When to Bottle ?

[zigman74]

I have have my wine in demijon and seems to be all done activity and fermenting( no activity with airlock) but, still a little bubbly. How long till I bottle rest on shelf ??

I usually keep in demijon for 3-5 months.

 

[Rocky]

Zigman, what variety of wine are you making? Is it from grapes, juice or a kit? I typically leave red wines in a combination of glass and barrel for about 1 year and white wines in glass 6 months before bottling.

 

[JohnT]

The time to bottle is just before you need the equipment for the next batch.

 

[zigman74]

The time to bottle is just before you need the equipment for the next batch.

Thats what i figured. Did chilean wine this year for the first time so that would give me , that would give me 5-6 months

 

[zigman74]

Zigman, what variety of wine are you making? Is it from grapes, juice or a kit? I typically leave red wines in a combination of glass and barrel for about 1 year and white wines in glass 6 months before bottling.

Cab / merlot. From juice. Thanks

 

[Rocky]

Sounds good. I would leave it in bulk aging for a year. Of course you can sneak a "QA sample" now and then.

 

[Gr8zins]

Zigman, I have bulk aged wines for over a year and although clear and stable looking, some still had left over carbonation in them. Just try to make sure that those bubbles are gone before you bottle.

 

[saramc]

Non-kit juices have been known to go thru natural MLF, even many months down the road, in the bottles even. So very important to keep pH and SO2 in proper range, but Lysozyme is a great additive if you want to inhibit those malolactic critters.