Air introduced during bulk aging transfer

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intlexp

Junior
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Help! (I think?). I just transferred my wine from my primary carboy after 1 month to a second carboy, per kit instructions. Halfway through the siphoning process I observed bubbles building in the new carboy. Upon inspection I found a small crack in the glass plunger connected to the siphon tube - probably sucked air in to the siphon through the crack.
I finished the process, installed the airlock, and the bubbles disappeared after a day.
Have I ruined my wine by introducing air at this stage? Should I add additional degassing chemical and degass again? What do you recommend.
I have made about 30 6gal kits over the last 10 years, and have made some excellent tasting wines. So far, a sample tasted great, but I’m not sure if I’ll have 6 gal of red wine vinegar in 3 months when I bottle it.
 
Deep Cleansing/Calming Breath. It's all good.

You haven't ruined your wine and no it won't turn into vinegar. It's really much harder to do that than many folks think it is.

If by degassing chemical you mean Potassium (or Sodium) Metabisulphite (Often called K-Meta), sure, add a partial dose. Normal is 1/4 tsp per 6gallons, maybe add 1/8 tsp per 6 gallons and stir. If you use Campden tablets, normal is 6 tablets per 6 gallons, add 3. That SO2 should bind up any additional Oxygen that was added, but honestly, I probably wouldn't even bother with that.

Wine is mostly resilient and a little bit extra added oxygen isn't optimal, but isn't the end of the world.
 
Oxidation is a factor of wine volume vs. air volume vs. time. E.g., a smaller amount of wine with a large air space will oxidize faster than a larger amount of wine with a small air space.

You will get air exposure during transfers unless you're working in a perfect vacuum system. As Craig said, don't worry about it. K-meta is an anti-oxidant that binds with O2, rendering it harmless.
 

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