# Benefits of cold stabilizing.



## jdammer (Oct 22, 2010)

Well I'm about to start my second Winery Series kit. It's the Ausie Heritage.

Anyways I want to do some of the techniques talked about on here.

So I understand that cold stabilizing for a week will produce potassium bitartrate, wine diamonds. All the other threads say it makes the wines taste better. In what way? Smooths them out? Has anyone taken 3 gallons and cold stabilized and the other three not? A controlled experiment would be the only way to compare the two methods. Anyone?


----------



## Midwest Vintner (Oct 23, 2010)

yes, it smoothes them out. if the wine is a bit tarte, it will help mellow it. almost like aging it some. i've cold stabalized a few bottles and not and you can tell the difference. i would recommend for a wine that you want to be more of a table wine or is overly tart. kinda hard to explain what to look for in the taste, but you'll know after doing it. reds and heavier fruit wines (we did an overly heavy elderberry) will benefit most, IMO. a white should be a bit more acidic, but it might be good to try if it's not to your liking. i did mine in the fridge for about 2 weeks. it actually was an accident. a bottle of elderberry got behind stuff and i forgot about it. nobody else bothered it and i didn't see it for 2 weeks. it did get wine diamonds and sediment, so i poured throught a tight strainer we've got. man did it taste good. much more smooth.


----------



## HeavyMetal (Oct 23, 2010)

If you cold stabilize in a carboy be aware that the "size" of the wine will be reduced pretty dramatically. Last year I put my carboys in my garage that remained around 30 degrees for a few weeks. It actually sucked the airlocks contents into the wine, and still there were several inches of headspace that wasnt there the day before when they were stored at about 60 degrees. Fortunately it didn't seem to contaminate the wine, but this is something to be aware of. My main intent for cold stabilizing was to kill off any yeast left before bottling as I do not use any chemicals in my wines. It also does help the tartaric crystals to form and drop, which of course improves wine.


----------



## ellijaywinemaker (Oct 23, 2010)

my muscadine wine is very acidic I do not want to use anything to take out the acid chemacly so would cold stabliztion help this and if so how cold & how long...


----------



## Runningwolf (Oct 23, 2010)

HeavyMetal said:


> Last year I put my carboys in my garage that remained around 30 degrees for a few weeks. It actually sucked the airlocks contents into the wine, and still there were several inches of headspace that wasnt there the day before when they were stored at about 60 degrees. Fortunately it didn't seem to contaminate the wine, but this is something to be aware of.



I am totally confused. If it sucked your airlock dry and you ended up with several inches of head space, where did the wine go? Now I have added extremly cold wine to a carboy and as it warmed up the contents went into the airlock.


----------



## HeavyMetal (Oct 23, 2010)

Runningwolf said:


> I am totally confused. If it sucked your airlock dry and you ended up with several inches of head space, where did the wine go? Now I have added extremly cold wine to a carboy and as it warmed up the contents went into the airlock.



I guess because of the temperature dropping in the wine it reduces the volume of liquid. I would have to assume this has something to do with the alcohol content. When I moved the carboys from a 70 degree room to a 60 degree room I lost approx 1" inch plus a little off the level in the neck of the carboy. Last year when I put them in the garage they did in fact suck the airlocks contents into the wine, and the volume of liquid was reduced substantially(to where the glass starts to taper, or around 4"). As the volume of liquid inside the carboy shrank it created a vacuum, and pulled air and the airlock liquid into the carboy. I am sure others must have had experience with this?


----------



## Arne (Oct 25, 2010)

Sounds like the wine gremlins have come to your house. lol


----------



## djrockinsteve (Oct 25, 2010)

When you chill matter it will reduce in size. Upon freezing the liquid will expand. Having that much difference is way beyond what I have had. My carboys are filled to the 2nd knuckle and even with a reduction it's still way up there.

When you c.s. be sure to siphon off the wine before allowing it to warm up again. You'll want to get it off of the diamonds. Over the winter I allow my wine room to become very chilled for a few months and I'll get a decent amount of tartrates.


----------



## JohnT (Oct 25, 2010)

HeavyMetal said:


> I guess because of the temperature dropping in the wine it reduces the volume of liquid. I would have to assume this has something to do with the alcohol content. When I moved the carboys from a 70 degree room to a 60 degree room I lost approx 1" inch plus a little off the level in the neck of the carboy. Last year when I put them in the garage they did in fact suck the airlocks contents into the wine, and the volume of liquid was reduced substantially(to where the glass starts to taper, or around 4"). As the volume of liquid inside the carboy shrank it created a vacuum, and pulled air and the airlock liquid into the carboy. I am sure others must have had experience with this?



Two Thoughts about your fermentation lock contents.. 

1) Perhaps this is partially due to the air that is in the carboy? As the air inside the carboy cools, a vacume is created. 

2) As far as I know, the lock should allow air to pass both ways. Is it possible that the fluid in the lock first froze and then got sucked into the carboy as a solid? Would a salt solution in the lock help?


----------



## Runningwolf (Oct 25, 2010)

JohnT said:


> Two Thoughts about your fermentation lock contents..
> 
> 1) Perhaps this is partially due to the air that is in the carboy? As the air inside the carboy cools, a vacume is created.
> 
> 2) As far as I know, the lock should allow air to pass both ways. Is it possible that the fluid in the lock first froze and then got sucked into the carboy as a solid? Would a salt solution in the lock help?



We use a cheap Vodka


----------



## JohnT (Oct 25, 2010)

Runningwolf said:


> We use a cheap Vodka



Non-toxic antifreeze!!! If only there was something else you could do with it.


----------



## winemaker_3352 (Oct 25, 2010)

Runningwolf said:


> We use a cheap Vodka



That is what i use.


----------



## jdammer (Oct 25, 2010)

JohnT said:


> 2) As far as I know, the lock should allow air to pass both ways.



That kind of defeats the purpose of an airlock. ha


----------



## jet (Oct 25, 2010)

Runningwolf said:


> We use a cheap Vodka



Why not just use meta solution?


----------



## HeavyMetal (Oct 25, 2010)

I got you all beat! I was just given a few bottles of spirits that a guy I know distilled from wine! He took this stuff all the way to 194 proof! And it actually tastes great, has a distinctive aftertaste of grapes. This is some serious airlock juice!(and a tad flammable!)


----------



## JohnT (Oct 26, 2010)

jdammer said:


> That kind of defeats the purpose of an airlock. ha



The idea is to fill with something that cleanses the air that gets sucked back into your wine vessel. K-meta or Vodka will do this.


----------



## JohnT (Oct 26, 2010)

jet said:


> Why not just use meta solution?



The reason to use vodka is that k-meta solution will freeze and turn semi solid, then firm solid if you are cold stabilizing your wine in sub-zero temps. Vodka, having such a high alcohal level, shares much the same properties as antifreeze. 

If you do not cold stabilize, then by all means, continue to use your k-meta.


----------



## Jenks829 (Oct 26, 2010)

What effect will the removal of the potassium bitartrate crystals have on the properties of the wine, specifically pH and TA? Does anyone notice and difference in measurements before and after cold stabilization?


----------



## JohnT (Oct 26, 2010)

Jenks829 said:


> What effect will the removal of the potassium bitartrate crystals have on the properties of the wine, specifically pH and TA? Does anyone notice and difference in measurements before and after cold stabilization?



As far as I understand it, the crystals are inert and do not really add anything to the wine itself. Removal has no negative effect, but it does help to clarify the wine by removing them.


----------

