Signs that the primary may be finished

[Rocky]

You chose a good yeast for high alcohol. I am not sure what caused the stress, but keep it under airlock for now. Is there any sign of fermentation, i.e. bubbling in the airlock? I would take it one step at a time. Finish the fermentation and then if there is still the H2S smell, address that by one or a combination of the following: stirring, splash racking or introducing copper in some form to take up the sulfur. Then you could proceed to stabilizing, clearing and back-sweetening.

 

[arza]

Was this under air lock from the start?

yes from the start. even the first day after i put in the tablets

 

[arza]

You chose a good yeast for high alcohol. I am not sure what caused the stress, but keep it under airlock for now. Is there any sign of fermentation, i.e. bubbling in the airlock? I would take it one step at a time. Finish the fermentation and then if there is still the H2S smell, address that by one or a combination of the following: stirring, splash racking or introducing copper in some form to take up the sulfur. Then you could proceed to stabilizing, clearing and back-sweetening.

its in the carboy now, its been sitting now after stirring for about 2 hours. very few bubbles in the airlock. i counted one in five min. there is a light white film/tiny stagnate bubbles over the must. also i see no activity in the must. no rising bubbles. note there seems to be some kind of separation going on. there is a very thin layer, about half an inch of more transparent liquid that the juice below it. this is something that wasn't present in the first carboy before i transported it in to the second

 

[Rocky]

Arza, do you have the carboy topped off, meaning about an inch or two from the wine to the bottom of the sotpper? Is there still an H2S odor? Could the transparent liquid on top just be the wine clearing by settling? Keep it under airlock, keep it topped off for now.

 

[tjbryner]

yes from the start. even the first day after i put in the tablets

If it was under air lock from the very beginning then that could have stressed the yeast , With very little O2.

 

[Geronimo]

With beer brewing, many of the yeasts produce sulphur smell and it is normal. I'm sort of surprised that wine is different in this regard, but it's good to know that.

Personally after 10+ years of brewing, the only indicator I'll ever use to indicate if fermentation is complete is my hydrometer. Not only do I want to reach my expected FG (or very near it) but I want the same reading 2 or 3 days later. I see that many people rack after they get within 10 points of the FG (and many of the instructions I've read indicate that) but I'm a strong proponent of leaving the primary alone until it's finished. Yeast can produce by products that they will clean up in the end if given the time. Hurrying from primary to secondary is almost always a mistake IMO.

I get the best results by following a few simple steps in this order.

1) Treat your water for chlorine/chloramines.
2) Practice the best sanitation you can
3) Aerate the must and use yeast nutrient.
4) Use the right amount of water. This is critical for the desired fermentation and final product.
5) Add yeast once the correct temp is established, as soon as is practical. Yeast protect the fermentation. Waiting a few days to innoculate the must is begging for bacteria to take hold.
6) Maintain the desired temp every day.

If you do these things, the primary will be over in a short time and end cleanly.

 

[shoebiedoo]

1) Treat your water for chlorine/chloramines.

If you do these things, the primary will be over in a short time and end cleanly.

Can I assume this can be done with simple de-chlorinators found in the aquarium hobby? To date I haven't had any issues with water, at least not that I know of)

 

[Rocky]

I would be reluctant to add any extraneous chemicals to wine. If you are concerned about your tap water, I would recommend buying Spring Water. In general, if your water is good to drink, it is good for making wine.

 

[ibglowin]

I have been thinking about using one of the PUR Water Filters for treating my winemaking water. Have one at work and the water taste fantastic coming out of it. They will easily do 40 Gallons of water per filter.

These are about the only 2 stage water filters out there for home use that are inexpensive. Most of the other ones are single stage filters. They do a fantastic job at removing chlorine and chlorine by-products as well as heavy metals, sediment, microbial cysts, agricultural and industrial pollutants.

You can do a whole gallon in about 30 minutes. Cost breaks down to about $0.10 a gallon compared to $0.40 at my local supermarket.

Can I assume this can be done with simple de-chlorinators found in the aquarium hobby? To date I haven't had any issues with water, at least not that I know of)

 

[arza]

Arza, do you have the carboy topped off, meaning about an inch or two from the wine to the bottom of the sotpper? Is there still an H2S odor? Could the transparent liquid on top just be the wine clearing by settling? Keep it under airlock, keep it topped off for now.

it is not topped off to that point. id say more around 4in from the bung/stopper. should i add water to top it off? there is still a slight odor but it seems as if stirring it last night lessened it. at this point the more transparent liguid is taking up 1/3 of the carboy. the transparent liquid could possibly be the wine clearing. but it seems as if that is quite fast from what ive read.

also i would like to add that there is no head on the top of the wine. no bubbling at this point.

 

[Rocky]

Arza, with the alcohol level that I think you have there is little danger of "diluting" the wine, so I would top off with water. The wine could be clearing because in stirring it last night, you at leat partially de-gassed the wine which aids in clearing. Is there noticable sediment building up on the bottom of the carboy? If so, itis clearing. Keep it under airlock at all times that you are not woriking on the wine.

 

[arza]

Arza, with the alcohol level that I think you have there is little danger of "diluting" the wine, so I would top off with water. The wine could be clearing because in stirring it last night, you at leat partially de-gassed the wine which aids in clearing. Is there noticable sediment building up on the bottom of the carboy? If so, itis clearing. Keep it under airlock at all times that you are not woriking on the wine.

there is sediment.... i added water, attached airlock.

so at this point do i leave it alone for a couple of weeks? while checking the sg of course and always making sure i have the airlock on. if so i would like to start another thread about sweetening the wine after its finished clearing fully.

 

[Rocky]

I would let it go for a few days. Monitor the H2S smell and give it another stirring if it is prevalent. Don't worry, it will settle out again very quickly. If the smell is going away, let it be.

 

[arza]

you have been quite a help. this is exciting! im glad i have the resources to do this project. ive always wanted to and what a healthy and challenging hobby it has become.

 

[Auburn-Bob]

I have a strawberry wine I'm going to rack out of the primary tonight. I have about a gallon and a half, but it's a 3 gallon carboy. I still see a few bubbles coming up in the bucket, so this should lay down a CO2 blanket when it's in the carboy. Later, I can rack it to a smaller jug when the volume reduces from taking out the sediment.

 

[LJPelletier]

it is not topped off to that point. id say more around 4in from the bung/stopper. should i add water to top it off? there is still a slight odor but it seems as if stirring it last night lessened it. at this point the more transparent liguid is taking up 1/3 of the carboy. the transparent liquid could possibly be the wine clearing. but it seems as if that is quite fast from what ive read.

also i would like to add that there is no head on the top of the wine. no bubbling at this point.

I don't think you want to add water, as that would just dilute it. As for the clearing, wow, that is very fast.

 

[arza]

i know, although i am amateur the clearing part seems really quick.

 

[Geronimo]

Can I assume this can be done with simple de-chlorinators found in the aquarium hobby? To date I haven't had any issues with water, at least not that I know of)

Frankly that's what many people use, although it says right on the bottle that it's not for human consumption. 2-3 drops of that will immediately treat 5-10 gallons (read the label).

One Campden tablet will treat 20 gallons of water overnight.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campden_tablets

If you only have chlorine (which is rare these days), just letting it sit out overnight in an open bucket will eliminate a lot of it. Chloramine, on the other hand, requires a little more. If you've ever tasted a "band-aid" taste after primary (sometimes described as plastic or medicinal taste) OR if you've had trouble getting yeast to culture such that primary takes a week or so... then you might want to try spring water or treat your tap water.

If you've never had any trouble, then forget it. A tiny bit of chloramine in your water shouldn't change the outcome of your wine. In beer brewing, where the taste is often subtle, it can matter more.