# Headspace bulk aging



## jhawk (Jul 26, 2014)

I have my Chilean Wine from this spring in 6gal carboys. I done with racking,clearing,oaking. They are going to bulk age till Oct when I plan to bottle. Ive added Kmeta to up the SO in it. 1/4 tsp per 6 gal. My question is the headspace. Will these be alright or should I top them off. I really dont want to go out and buy bottles of wine to add to the wine Im making, but then again I dont want to ruin the wine Im making. Thanks


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## havlikn (Jul 26, 2014)

I would never leave that much head space. I try to leave 1-2" at most. You've put too much money, time, and effort to leave them at that level in my opinion.


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## bkisel (Jul 26, 2014)

I personally would not feel comfortable with that amount of head space. 

With the amount of head space I'm seeing I don't think marbles would be a practical solution. I wouldn,t top off with any more than 500ML of water per carboy but even that much will take care of all your head space. I think you're left with going to smaller carboys and/or biting the bullet and topping off with similar wine. I'd go with wine even if were a jug wine.

Don't know how long you've been doing this but now with over a year and a half of kit making and DB under my belt I've gotten pretty good at filling my carboys ( I use both glass and plastic) such that there is little overflow nor little topping required.

BTW, you might find that your glass carboys are closer to 6.5 gallons then 6 gallons. My glass are well over 6 gallons where as my plastic carboys are pretty much spot on 6 gallons.


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## havlikn (Jul 26, 2014)

Could you combine any if you don't have more carboys. You could use the carboy with the most head space and use that too top everything else off.


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## bkisel (Jul 26, 2014)

havlikn said:


> Could you combine any if you don't have more carboys. You could use the carboy with the most head space and use that too top everything else off.



Yes, that would be ideal. Combine/blend and smaller carboy(s)/jug(s)/1.5L wine bottle(s) for whats left over.


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## mwhitnell (Jul 28, 2014)

*Head Space is ok if you top off with CO2*

I never worry about headspace, because I top off with CO2, from my beer CO2 bottle.


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## Vertumnus (Jul 31, 2014)

I'm with mwhitnell, the only thing you can do without topping up or moving to smaller containers is to flush out the oxygen with CO2 or nitrogen.


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## 4score (Aug 1, 2014)

Dangerous. I would fill them up using one carboy as the source (as recommended) and move any leftover into something smaller.


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## JohnT (Aug 1, 2014)

Vertumnus said:


> I'm with mwhitnell, the only thing you can do without topping up or moving to smaller containers is to flush out the oxygen with CO2 or nitrogen.


 

Vertimmus, 

No to disagree with you, but I have to disagree with you. 

Purging a carboy does not help and should never be considered as an alternative to topping off a carboy. All it will do is to lead you into a false sense of security.

Believe me, I learned the hard way in my beginning years. 

For one thing, gasses are not like oil and water. Gasses mix. If you think that you can remove all of the O2 or create a gaseous protective blanket, you would be very wrong. The most you can hope for is that the amount of O2 in the head space has been reduced.

The other problem is that carboys will breathe through the fermentation trap. This is due to the expansion and contraction of the headspace gas via temperature changes and barometric changes. As the gas expands, it is released through the trap, and as the gas contracts outside are is drawn in. The more headspace you have, the more that this will happen. In usual case, any purging gas you have added will be completely expelled within a matter of weeks. 

Take my advice and top off the carboys with wine.


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## Vertumnus (Aug 2, 2014)

It's my understanding from oenology class that most wineries undertake to sparge out their tanks with nitrogen/CO2 to provide the very protective blanket you say is not possible, but you may be right in that it's possible that it may be different for smaller containers because of the natural law that chemical reactions occur faster in a smaller container due to increased surface interaction of the liquid. What may be a couple months for a large tank would only be the couple weeks you mention, am I thinking of that right? 

Also, isn't the point of a water airlock to keep outside gas from entering the carboy?

I wasn't suggesting it as a permanent solution, but the original poster seemed a little reluctant in having to dilute so it might work temporarily until something else can be worked out such as consolidating the wine and racking the rest into a smaller container to maintain desired headspace.


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## seth8530 (Aug 3, 2014)

Just do the right thing and top em off. Don't try and cheap out and regret it later.


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## JohnT (Aug 3, 2014)

Vertumnus, 

Were those tanks pressure sealed or did they also have a fermentation trap? If pressure sealed, then sparging will reduce the amount of O2 in the tank wile not allowing any of the gas to escape. 

You are correct in that surface area to volume ratios do come into play. 

IMHO, the real purpose of an airlock is to allow the exit of CO2 and other gases while (at the same time) providing a seal from the outside elements. That being said, if you have a minimal amount of headspace, your trap will work fine in that you will have a minimal amount of compressible gas that fall will ill of the effects of temperature and barometric pressures. 

With increased headspace (or a higher presence of compressible gas) the effect dramatically increases. Gas can and will be brought in through and out of the trap.


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## pjd (Aug 3, 2014)

That is exactly why I always buy one extra bucket of Merlot. It is great to top off any red and does not change the character of the topped off wine. Buy a 3 gallon carboy and a couple one gallon jugs to rack down the top off wine.


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## GEM (Aug 4, 2014)

Another option, after you have combined some of the carboys to fill the wine into the neck of the carboys is to add marbles to the remaining carboy. You may have to go to a smaller carboy, but you can always add the final neck fill with the marbles. Just make sure you use pure glass marbles, not ones with lead in them. Most wine supply shops carry the marbles. I use them every season.


Sent from my iPad using Wine Making


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## Tom_S (Aug 6, 2014)

It's my understanding that the CO2 and SO2 remain as a blanket layer on top of the wine. That being said, I would never have that much headspace. Just a couple of inches in the neck is plenty. I vote for topping up with wine. It will be too easy for that much air to suck in air through the airlock.


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## Kiazer (Apr 16, 2018)

Ive bottled around a 1000 bottles and my exp. is after 10 days of clearing (Day 30-40) i rack and add my two chems and then put a chewing tabbaco can of oak in a sterilized dollar store granny nylon (knee high) and top up with a bottle of like minded wine......bung it let it sit for two months then pull the oak out(Nylon) and reseal and test to taste month after month...bottle when you think its done or dont, I have some in carboys thats 18 months old. Top it up with and $8 bottle of Red......Good Luck


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## jgmillr1 (Apr 16, 2018)

Tom_S said:


> It's my understanding that the CO2 and SO2 remain as a blanket layer on top of the wine



No, while SO2 and CO2 are heavier gasses than oxygen/nitrogen, there is plenty of mixing (as noted by JohnT) and it does not form a protective layer. You must entirely purge the oxygen out of the container to be safe.



JohnT said:


> For one thing, gasses are not like oil and water. Gasses mix. If you think that you can remove all of the O2 or create a gaseous protective blanket, you would be very wrong. The most you can hope for is that the amount of O2 in the head space has been reduced.



This is why I bought a long nosed nozzle for my CO2 tank. It allows me to reach deep into a carboy and efficiently purge out the air. I purge long enough to displace 3 volumes of the headspace and this has been effective in protecting wine for intermediate storage with CO2 in the headspace.


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## NorCal (Apr 17, 2018)

I always make a sacrificial carboy, whose purpose in life is to protect the other wine. If there is any wine left from the sacrificial carboy after thinitial topping, I’ll bottle it and use for future toppings or rackings.


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## Kiazer (Apr 17, 2018)

NorCal said:


> I always make a sacrificial carboy, whose purpose in life is to protect the other wine. If there is any wine left from the sacrificial carboy after thinitial topping, I’ll bottle it and use for future toppings or rackings.


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## Kiazer (Apr 17, 2018)

fantastic great idea.....i have 8 year olds that are still the same as year 3


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## Kiazer (Apr 17, 2018)

jgmillr1 said:


> No, while SO2 and CO2 are heavier gasses than oxygen/nitrogen, there is plenty of mixing (as noted by JohnT) and it does not form a protective layer. You must entirely purge the oxygen out of the container to be safe.
> 
> 
> 
> This is why I bought a long nosed nozzle for my CO2 tank. It allows me to reach deep into a carboy and efficiently purge out the air. I purge long enough to displace 3 volumes of the headspace and this has been effective in protecting wine for intermediate storage with CO2 in the headspace.


And thats fantastic.......nature has a way...im not looking to have 40 year old wines im 45 and if they last 25 years im
happy. I have 10 year old cab Savs and Malbecs that have been triple oaked that are just fabulous only treated once with K-metta and Sorbate


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## JohnT (Apr 18, 2018)

Kiazer said:


> I have 10 year old cab Savs and Malbecs that have been triple oaked that are just fabulous only treated once with K-metta and Sorbate



The triple oaking set the level of tannins high. This (and probably a healthy PH level) did the most to ensure your wine's longevity.


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## winojoe (Apr 18, 2018)

That is way too much air space.
You are asking for big trouble in a big way.

Use CO2 as protection for a quick-fix, not a permanent solution.

I have used sanitized marbles (and not the cheap dollar store type) when the air space is minimal.
Stay away from the dollar store marbles as they have a tendency to chip.

The most viable solution is switching to 5 gallon carboys, and an assortment of 1 gallon, 1/2 gallon, and smaller vessels, for the aging process. 

I personally use 6.5 gallon carboys up to the point where I am going to age.
The 6.5 gallon carboys offer enough space for mixing of stabilizing agents, clearing agents, back sweeteners, etc.

Remember the two primary things when making wine:
1) Always sanitize anything that will come in contact with the must/wine.
2) After fermentation is complete, "air" is your enemy!

Happy Winemaking!


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## Kiazer (Apr 18, 2018)

winojoe said:


> That is way too much air space.
> You are asking for big trouble in a big way.
> 
> Use CO2 as protection for a quick-fix, not a permanent solution.
> ...


You are correct ...I add marbles after the carboy is racked and i never rack/bottle the bottom inch so if there is the 1% of a chipped marble after 3-6 months is at the bottom.......thanks for that

I use a filter machine when I bottle


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## Gael (Apr 19, 2018)

GEM said:


> Another option, after you have combined some of the carboys to fill the wine into the neck of the carboys is to add marbles to the remaining carboy. You may have to go to a smaller carboy, but you can always add the final neck fill with the marbles. Just make sure you use pure glass marbles, not ones with lead in them. Most wine supply shops carry the marbles. I use them every season.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Wine Making


I agree on the marbles. I did that last fall and was surprised at how many marbles you need. Looking at the amount of headspace you will spend a fortune on marbles, so agree to combine where possible and go to smaller carboys.


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## Kiazer (Apr 19, 2018)

Gael said:


> I agree on the marbles. I did that last fall and was surprised at how many marbles you need. Looking at the amount of headspace you will spend a fortune on marbles, so agree to combine where possible and go to smaller carboys.


Thats right.......I rack 4 times before bottling and yes Im short 1 litre......I did the dollar store thing and bought the marbles about 3 gallons worth. Topping off with a "like Minded" wine" works also


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## Kiazer (Apr 19, 2018)

Gael said:


> I agree on the marbles. I did that last fall and was surprised at how many marbles you need. Looking at the amount of headspace you will spend a fortune on marbles, so agree to combine where possible and go to smaller carboys.


Dollar store


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## Kiwi (Apr 20, 2018)

If it was me I would be thinking, next rack will make this even worse. Sacrificial last smaller carboy that keeps getting smaller is good and you still have the same amount of wine... and I can sleep at nights.


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## cderickson (Apr 27, 2018)

What about the AIO Headspace Eliminator? I've been using this for about a year now with levels in the carboy a bit above the carboy shoulder. I don't bulk age over 4 months due to space issues.


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## Kiazer (Apr 27, 2018)

cderickson said:


> What about the AIO Headspace Eliminator? I've been using this for about a year now with levels in the carboy a bit above the carboy shoulder. I don't bulk age over 4 months due to space issues.


I bottle after 3 months ......After clearing and racking ive added a 1/4 tsp of metta and 1 tsp of sorbate and have never had a problem. ive got some 8 year olds that are smooth and delicious


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