# Sediment in my bottled wine



## audmkamp (Jan 12, 2014)

So I seemed to have committed what sounds to be the cardinal sin #1 of wine making - bottling cloudy wine. 

I thought my traminette wine seemed clear when I bottled it, but now 2 weeks later in the bottle there is a cover of sediment on the bottom of each bottle. It definitely did clear further in the bottle, but will be impossible to pour w/o getting some sediment in glasses. 

What are the possible consequences of leaving it this way? Should I pour them all out into a carboy, let the sediment clear out again & then rebottle? 

I'm definitely considering a filter going forward!


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## RCGoodin (Jan 12, 2014)

I'd put it back in the carboy and add a new batch of clearing agents.

I filter everything with great results and no loss of flavor and have never had this problem.

Good luck and please post your results.


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## dralarms (Jan 12, 2014)

I agree, I've stopped bottling wine until it's ready. I've got 18 gallons Muscadine that I really want to bottle but ut keeps dropping just a little in the carboys.


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## jamesngalveston (Jan 12, 2014)

did you add sorbate to this wine.


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## vacuumpumpman (Jan 12, 2014)

Don't feel that you are the first -LOL
Yes I would also uncork them all and let them all settle out prior to bottling again. As for filtering it is designed to be used once the wine is clear and then polish your wine thru a filter.


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## Runningwolf (Jan 12, 2014)

I with the first two folks about dumping back into the carboy. Painful as it is I've done it several times. My last one being a chardonnay that decided to go through an mlf in the bottle. 

*Leaving it in the bottle*; use it yourself and enjoy it, pour in a decanter before pouring it for friends, DON'T give any away
*Rebottling*; a wine you can brag about and give to your friends with no worries. If you chose this route add more meta immediately to avoid oxidation.


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## audmkamp (Jan 12, 2014)

Sounds like it is going back in the carboy! Big lesson in patience learned. 

I did add Kmeta and and sorbate to the wine prior to bottling.


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## Runningwolf (Jan 12, 2014)

audmkamp said:


> Sounds like it is going back in the carboy! Big lesson in patience learned.
> 
> I did add Kmeta and and sorbate to the wine prior to bottling.



I personally would add meta again. You lose So2 during bottling and you'll lose more pouring it back into the carboy.


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## mmadmikes1 (Jan 12, 2014)

audmkamp said:


> Sounds like it is going back in the carboy! Big lesson in patience learned.
> 
> I did add Kmeta and and sorbate to the wine prior to bottling.


Do not add second dose of sorbate , yes on K meta. Thats right you all saw me type add K meta RIGHT but dumping wine back into carboy is going to add a lot of O2 exposer and the K meta will help with to prevent oxidation.


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## bkisel (Jan 12, 2014)

With my very first kit... RJS customer support recommended and I did dump all the bottled wine back into a clean and santized carboy. Forget whether they had me do additional sorbate. All turned out fine in the end.


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## Julie (Jan 12, 2014)

Besides what everyone else has said, I just want you to know, that your wine will clear on it's own given enough time. While filtering is fine, I don't want you to think to get a clear wine you have to filter.


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## audmkamp (Jan 13, 2014)

Thanks again to everyone for the input. I did dose with additional KMeta after putting the wine back into the carboy. I'll let it sit a few more weeks before looking to rebottle. I'm glad to hear I probably have little to worry about.


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## seth8530 (Jan 13, 2014)

I would look at a few more months instead of weeks perhaps. How old is this wine? How long has the gravity been stable for? Did you ever add sorbate to the wine? Where is your gravity sitting? Did you back sweeten recently? All are important things to know or consider.


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## vernsgal (Jan 13, 2014)

NO SORBATE needed for this. I've read this several times and I'm not sure where sorbate became the issue. Follow all other advice and rack and leave it sit( don't forget Dan's note on adding a bit more k-meta. 
And don't worry! all is well


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## Boatboy24 (Jan 13, 2014)

You could also consider cold stabilization to speed up clearing. Seeing that you're in Indiana, a couple weeks in your garage would probably do it.


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## mmadmikes1 (Jan 13, 2014)

Do not double dose sorbate!!!!!!


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## JohnT (Jan 14, 2014)

Runningwolf said:


> I with the first two folks about dumping back into the carboy. Painful as it is I've done it several times. My last one being a chardonnay that decided to go through an mlf in the bottle.
> 
> *Leaving it in the bottle*; use it yourself and enjoy it, pour in a decanter before pouring it for friends, DON'T give any away


 
I agree with dan on the bit about leaving it in the bottle. 

bottle sediment is the one of the reasons we have decanters. Also, It might not be such a good idea to have the massive amount of aeration that comes with rebottling.


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## garymc (Jan 14, 2014)

Is sediment the reason wine bottles have a punt in the bottom? If I have some that forms sediment months or a year down the road and I give it to someone, I just tell them I didn't put as much poison in it as the commercial wineries do.


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## audmkamp (Jan 15, 2014)

Boatboy24 said:


> You could also consider cold stabilization to speed up clearing. Seeing that you're in Indiana, a couple weeks in your garage would probably do it.



It did already spend a couple weeks out in the shed. I had a LOT of acid crystals settle out. Brought it back in when the top half froze... was afraid of losing it all if the carboy cracked.


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## audmkamp (Jan 15, 2014)

mmadmikes1 said:


> Do not double dose sorbate!!!!!!



I'm noticing a lot of don't sorbate, don't sorbate, don't sorbate posts in different threads. Can someone point me to some good write-ups of the merits and demerits of sorbate in wine?


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## vernsgal (Jan 15, 2014)

audmkamp said:


> I'm noticing a lot of don't sorbate, don't sorbate, don't sorbate posts in different threads. Can someone point me to some good write-ups of the merits and demerits of sorbate in wine?



it's not so much "don't sorbate" as it is "don't sorbate unless you're back sweetening. It's kinda like people putting yeast energizer in their wines when there's no need for it.
Bottom line would be, If sweetening add sorbate, if not,don't


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## seth8530 (Jan 16, 2014)

What verns said, plus some people claim they can taste sorbate ( I cant and I dont know too many people who can) Also MLF and sorbate typically dont mix very well ( ml eats sorbate and makes some pretty gnarly off flavours some call it geranium flavour if I recall correctly)

So in essence, if you are not adding sugar back to your wine you should not do it. If you are doing MLF to a wine then you Generally would not use sorbate either.


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## kevinlfifer (Jan 16, 2014)

I can say some of the very BEST wines I have had, both commercial or private label (I like that instead of homemade) have had substantial sediment. I would just let it be this time.


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## wildvines (Jan 16, 2014)

RCGoodin said:


> I'd put it back in the carboy and add a new batch of clearing agents.
> 
> I filter everything with great results and no loss of flavor and have never had this problem.
> 
> Good luck and please post your results.




What kind of filter do you use? I am debating on which one to buy


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## RCGoodin (Jan 20, 2014)

This is the one I use. I only use the #2 filters. It's around $155 on ebay. I used cheaper ones that always wore out.

http://www.ebay.com/bhp/buon-vino-wine-filter

When I replace this one, I will build the in-line one that links to the All-in-One wine pump.

I hope this helps.

NOTE: If I have more than one batch going, I process the "Like" wines through the same filter. Up to 4 batches.


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## Turock (Jan 20, 2014)

It's not that everyone is telling you not to use sorbate---they are saying not to give the wine another dose of it. Unlike more meta, which they WANT you to add they don't want you to give this wine another dose of sorbate. And I agree because over-dosing with sorbate can impart a bubble gum flavor.

Many winemakers don't understand, or under-value, all the things that happen during bulk aging. All these precipitates, haze,etc. are unstable components in wine. GIVEN ENOUGH TIME, all these agglutinate and fall out of the wine, which then gives you a stable wine. Therefore, aging can be thought of as achieving wine stability.

Plus, if you have any volatile esters in the wine, these will drop out too. Many of these are microbial in origin and not considered to be part of varietal character. 

Aging stabilizes tannins,pigments, and color. Bitter and astringent compounds may also agglutinate and drop out of wine. But NONE of this can happen if you don't allow enough time.

Our reds are carboy aged a MINIMUM of 1 1/2 years. Whites at least one year and sometimes longer. Even if you filter, you must get the bulk of the sediment out of it in the secondary first. We do not filter anything and our wines are VERY clean--somtimes a touch of sediment in the reds. But our whites are always crystal clear even after refrigeration, without filtering.

Don't get me wrong--I do not oppose filtering but in our early days we tried it and it took some of the flavor away from the wine. But that was a long time ago and filters have come a long way. But as Julie said--you do not NEED to filter. But I say that you DO need to bulk age, even if you don't totally understand the benefits of it.


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## jamesngalveston (Jan 20, 2014)

http://nanaimowinemakers.org/Notes/Sorbate.htm


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