Sulphite Additions

Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum

Help Support Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

kuziwk

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 12, 2017
Messages
484
Reaction score
104
I know this has been asked a thousand times. I think I have those down to a T but I want to make sure my wines are getting enough sulphites. Upon adding 4G of Sulphites during degassing and clearing, I rack in roughly three weeks for bulk aging after that and let it sit for 2 months more before either racking or bulk aging further. At this point I add an additional 1/4 tsp even if I'm bottling. Is this sufficient for the Sulphites or should I be adding more after racking from clearing? If I was looking to bulk age further which I am, I don't anticipate racking any further so is the wine safe to sit for 6 months in this state with no sulphite Additions?

Example of what I do (basically Sulphites every 3 months)
January-Clearing and degassing -4G sulphite
February- rack wine into carboy, no Sulphites
March- aging, no sulphites
April- rack wine and add 1/4 tsp sulphites

If this is fine do I need to add more Sulphites if the wine is not being racked further past this say in 6 months? I would think racking is not required since I don't imagine much sediment dropping after the last racking at the initial 3 months.
 
Not sure if what I do is right or wrong, but it seems to work out just fine. I first add So2 at clearing and degassing. Let it sit for a month or so, rack and So2 again, plus any oak additions. Then it sits untouched for about six months (whites) or a year (reds). About a month prior to bottling I rack and So2 again. Then bottle. I have plenty of wines that are 4-5 years old without any signs of excessive oxidation.
 
Not sure if what I do is right or wrong, but it seems to work out just fine. I first add So2 at clearing and degassing. Let it sit for a month or so, rack and So2 again, plus any oak additions. Then it sits untouched for about six months (whites) or a year (reds). About a month prior to bottling I rack and So2 again. Then bottle. I have plenty of wines that are 4-5 years old without any signs of excessive oxidation.
So should I be adding the 1/4tsp sooner than? Technically I'm racking after clearing I just thought the initial 4G which is basically 3/4 tsp would be enought to hold for three months before adding another 1/4tsp. Anyways this was the link that got me thinking...https://www.winemakingtalk.com/threads/time-for-a-radical-departure-in-bulk-aging-rules.27936/page-3
 
So should I be adding the 1/4tsp sooner than? Technically I'm racking after clearing I just thought the initial 4G which is basically 3/4 tsp would be enought to hold for three months before adding another 1/4tsp. Anyways this was the link that got me thinking...https://www.winemakingtalk.com/threads/time-for-a-radical-departure-in-bulk-aging-rules.27936/page-3
Sounds like what you're doing is fine. The reason I add the second dose so soon after clearing is because I don't want to touch it, or rack it again for 6 months to a year. The third dose is just prior to bottling, where it will sit for another 6 months (whites) or 1 year (reds) before I start to drink them.
 
Sounds like what you're doing is fine. The reason I add the second dose so soon after clearing is because I don't want to touch it, or rack it again for 6 months to a year. The third dose is just prior to bottling, where it will sit for another 6 months (whites) or 1 year (reds) before I start to drink them.
Yeah that makes sense, I do add another 1/4 tsp before bottling, so it basically means 1/4 tsp after the initial package dose every 3 months regardless if I'm bottling. There is some sulphite aroma once bottled but it goes away in about a month. If I bottle only a month or so after that last addition I would just use 1/8 of a teaspoon.

So you leave the wine for 6 months with no further additions with a standard water air lock?
 
Last edited:
Yeah that makes sense, I do add another 1/4 tsp before bottling, so it basically means 1/4 tsp after the initial package dose every 3 months regardless if I'm bottling. There is some sulphite aroma once bottled but it goes away in about a month. If I bottle only a month or so after that last addition I would just use 1/8 of a teaspoon.

So you leave the wine for 6 months with no further additions with a standard water air lock?
I use these: https://morewinemaking.com/products/silicone-stopper-breathable-carboy.html
 
These are safer? I heard when you have temperature fluctuations that the water air locks tend to lose a lot of Sulphites (winter temps to summer)...I guess these would be the same though.

To be honest after I racked from the initial clearing it doesn't even really look like I need to rack again, I can't really see any sediment from the side. Should I just inject the Sulphites in the too?
 
Last edited:
These are safer? I heard when you have temperature fluctuations that the water air locks tend to lose a lot of Sulphites (winter temps to summer)...I guess these would be the same though.
These are way better than water airlocks.
 
These are safer? I heard when you have temperature fluctuations that the water air locks tend to lose a lot of Sulphites (winter temps to summer)...?
Silicone stoppers don’t give a perfect seal, when I have put them on a flexible wall Cubitainer (ex storage between last racking and bottling) they will allow the cubitainer to reinflate to a square shape over night. As a comparison I have left wine in a cubitainer six months, using a solid stopper, without noticeable inflation to square shape.
I have been happy with silicon mainly when active fermentation is going on.

The airlock issue I have had is forgetting to check carboys in long term storage/ie the airlock goes dry. Some place here in WMT I saw the trick of using glycerin, which doesn’t evaporate, in the airlock.
 
Last edited:
JohnD, do you use the breathable silicon bung you referred to for 6 gallon carboys for long term aging (6-24 months) of reds And whites or Fruit wines? I’m assuming you do.
Thanks Keith
 
JohnD, do you use the breathable silicon bung you referred to for 6 gallon carboys for long term aging (6-24 months) of reds And whites or Fruit wines? I’m assuming you do.
Thanks Keith

Yes, have had them on 6 gallon glass carboys for years, as well as my 6 gallon vadai barrels. The soft white silicone bungs from MoreWine are unlike the more yellowish ones, they fit like a glove in carboys and barrels and are trouble free.
 
I'll have to pick up a few of those stoppers. So the general consensus is that if you aren't racking there is no need to add 1/4 tsp every 3months? I'm planning on bulk aging a limited edition super Tuscan for a year, doing a side by side comparison of the same kit with clearing agents and one without, which is why I'm trying to get the sulphite additions down.
 
or you could buy direct for 1/2 the price. ask for roger

vintable.com
 
Back
Top