Wine goes frizzy?

[rainayeh]

A few weeks ago I bottled my wine, Pinot Grigio, which I made from pure juice from a local supplier. Done this many times with excellent results. The ph before I bottled was perfect and I gave it another week anyway.
I just started opening the bottles to drink but I noticed the wine has gone frizzy, produces a Laotian of bubbles like soda water and tastes frizzy. I opened more bottles and got same results. Not sure what went wrong, any ideas?

 

[Boatboy24]

Did you take a hydrometer reading before bottling? Were your sulfite levels sufficient?

It sounds like it is still (or restarted) fermenting.

 

[JohnT]

This can happen.

Here are a couple of questions for you

1) Did you degas the wine before bottling?
2) How old was the wine when you bottled?
3) was there residual sugar?
4) did you stabilize or dose with sorbate?
5) is there any sediment in the bottles, how clear is the wine?

 

[rainayeh]

I took hydrometer readings at every step and followed my process as I had done at least 10 batches earlier, all were excellent results.
One more item. When I started this batch I started three others at the same time, one was also Pinot Grigio, the other two were reds. The second Pinot Grigio also suffered same problem. The reds are doing great no problems.
The Pinot Grigio bottles did show some sediment which surprised me since the wine was crystal clear when I bottled it.
The kit I use is from a local supplier who sells juice only no kits. So the process is very simple. No degassing required and in most cases no stabilizing if you take your time. The vendor imports the juice In pales from California and ensures balancing and sugar content, the rest is to allow it to ferment in controlled conditions, always worked before.
I am beginning to suspect that it may have started fermenting again because of the sediment. Really frustrating. Have to start all over again with a new batch.

 

[JohnT]

I took hydrometer readings at every step and followed my process as I had done at least 10 batches earlier, all were excellent results.
One more item. When I started this batch I started three others at the same time, one was also Pinot Grigio, the other two were reds. The second Pinot Grigio also suffered same problem. The reds are doing great no problems.
The Pinot Grigio bottles did show some sediment which surprised me since the wine was crystal clear when I bottled it.
The kit I use is from a local supplier who sells juice only no kits. So the process is very simple. No degassing required and in most cases no stabilizing if you take your time. The vendor imports the juice In pales from California and ensures balancing and sugar content, the rest is to allow it to ferment in controlled conditions, always worked before.
I am beginning to suspect that it may have started fermenting again because of the sediment. Really frustrating. Have to start all over again with a new batch.

I would say that you are most likely correct, that the wine did ferment a little in the bottle.

I find that white wines, are a little more vulnerable to this than whites. You could simply open each bottle into a carboy, add sorbate, allow the wine to resettle, and then re-bottle it.

I age my wines for up to two years to ensure that gas issues have work themselves out of the wine. I would make it a point to de-gas and also give the wine a little more time or use sorbate in the future.

 

[rainayeh]

Thanx, I am thinking a little more patience on my part would have been necessary. Unfortunately I already started dumping the wine, worried it may be spoiled.
I will be picking up a new batch soon to get it started for late summer use.
I always worry about leaving it too long in the carboy. Any opinion on this?
Should you bottle your wine as soon as it is ready or let it age longer in the carboy before bottling?

One final question. Any opinion on what is better, wine from kits, concentrates etc. or wine from juice pales. I did both but love the juice pales as it seems to taste much better.

 

[JohnT]

Thanx, I am thinking a little more patience on my part would have been necessary. Unfortunately I already started dumping the wine, worried it may be spoiled.
I will be picking up a new batch soon to get it started for late summer use.
I always worry about leaving it too long in the carboy. Any opinion on this?
Should you bottle your wine as soon as it is ready or let it age longer in the carboy before bottling?

One final question. Any opinion on what is better, wine from kits, concentrates etc. or wine from juice pales. I did both but love the juice pales as it seems to taste much better.

You ask a lot....

OK,

As far as leaving the wine on the carboy (or bulk ageing), this is a matter of opinion. I have had batches that I left in carboys for 5 or more years without any problems (these were top off batches for my VCSS tanks).

I am never in a rush to bottle. I have never bottled any wine younger than 11 months (and these were white wines).

In my opinion, Wine from fresh fruit is simply the best.

Wine from juice pails tends to be OK for whites, but will yield a lighter red wine with a whole lot less body. Many here actually get a single crate of fresh grapes to mix with their pail juice to increase color and body.

Kits are kits. There are kits then there are KITS. High end kits can produce some rather spectacular wines, but on a cost/bottle basis, they are much more expensive.

 

[rainayeh]

Thanx. You're right, I do ask a lot, forgive the bad habit.
I have been lucky so far in my winemaking so when I hit a snag it catches me off guard. Will be more careful next batch.
Thanx all for your help.

 

[Boatboy24]

Thanx. You're right, I do ask a lot, forgive the bad habit.
I have been lucky so far in my winemaking so when I hit a snag it catches me off guard. Will be more careful next batch.
Thanx all for your help.

Asking questions is good - that's why we are all here.

Two simple steps to avoid this issue:

1) Make certain fermentation is complete by using a hydrometer. If your SG is below 1.000 and remains the same for 3 or more days, you're done. If both conditions are not met, leave it in the carboy until they are.
2) IF you backsweeten in ANY way, be sure to use a proper dose of Potassium Sorbate, along with sufficient KMeta.

 

[BernardSmith]

As one who makes wines from fruits and flowers and from honey but not from grapes ( so take what I say with a small dose of salt - Sodium is not good for you), I would say that if you are getting any sediment in your bottles then you are likely bottling too soon. Better to let the sediment drop out in your carboy than in your bottle.

 

[JohnT]

Asking questions is good - that's why we are all here.

Two simple steps to avoid this issue:

1) Make certain fermentation is complete by using a hydrometer. If your SG is below 1.000 and remains the same for 3 or more days, you're done. If both conditions are not met, leave it in the carboy until they are.
2) IF you backsweeten in ANY way, be sure to use a proper dose of Potassium Sorbate, along with sufficient KMeta.

Agreed BB,

You can never ask too much and I really do not mind answering any question. All I was saying was that the question covered a rather broad topic. I hope not offense was taken or received by my last comment..


That being said..

I would add that just because a wine has stopped fermenting at 1.0 for 3 days, does not mean that fermentation will not restart. at 1.0, your wine could simply have a stalled/dormant fermentation and just a tiny bit of residual sugar.

I have seen this several times. Issues arise when the wine is bottled and afterwards warmed to, say, above 65 degrees. This is enough to revive the yeast that is still very present in your wine. The yeast consumes that remaining tiny bit of sugar then dies. This will produce both CO2 and a new precipitation of sediment.

The only way to effectively combat this is to either let the wine age over a long period of time, warm the wine to 70 or 75 degrees over a rather short period of time, or stabilize the wine using k-meta or sorbate.

 

[rainayeh]

I keep the wine in my cold cellar which maintains a cold temp of 10 to 12 deg C.

I think in this case the problem was that I bottled too soon and didn't do a good job. Although the wine was clear and the SG was below 1. In my other batches I waited another two to three weeks and racked the wine several times to make sure no sediment was left. I have to admit this time, I didn't do this. I bottled almost within days of reaching 1. And I didn't rack to make sure no sediment was left behind.
Oh well live and learn. I have a batch going now using a kit, which was a desparate move to make sure I had some for early summer. I will be picking up two batches on Monday from my juice supplier and will baby it like gold.
Thanx folks, your comments were very helpful and appreciated. Hope spring starts soon.