Yes, racking means moving from one vessel to another, and implies leaving any sediment (lees) behind. If you want to bottle early, and you are happy with how it is tasting, you may want to try some SuperKleer (DualFine or Claro K.C. etc.) to help it clear quickly. Whatever the tradename, the ingredients are Kieselsol and Chitosan, usually packaged as the correct dose for 5 or 6 gallons.
Can I use the primary with and airlock as a second carboy or should I try to avoid that if possible?
how much do you like chemistry? a lot of wine is designing the mass (ingredient) balance.
The primary advantage to a carboy is that you can reduce contact with oxygen to an absolute minimum. This is most important once the fermentation is essentially complete. The surface area of the wine in a primary is about a hundred times greater than that in a carboy filled to the neck. So think of it this way: once the fermentation is no longer providing CO2 to displace the oxygen above the wine, leaving it a primary for one week will expose it to as much oxygen as leaving it a carboy for 2 years. I know this is simplifying things a lot, and there are many variables involved, but basically once the bubbling has really slowed down, and it no longer looks like soda just poured into a glass, you should think about getting it into a carboy under an air lock. A few days in the primary is probably OK, but not a few weeks.
It’s great that this works for you, but I (and others) always recommend against it, mostly because it does not reliably stop an active fermentation. It is certainly not advisable for a beginner. The recommended way is to use the correct amount of sugar in primary to achieve the ABV you want, and ferment it dry. Then back sweeten to your liking. It is very repeatable, with no guess-work. It is safer, because the sorbate works much better with a very low (almost zero) concentration of yeast.
Time is not a good indicator of fermentation progress, as there are way too many variables. I've read about fermentations completing in 3 days, and those that take 2 or 3 weeks. SG is the simplest and most accurate method. I would never put my primary away for a week. I stir it daily and check it for any problems such as off-odours (hence this thread), or stalled fermentation. Then they can be corrected before it’s too late. With your method, the OP wouldn't have discovered his problem until possibly too late to correct it.
I personally hate dry wine. my way works well for me. I start with a S.G. of 1.1 and end with 1.03 after 7 days that requires little to no back-sweetening to be drinkable. Your way I would be adding cups of syrup and may taste good after.
seems pretty reliable to me. I never had a problem. I've never seen a single bubble in my airlocks after 24-48 hours in the clearing vessels.
I filter from my primary through a 1 micron filter sock (yeast is 3 microns) which is probably why my method works so well and very little if any of the yeast makes it through the sock.
well, well, well,, another ridge runner hillbilly, with a sweet tooth, gawd I'm laughing so hard, I'm a fear I'll hurt myself, there is but one rule,, suit yourself,,,, a few years back i got on here to learn how to modernize my country wines, or in hill folk talk,,, take most of the work outta my wine crafting, god I'm grinning ,, oh the fuse i raised, still do now and then, hehe,,, , @KCCam is a good hearted person, and well , we cant help it they weren't born hillbillies, but hey @KCCam is from them woods up there in Canada, in wine making there is a million and 1 ways that,,, that Dog Will hunt,
Lol, nah, I'm a Kentucky transplant. New York Italian from the 'burbs down here on the retirement plan lol. Wine is in the family tradition for me. I used to get a little glass on holidays as a kid and as an adult we drink it every night with dinner, whether it's spaghetti with meatballs or hot dogs and tater tots, a glass of red wine is good for the health. I just like sweet wine. If it don't taste good it ain't worth drinkin'.
i lived a year at Smith's Point, now called William Floud, parkway, never been a pie eater after leaving there, Gawd, i still look for a old pot belly Italian or Sicilian, Brick over, oh do i miss east coast pie,
![[Upgraded] 9Pcs Tree Root Growing Box with Drain Holes, Half Transparent Plant Rooting Propagation Ball & Metal Core Twist Ties, for Fast Propagation Plants (Size M)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/514MWQxtWOL._SL500_.jpg)
