WineXpert Chilean Malbec

[Tom]

By all means "follow the directions" Some kits have different directions depending on what chemicals they add to the kit.

 

[rawlus]

the winexpert instructions often want you to resuspend the sediment from secondary fermentation while adding the stabilizers/clarifiers as the bentonite in suspension works with the clarifier you add to fully clarify the wine. if you rack off the secondary sediment and then add your clarifier you may not get ideal results.
by all means, follow the specific directions provided with this kit.
(the confusion comes because some other manufacturer's kits provide 2-part clarifiers like chitosan+isinglass which are designed to work after racking off secondary)

 

[Hillbilly Bill]

Is this resuspension done to aid in getting more of the pigments out of the skins into the wine?
HB

 

[Tom]

no. Why is certain clarifier's "grab" onto the suspended particles which in turn fall to the bottom. Kinda like a negative and positive charge.

 

[Burton]

Good to know, yea I've only used Winexpert so that's all I'm familiar with. As always, thanks for the replies.

 

[Hillbilly Bill]

no. Why is certain clarifier's "grab" onto the suspended particles which in turn fall to the bottom. Kinda like a negative and positive charge.

Exactly... then they collect CO2 bubbles and rise back to the top, collectiong more oppositely charged particles (mainly proteins) until they reach the top and the CO2 bubbles burst. This causes the fining agent to then drop back to the bottom collecting more oppositely charged particles as drops... and so on and so on.
I just remember reading where it takes a while to get the color from the grape skins and I was probably thinking of an earlier stage of primary fermentation where you want to be sure to push the cap down often in order to get this color into the must.
Thanks Tom... I must have been half asleep.
HB

 

[Burton]

Steve,

Have you added your agents yet? If so, how much water did you need to add to top off? I went out and bought a Malbec to use to top off. After I poured it in I quickly realized it wasn't enough so I started to add water. I think over all I added 2 - 2.5 bottles or water in addition to my 1 bottle of wine. I feel that this was a lot to top off. People usually say if you add that much water you did something wrong but I followed the directions to a T and also made sure I got as much as possible when racking from my primary to the carboy.

 

[rawlus]

Burton - how do you know you started in primary with the proper amount of wine+water? 2.5 bottles of water plus another bottle of topping wine is nearly three litres. .8 gallons. makes me thing you might have made the wine up initially to 5 gallons instead of 6?

if you truly tried to get "as much as possible" when racking and you needed to add 3.5 750ml bottles of additional liquid, then something is very wrong IMHO. either the original must was under volume or your carboy you racked to is over-volume (maybe a 6.5 gallon instead of a 6 gallon?)

 

[Burton]

I'm starting to wonder if my carboy is 6.5.

Assuming it is, I'm wondering how watered down my wine is now going to be...

 

[Tom]

Most 6 1/2 gal carboys have a threaded neck. Does yours?

 

[Burton]

Here is a picture of my two caryboys.

 

[Tom]

OK they look like 6 gallon Italian carboys. But, they hold about a quart more than the Mexican carboys. When you hvae it empty measure out water in a marked gallon container and add. Then MARK the side of the carboy with a magic marker. I bet its over 6 gallons.

 

[Wade E]

They will usually state the # of liters or gallons on the bottom of each carboy.

 

[cpfan]

Wade is correct, the 'advertised' size will be marked on the bottom.

But Tom is even more correct. The Italian 23 litre carboys that have been sold (in Canada anyway) over the last 10 years, are noticably bigger than the Mexican 23 litres. I first found out when racking from an Italian to a Mexican carboy in 1999 or 2000.

Most of us feel that the Mexican one is a truer 23 litres. Unfortunately, the Mexican one is no longer manufactured. [I wish I'd gotten one more when I had the chance.]

Steve

 

[Burton]

Well I hope I didn't just water down my Malbec with 2.5 bottles of water. Glad I used at least one bottle of malbec instead of 3.5 bottles of water.

 

[sjzalew]

Well, I'm back from Costa Rica and I just checked the S.G again, It hasn't moved, it's still 1.001, it's been in the carboy now for 21 days, It's been degased, topped off and I don't know what to do? Do I continue with adding the metabisulphite and sorbate? Or is there something else I can do to get the S.G. down?
Thanks (again)
Steve

 

[Tom]

Whats the temp?

 

[sjzalew]

The temp has been a steady 75-76 deg for the past 8 days

 

[Tom]

Degas again and or splash it when you rack

 

[sjzalew]

I've degassed again, several times in the past two days, each time I get alot of Co2, Do I keep degassing until I don't get anymore Co2?
Second question. I gave up on trying to get the S.G. down below 1.002, I guess it will be a little sweeter than it's suppose to be, but my question is about the alcohol content, will it be much less than the 12% it should be, and can I fix that with some PGA?
Thanks again everyone