Should I now add my Metabisulfite ?

[DaDzWinery]

I racked my wine from the primary yesterday when the SG was at 1.026 .. tonight checking temp and SG has dropped down to 1.000 , should i add my Sodium metabisulfite now to kill the yeast ? or whats the next step.. I am assuming i need to do it quick.. is it normal for wine to ferment to 1.000 in just 6 days ? lol ...

 

[jtstar]

you just move your wine from the primary to the secondary right if so don't worry about it let it sit for a month then rack again

 

[DaDzWinery]

you just move your wine from the primary to the secondary right if so don't worry about it let it sit for a month then rack again

Just making sure i didn't have to kill the yeast and all now that the SG is down below 1.000. so the yeast will die off ? i have probably read this somewhere, and now it's all happening and I'm freaking out.. lol btw just started a couple batches of 1 gallon Hard Ciders ... mmmmm. I love this hobby

 

[jtstar]

No just let it sit and clear for the next month then rack again and let it sit for another month then you can go ahead and add your sulfite and sorbate if your going to back sweeten and if you do back sweeten wait at least one more week before bottleing

 

[DaDzWinery]

No just let it sit and clear for the next month then rack again and let it sit for another month then you can go ahead and add your sulfite and sorbate if your going to back sweeten and if you do back sweeten wait at least one more week before bottleing

K .. thanks alot, and thanks for replying quickly... It's great having people to turn to when you need help right then you know..

 

[rhoffart]

No just let it sit and clear for the next month then rack again and let it sit for another month then you can go ahead and add your sulfite and sorbate if your going to back sweeten and if you do back sweeten wait at least one more week before bottleing

Do you want it to sit a month before adding sulfites?

 

[robie]

We don't know what type of wine it is. Kit wine? red/white?

Some people like to let the wine set for an extended period in secondary. It is a personal preference. I prefer not to let it set that long, especially on heavier lees.

Your present SG is 1.000. I would let it stay in secondary at least another 4 more days. Then I would check the SG; wait another full two days and check it again. If SG has changed, wait another day and repeat. If the SG has not changed in that three day period, your fermentation is finished; you can move on to the next step, which should be stabilizing with Kmeta and, depending on your instructions, likely racking and adding clarifier(s). Your instructions might call for sorbate and clearing agents, so just follow them.

If you don't have any instructions, once fermentation is finished, add Kmeta into a clean carboy; rack wine into that carboy. If you are going to add sorbate, add it now and stir very well. If you are going to add a clarifier, add it next. Let wine clear for about 4 to 6 weeks. Once clear, you can bottle or age longer in carboy.

 

[DaDzWinery]

We don't know what type of wine it is. Kit wine? red/white?

Some people like to let the wine set for an extended period in secondary. It is a personal preference. I prefer not to let it set that long, especially on heavier lees.

Your present SG is 1.000. I would let it stay in secondary at least another 4 more days. Then I would check the SG; wait another full two days and check it again. If SG has changed, wait another day and repeat. If the SG has not changed in that three day period, your fermentation is finished; you can move on to the next step, which should be stabilizing with Kmeta and, depending on your instructions, likely racking and adding clarifier(s). Your instructions might call for sorbate and clearing agents, so just follow them.

If you don't have any instructions, once fermentation is finished, add Kmeta into a clean carboy; rack wine into that carboy. If you are going to add sorbate, add it now and stir very well. If you are going to add a clarifier, add it next. Let wine clear for about 4 to 6 weeks. Once clear, you can bottle or age longer in carboy.

It's a welches concord grape juice ( bottle ) , my first btw.. and going off a recipe book.. It has nothing about clarifying ( but i am ) So i just add the right amount of Sodium Metabisulfite and Potassium Sorbate, degas at this time, then couple days later i can add the Icinglass( clearing agent ) ? is that the right steps.. and what your saying is wait till its clear to backweenten.. ? And I'll do all this once the SG has reach a stand still right ? sorry for the 101 Q's, just making sure..

 

[robie]

It's a welches concord grape juice ( bottle ) , my first btw.. and going off a recipe book.. It has nothing about clarifying ( but i am ) So i just add the right amount of Sodium Metabisulfite and Potassium Sorbate, degas at this time, then couple days later i can add the Icinglass( clearing agent ) ? is that the right steps.. and what your saying is wait till its clear to backweenten.. ? And I'll do all this once the SG has reach a stand still right ? sorry for the 101 Q's, just making sure..

Yes, after the wine is completely dry (SG has stopped falling).
Sweet wine, OK.
You know, I have never made a sweet wine other than wine kits, which have F packs. So, I have never simply back sweetened a wine with just sugar. The F packs are added BEFORE clearing, as there is lots of stuff that add flavor as well as sugar; much of it will fall out of the wine after adding the F pack, so clearing starts after adding the F pack.

I would assume one would also back sweeten before clearing, but someone else will have to confirm this.

You can add the clarifier within an hour after adding the very well stirred in Kmeta and sorbate. You can also degas all at the same time. Just remember that the wine will not clear well if it is not properly degassed.

 

[DaDzWinery]

Yes, after the wine is completely dry (SG has stopped falling).
Sweet wine, OK.
You know, I have never made a sweet wine other than wine kits, which have F packs. So, I have never simply back sweetened a wine with just sugar. The F packs are added BEFORE clearing, as there is lots of stuff that add flavor as well as sugar; much of it will fall out of the wine after adding the F pack, so clearing starts after adding the F pack.

I would assume one would also back sweeten before clearing, but someone else will have to confirm this.

You can add the clarifier within an hour after adding the very well stirred in Kmeta and sorbate. You can also degas all at the same time. Just remember that the wine will not clear well if it is not properly degassed.

Yea i get to try the nifty looking " Whip" out for degassing, made a run to the supply store and picked up some more equipment, more stoppers, degasser whip, spoons, airlocs, etc, etc, etc, etc .. yeah it kept going... lol .. when you say kmeta, you meant Sodium/potassium "META"bilsulfite right ?

 

[SBWs]

Basic Steps

My BLOG has the basic steps I use to make Country Fruit Wines. If you read it you will see I use about a 7 month process start to bottle. One of the reasons is it is very hard to get the sweetness right in a new wine. One tends to over sweeten to cover the harshness. Then as the wine mello's out it becomes over sweet.

 

[robie]

when you say kmeta, you meant Sodium/potassium "META"bilsulfite right ?

Yes, Potassium is better.

 

[DaDzWinery]

Yes, Potassium is better.

K. thanks... Yeah i heard The potassium is better, buut i have some sodium to use up first... I found out after.