When to first Rack the wine?

Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum

Help Support Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum:

111jag

Junior Member
Joined
Oct 15, 2012
Messages
8
Reaction score
2
I have 3 demigons, 2 red, 1 white and a room temperature of 21 degrees Celcius (70 degrees Fahrenheit). I did not add anything to the juice and it began fermenting quite vigorously after two days.
When should I rack for the first time? Second? and subsequent times? Should I rack both red and white at the same time? Do I have to add anything to the juice? I'm planning on filtering the last time I rack.
 

Floandgary

Bottle at a time
Joined
Dec 24, 2012
Messages
910
Reaction score
324
Whole lot of no-info there! What wines?, what hydrometer readings?, what fermenting set-up? Many instructions suggest racking to a carboy when Sg. reaches @1.010. Just as many allow fermentation to proceed till dry, @.992-.990, in the primary. There are many winemaking sites with info which explains the processes. If you browse around here, you will be able to read up on just about every aspect you may have a question about.
 

heatherd

Supporting Members
Supporting Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2014
Messages
2,440
Reaction score
2,113
Location
Maryland
I have 3 demigons, 2 red, 1 white and a room temperature of 21 degrees Celcius (70 degrees Fahrenheit). I did not add anything to the juice and it began fermenting quite vigorously after two days.
When should I rack for the first time? Second? and subsequent times? Should I rack both red and white at the same time? Do I have to add anything to the juice? I'm planning on filtering the last time I rack.

When fermentation is complete, you should have a specific gravity reading of around 0.990 for three days in a row. At that point add potassium metabisulfite. I use 1/4 teaspoon for six gallons.
 

montanaWineGuy

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 31, 2015
Messages
626
Reaction score
367
I rack from carboy to carboy the first time when the bubbles stop. I rack again when clear. Usually this is one month and one more month. I bottle when I feel like doing it, which might be another month.
 

salcoco

Veteran Wine Maker
Supporting Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2007
Messages
3,202
Reaction score
1,615
Location
Kansas
bubble are not an indicator of fermentation stages. use a hydrometer to measure the completion of fermentation. let ferment complete until sg=.990-1.000. rack. there is no specific order, just follow the numbers. rack again in three days add potassium metabisulfite, 1/4 tsp for 5 gallons. rack again in three weeks and again in three months wine should be clear.
as it seems you did not measure specific gravity at start nor did you use a yeast, your wine may not be up to any expectations.
 

Latest posts

Top