Wait to bottle

[Gumjump]

I'm not sure if I should bottle or wait and do another racking. I am doing a Blackberry/Elderberry from 2 cans of Country Fair in a 5 gallon carboy. I have degassed it and added the 5 camden tablets and my clearer. I degassed it over the course of 3 days. Thnis was done last Friday 1/7. It doesn't seem to clear though. I can put a flashlight up to it and see halfway through. And there is some sediment on the bottom still. Should I leave it in there longer or do another rack? And if I do another rack do I need to add more camden tablets or will it be ok. I was going to let it sit until the weekend and transfer to bucket and bottle. At this stage I don't want to ruin it.

 

[Tom]

I would let it sit 2-3 weeks after you add clearing agent. What did you use? Wait till you have a "firm" sediment on the bottom before racking. Any reason you did not add Sorbate?
Patience..... X 3

 

[Gumjump]

I used the Campden Tablets because that is what the directions said to use on the can. As for the clearing agent I used LIQUID ISINGLASS 1 oz.

 

[Wade E]

Isinglass can sometimes take quite a while and doesnt usually work that well for me for some reason. If IM going to use a fining agent I use SuperKleer KC but Ive heard Sparaloid works very good to but requires boiling water which makes it a little more work then SuperKleer. Sorbate is not the same as sulfite in case you dont know. Sulfite stuns the yeast and protects against oxidation so its a good thing you added this sorbate prevents te yeast from ever fermenting again so if you have any residual sugar left in this batch or if you ever plan on sweetening a wine you need to add both.

 

[wvbrewer]

I agree with Tom, Most recipies I have tell you to give it 30 days to clear and then rack. If It has not cleared then give it 30 more. I have never used Isinglass before so I am not familliar with it.

 

[Tom]

Yep what Wade and wvbrewer said is right. I only asked @ sorbate because most "kits" say to add.
Patience and you will be rewarded.

 

[Midwest Vintner]

supleer is the best for speed. i prefer bentonite.

 

[robie]

Yes, SuperKlear works great. It is a two-part clarifier. I was told by a very experienced wine maker that you need to let part one of SuperKlear set on the wine a full hour before adding part two. I don't think the instructions say to let it set that long. You will be amazed at how fast it works.

As the others said, let it set for 2 to 3 weeks.

If you intend to bottle right after the wine clears, which I, personally, never do, I'd let it set 2 to 3 weeks, rack it one more time, let it set a couple more weeks to see if anymore sediment forms. If no more sediment, you are ready to move on to bottling. If more forms, repeat racking and waiting.

You don't want sediment in your bottles. This is one of the many reasons why I like to bulk age and never bottle right away. I don't filter my wine.

 

[robie]

As a side note, you don't have to be in a hurry to bottle unless you really need the carboy.

You likely can't drink the wine right away, anyway, so let it age in the carboy for awhile under an air lock. This way you will be sure to get rid of the sediment and any excess CO2. Most wine only needs to be transferred to a bottle about 30 days before drinking.

 

[EngineJoe]

Yes, SuperKlear works great. It is a two-part clarifier. I was told by a very experienced wine maker that you need to let part one of SuperKlear set on the wine a full hour before adding part two. I don't think the instructions say to let it set that long.

Indeed not - they say add stage one, stir vigorously for one minute, then add stage two. If an hour would be better, this would be good to know for future reference!

 

[Lurker]

I only use SuperKleer. I always wait before adding the second dose. Sometime I do it the next day. It always works within a week, but I wait about 2 or 3 weeks before racking again.

 

[rocket man]

On the packages of superkleer I have it says to wait 1 hour before adding the second part.

 

[robie]

On the packages of superkleer I have it says to wait 1 hour before adding the second part.

Guess they finally decided one hours is good. My packages just said to stir part 1 in, then add part 2

 

[Luc]

Time will clear all wines.

I think you are far to hasty. How old is this wine anyway ???
Wait a few weeks or months and you will be fine. Why the hurry ???

Did you use pectic enzyme at the start, if not add some now that might help clearing also.

Luc

 

[xoltri]

Time will clear all wines.

I think you are far to hasty. How old is this wine anyway ???
Wait a few weeks or months and you will be fine. Why the hurry ???
Luc

It's easy to be patient when you already have a bunch of wine you've made in years past. But when I was just starting out about 8 months ago I made as much wine as I could as quick as I could to get it in the bottle to age properly. Now that I have a bunch I can afford to be more patient.

 

[JohnT]

You have already answered your own question.

If you ask "should I wait to bottle", then you obviously do not thing that the wine is clear enough.

If you have to ask, then the answer is to wait!

 

[Runningwolf]

Time will clear all wines.

I think you are far to hasty. How old is this wine anyway ???
Wait a few weeks or months and you will be fine. Why the hurry ???

Did you use pectic enzyme at the start, if not add some now that might help clearing also.

Luc

Luc good to see you around again. We were asking where you were!

 

[Tom]

You have already answered your own question.

If you ask "should I wait to bottle", then you obviously do not thing that the wine is clear enough.

If you have to ask, then the answer is to wait!

John .. Very well put..

 

[Gumjump]

Thank you all for all your great advise. I just need to be more patient. I just didn't want to ruin it. I didn't use the petic enzyme at the beginning. I do have some now though, my new order came in. And I also got some Super-Kleer, so I'm all set for my next batch. On the front of the directions for the Super-Kleer it says to add 1st pkg. and then disolve wnd in water and add it. But on the back of the packs it says to waite one hour. Maybe I have a new package. I'll let you know how this batch turns out.

 

[Wade E]

They did change the instructions on this fining agent about 2 years ago or near there. I have been using the original instructiosn where you add the second part almost immediately and only one time in many years have I had a problem where it didnt work as fast so maybe its a fluke or maybe this waiting an hour between the 2 would have prevented it.