Sorbate

[mmadmikes1]

I haven't seen sobate discussed much so I am putting this out there. I do not add sorbate to any wine I ferment dry and dont back sweeten. It is not needed and if I goof and add even a little to much. I can taste it. For the purist that want to add as little as possible to their wine, this is good to know. I would love to have a good yeast that is only 13% tolerant then I could make great fruit wines with out backsweeting. Anyone want to let me in on 1. I still add k-meta because it prevents oxidation.

 

[Julie]

Well what about using bread yeast?

 

[JohnT]

First off, I am not a big fan of sweet wines (with the exception of port).

That being said, Never have a need for sorbate. I age my wine for two years and maintain (after fermentation and MLF) around 60 ppm of s02. I have never has a gas problem and the wine clarity never seems to diminish.

With port, I fortify it to 20% apv. This is enough to kill just about every yeast strain out there.

This year, however, I am attempting skeeter pee for the first time and the recipe call for sorbate and also back sweetening.... Uncharted territory!


I know that there are wine yeasts that are low alcohal producers. There is a grid that has been floating around this site (from time to time) that IDs the more popular yeast strains and their characteristics. .. Here is the link ..


http://www.lallemandwine.us/products/yeast_chart.php
johnT.

 

[winemaker_3352]

Lalvin ICV D-47 and 71B-1122 are ones that i use alot - they are only tolerant upt to 14%.

 

[mmadmikes1]

I have use the 71B-1122 already with fruits and Chardonnay. I will try bread yeast. 14% is still higher than I like for berries. High ABVtakes away from taste...alot

 

[Wade E]

Even if the yeast says its only good to 13 or even if it said 10% I wouldnt sweeten the wine without stabilizing it with sulfite and sorbate! Unless you sterile filter your wine the yeast can still start back up at a later time as you dont truly know if the yeast is exhausted or not.

 

[mmadmikes1]

Trying to avoid backsweeting all together, Wade. If I add sugar, it gets sorbate and K-Keta.
I tried using my filter to sterile filter. and the .05 micron pads must o9f let some yeast though because cooks popped. That was a a while back and the filter and no chemical mentality is since gone

 

[Ernest T Bass]

No Sorbate Added

I've been looking at a lot of wines in the stores and most of them say "No Sorbate Added". What are they trying to tell me? Is that good or bad, I figure it must be good. Sounds like they are saying that their wine is soo good it doesn't need Sorbate????

Simper Fi

 

[Runningwolf]

It is telling you either they did not back sweeten or else they used a sterile filtration process to eliminate all yeast.

 

[Ernest T Bass]

I stopped at a winery in South Dakota last week and tasted their wine. No Sorbate added. Not only did they not back sweeten, I don't think they used any sugar, it was a wonder fruit and to me it tasted awlful. I was afraid Sorbate would make my wine taste like that. Thanks for the answer.

Semper Fi

 

[Wade E]

.5 is not good enough unless it is an "Absolute" filter. Not just any .50 micron filter will work believe it or not. They are very expensive but can be reused. Here is a link to one you could use in a whole house filter set up on top and the lower one is for an Enolmatic.
Read what it says after clicking the second link about sterile filtering.

http://valleyvintner.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=WE-30-4885&Category_Code=PF

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/5-micron-enolmatic-wine-filter-one-half-micron.html

 

[mmadmikes1]

.5 is not good enough unless it is an "Absolute" filter. Not just any .50 micron filter will work believe it or not. They are very expensive but can be reused. Here is a link to one you could use in a whole house filter set up on top and the lower one is for an Enolmatic.
Read what it says after clicking the second link about sterile filtering.

http://valleyvintner.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=WE-30-4885&Category_Code=PF

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/5-micron-enolmatic-wine-filter-one-half-micron.html

Wade,l I learned that the hard way already. Like most of what I have learned in my life.
Back to sorbate, if i use a low alcohol tolerance yeasts and get my Starting sg down to where it finishes with sugars left and yeast dead from alcohol poisoning, then end result will be a semi sweet wine with out sorbate or need to back sweetin. I will get it worked out. or I could use a calculator and do some math. I can get close that way and may need several tries to get it right. But I will get it. Then I will post a semi sweet raspberry recipe without sorbate or f-pac