Thanks Everyone, Glad I asked, looks like I'm uncorking a few bottles already done!!!
Back Sweetening
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Better to do it voluntarily than spontaneously ....
We laugh about it, but a carboy's worth of bottle-volcanoes is to be dreaded. I can't recall having a blown cork, but I had a batch (Cherry, 1986) that I caught with some of the corks about half way out of the bottle. I got lucky.
This is a good reminder to check our fermenters, carboys (and barrels or whatever), and the wine cellar at least weekly. I have 4 bottles of Elderberry bottled last year w/o sorbate that I know fermented in the bottle. The backsweetened sugar was a small enough amount that corks are not budging, but I check them weekly. Yeah, I know this is a winemaker's version of Russian Roulette ...
No Kidding, this is an area of wine making that has always made me a little on edge. This year I can't avoid it as I have too much wine to leave in the carboy's. Have to get it in a bottle! Appreciate the help!Better to do it voluntarily than spontaneously ....
We laugh about it, but a carboy's worth of bottle-volcanoes is to be dreaded. I can't recall having a blown cork, but I had a batch (Cherry, 1986) that I caught with some of the corks about half way out of the bottle. I got lucky.
This is a good reminder to check our fermenters, carboys (and barrels or whatever), and the wine cellar at least weekly. I have 4 bottles of Elderberry bottled last year w/o sorbate that I know fermented in the bottle. The backsweetened sugar was a small enough amount that corks are not budging, but I check them weekly. Yeah, I know this is a winemaker's version of Russian Roulette ...
Ohio Bob
Senior Member
Hello to All,
I opened all of my wine bottles that were processed without sorbate and was lucky to not have any explosions. Thank Heaven! Now I can sit back and let them be without worry. Of course, we had to taste test as we went and one bottle was sacrificed in the process!! HaHa
I opened all of my wine bottles that were processed without sorbate and was lucky to not have any explosions. Thank Heaven! Now I can sit back and let them be without worry. Of course, we had to taste test as we went and one bottle was sacrificed in the process!! HaHa
winemanden
Senior Member
Bomb Squad
I remember reading way back last century a letter in the 'Amateur Winemaker' published in the UK By CJJ Berry, warning winemakers about exploding bottles.
The poor man concerned went to get a bottle of wine from his cupboard and one bottle exploded as he took it from the rack. He ended up in A&E with his hand split in two. His wife, worried to death that the rest would go bang, called in the police. They refused to touch them and called in the Bomb Disposal Squad who took them all out into the garden and did a controlled explosion on them.
This wasn't Sparkling Wine by the way, it was ordinary table wine in normal bottles.
The moral of the tale is, be careful, better safe than sorry.
Regards to all, Winemanden.
I remember reading way back last century a letter in the 'Amateur Winemaker' published in the UK By CJJ Berry, warning winemakers about exploding bottles.
The poor man concerned went to get a bottle of wine from his cupboard and one bottle exploded as he took it from the rack. He ended up in A&E with his hand split in two. His wife, worried to death that the rest would go bang, called in the police. They refused to touch them and called in the Bomb Disposal Squad who took them all out into the garden and did a controlled explosion on them.
This wasn't Sparkling Wine by the way, it was ordinary table wine in normal bottles.
The moral of the tale is, be careful, better safe than sorry.
Regards to all, Winemanden.
That's hilarious but also very scary, I did open my first bottle outside & kept it from anywhere near my body just to be safe. I was pretty worried too!!
This is among the reasons I recommend corks for bottles. Unless the cork is secured, if there is fermentation in the bottle the cork should blow first. Screw caps or any locked enclosure (wire over cork) make it likely a weak spot in the glass will fail first. Several bottle vendors have stated that bottles are either rated or unrated for pressure. Regular wine bottles are unrated, meaning there is no safe amount of pressure they can withstand.
Agreed, it kind of seems like common sense!
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If I am unsure about a wine, I will store that batch on the bottom of my wine racks where the concrete floor is typically colder.
Good advice!
