Anyone here into Wine Making?

[ShokWaveRider]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HadEnuff how warm is it where you are doing this? Too late now, but you shouldn't have racked it until you had measured SG and were dry, unless it was starting to smell like rotten eggs. You could stir it if you were worried about the sediment. Since you racked it off of the sediment, did you put it into a smaller carboy? You don't want any headspace. At this point I'd make sure there is no headspace, and make sure it's warm, and test the SG every day for a few days to see if there is any movement, before doing anything else. Enzyme won't kickstart your yeast if it's stuck, so that's a useless, maybe dangerous move at this point.

Temp is about 78*F. There is some headspace, but I cannot really do anything about that. It is starting to have bubbles on the surface but nothing out of the airlock.....

[HadEnuff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShokWaveRider Temp is about 78*F. There is some headspace, but I cannot really do anything about that. It is starting to have bubbles on the surface but nothing out of the airlock.....

Is the temp of the wine 78? If so you could try to warm it up to 85 and see if that helps. Don't obsess over the bubbles. Use your hydrometer to tell you if fermentation is ongoing, or not.

If fermentation is ongoing, albeit slowly, which is typical late in the process,you are still producing some CO2, so your headspace is not too dangerous now. However, as it slows down, the headspace will become more and more occupied with O2, which will lead to oxidation of the wine.

Assuming for now that fermentation is ongoing, what is your plan to store the wine after fermentation is complete, without a headspace. You can't have headspace in the carboy for very long without ruining the wine.

[Curmudgeon]

It's common to see a change in fermentation when racking - sometimes it slows down, sometimes it speeds up - and nothing to worry about yet. If it's at 1.020, then it still has a bit to go. Did you add any sulfite when racking? I'd continue to monitor it, and if you don't see ANY bubbling for a week or so, you might consider adding some fresh yeast. I'd recommend a Champagne variety at this point, as these can handle the alcohol and are good at finishing up a stuck ferment.

[Winemaker]

Did you use any yeast nutrient during this process?

I use a nutrient during the initial fermentation startup, then an additional amount after 1/3 sugar depletion.

I agree with Curmudgeon, there may be a change in fermentation after racking. If I have a 6 gallon wine to ferment, my primary fermentation is in a food grade bucket, then allow it to finish in a carboy. Way too early to panic.

[ShokWaveRider]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winemaker Did you use any yeast nutrient during this process?

I did use an energizer, leaving be for a couple of days.

[Winemaker]

Do not add anymore nutrient at this point, as it will only provide nutrients for bad things.

I still think it'll be fine, paraphrasing... it won't be wine until it's time.

[ShokWaveRider]

It is still a little dormant. I am going to check the SG again in 4 or 5 days. I do have a little too much headspace I think, but nothing to fill it with and I do not have a smaller container. Should I make another smaller batch, ferment it to the same level and add it?

Any ideas....

[Curmudgeon]

To fill the headspace, just buy a bottle of wine of similar style, use it to top up the carboy, and then enjoy the rest. The small percentage of 'bought' wine won't significantly change the character of your wine. There are others who reduce airspace by adding things such as sanitized marbles, etc. but I've always just used wine.

[Winemaker]

I wouldn't fill the head space up if it were less than a pint. A lot of commercial wines have additives that may inhibit your fermentation. They're not harmful to you but to yeast; many dry wines do have some residual sugar; and they have to prevent it from fermenting.

[HadEnuff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winemaker I wouldn't fill the head space up if it were less than a pint. A lot of commercial wines have additives that may inhibit your fermentation. They're not harmful to you but to yeast; many dry wines do have some residual sugar; and they have to prevent it from fermenting.

Just to be clear, are you saying you wouldn't top it up now, as we aren't sure fermentation is complete, or you wouldn't bother topping it up at all if it's less than a pint.
Personally, I wouldn't be too concerned if we knew fermentation was ongoing, for a few days while it finished up, but I wouldn't keep a 1 pint headspace for very long if I could avoid it.
Ways to get rid of headspace: if you know fermentation is done you can top up with commercial wine, as Curmudgeon suggested,,
If this was originally a 6 gallon batch, you can buy a 5 gallon carboy. If it was a 5 gallon batch you could buy a 3 gallon and 2 one gallons. I always keep a bunch of various size carboys, jugs, and bottles handy in order to avoid headspace.

Another method I have heard of, but never tried, is to buy a bunch glass marbles, sanitize them, and drop them into the carboy (after you've racked the wine into it so you don't chip the bottom of the glass).
Speaking of carboys, it's a very good idea to ALWAYS keep the carboy in some sort of protective crate, like a milk crate. Placing a full carboy on a bench with even small particles of stone, or masonry, can cause a crack and disaster.

[Winemaker]

Usually with kit or bucket wines after fermentation, one sulphites and degasses. This degassing is necessary to allow proper clarification with the A-B type clarifier. If you top up now, then degass, a lot of your wine will foam up and end up on the outside of your carboy!

Also, if you top off in this situation with a commercial product, you will be stuck with a wine that is not fully fermented. In Shokwave's situation, if it doesn't start fermenting soon, even after moving to a warmer temp, I would treat as a stuck ferment. If topped off, you wouldn't enough room to add a yeast re-starter.

The yeast could have been weak, few in number, or killed by the sulphite in the sanitizer for the new carboy. A number of things.

Topping off at this point in time is only to minmize O2 contact, not so much contamination unless he has a ph over 3.7 and keeps poking and prodding. Shokwave has a least a 10% alcohol solution to kill "bugs".

[HadEnuff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winemaker Usually with kit or bucket wines after fermentation, one sulphites and degasses. This degassing is necessary to allow proper clarification with the A-B type clarifier. If you top up now, then degass, a lot of your wine will foam up and end up on the outside of your carboy! Also, if you top off in this situation with a commercial product, you will be stuck with a wine that is not fully fermented. In Shokwave's situation, if it doesn't start fermenting soon, even after moving to a warmer temp, I would treat as a stuck ferment. If topped off, you wouldn't enough room to add a yeast re-starter. The yeast could have been weak, few in number, or killed by the sulphite in the sanitizer for the new carboy. A number of things. Topping off at this point in time is only to minmize O2 contact, not so much contamination unless he has a ph over 3.7 and keeps poking and prodding. Shokwave has a least a 10% alcohol solution to kill "bugs".

Yes, I agree. I started out making kits. Degassing was a royal PITA. My concern was that Shockwave may misconstrue your advice about not worrying about the headspace long-term, especially since he said he had no way to get rid of it.