This past Sunday, I pitched the yeast on a 3-gallon batch of Vintner's Harvest Black Currant. I exactly followed the 3-gallon recipe, except my starting SG was 1.080. Per the directions, I used 3 crushed campden tablets. Equipment cleanliness and sanitation were done by the book.
Tonight, the SG was 1.020+, so I racked from the primary into a carboy. I always keep K-meta sanitizing solution in my carboys while they are not in use.
OK, so I poured all the K-meta out of a 3-gallon carboy, and allowed the carboy to drain for 3 minutes in a carboy dryer. Then I racked the wine into the carboy.
The wine had been smelling great all week. But as I was racking into the carboy, a very strong odor hit my nostrils, and made them burn a little. The odor was coming from the carboy, and it smelled like strong K-meta. For a minute, I thought I had racked into the wrong carboy (one that still had K-meta inside). But that wasn't it.
But after the racking was complete, the wine in the carboy smelled great again. Just like when it was in the primary.
It's bubbling away as I write this, so everything seems OK. I tasted it, and it seems OK. Fizzy, of course, but OK.
But why the strong K-meta smell while racking? Could it have been SO2 coming out of solution due to the "shock" of being racked?
Tonight, the SG was 1.020+, so I racked from the primary into a carboy. I always keep K-meta sanitizing solution in my carboys while they are not in use.
OK, so I poured all the K-meta out of a 3-gallon carboy, and allowed the carboy to drain for 3 minutes in a carboy dryer. Then I racked the wine into the carboy.
The wine had been smelling great all week. But as I was racking into the carboy, a very strong odor hit my nostrils, and made them burn a little. The odor was coming from the carboy, and it smelled like strong K-meta. For a minute, I thought I had racked into the wrong carboy (one that still had K-meta inside). But that wasn't it.
But after the racking was complete, the wine in the carboy smelled great again. Just like when it was in the primary.
It's bubbling away as I write this, so everything seems OK. I tasted it, and it seems OK. Fizzy, of course, but OK.
But why the strong K-meta smell while racking? Could it have been SO2 coming out of solution due to the "shock" of being racked?