gal. carboy and clear like the rest. Use your sediment for skeeter pee or to clean your drains.

Don't stir up your gross lees before racking. Any lees that appear during "aging" can be stirred up to help the flavor.

 

[jboyer]

I also read on here that a colony of yeast usually is down near the bottom of the primary and you risk having possible stuck fermentation if you do not get to any of those. I don't see where it would hurt to stir from primary to secondary when your transferring. I'm filtering anyway and you usually rack in a couple more weeks when fermentation ends and then I would'nt stir or rack over any lees/settlements.

 

[Ernest T Bass]

Auto Siphon

Got my auto siphon today at the wine supply shop. $12.00.
Your local suppliers are like your teeth, ignore them and they will go away

Semper Fi

 

[djrockinsteve]

I also read on here that a colony of yeast usually is down near the bottom of the primary and you risk having possible stuck fermentation if you do not get to any of those. I don't see where it would hurt to stir from primary to secondary when your transferring. I'm filtering anyway and you usually rack in a couple more weeks when fermentation ends and then I would'nt stir or rack over any lees/settlements.

If you are going to continue fermentation in a carboy then yes you would stir up some of the yeast in the bottom. There are a lot of viable yeasts down there.

I don't ferment that way so I do not transfer over any sediment.

 

[Ernest T Bass]

Lees

Are lees the krud that settles out in the bottom of the first fermentation and also the krud that settles out in the carboy ?

Semper Fi

 

[BobF]

Bud, watch this and see what you think:
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0wzQXrvcMw&feature=player_embedded[/ame]

 

[djrockinsteve]

Are lees the krud that settles out in the bottom of the first fermentation and also the krud that settles out in the carboy ?

Semper Fi

Bud, yes. The "gross lees" are the dead yeast cells, sediment, living yeasts, pulp, skin etc. that settle out during your primary fermentation.

Later on the "lees" that settle out can actually be beneficial to your wine if you stir them up. Chardonnay becomes better when this is done.

Your gross lees will begin to decompose shortly after falling off which will give your wine a bad taste/odor which is why we rack them off. The lees that fallout months later (if any) won't hurt. These are usually barely noticible ontop of the oak or bottom of carboy.