If I were to bulk age majority of the time and plan on having a bottle of wine at a certain day when should I bottle it before that certain day? how many days on the low end does one need to have a wine bottled before drinking? I plan on giving the time at least 3 months in a carboy, my mothers birthday is the event and is the only reason why i would cut it short.
How long from bottle to drinking.
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Sometimes wines go through bottle shock where they aren't very good for 2 to 3 weeks after bottling. To be safe, I would try to get a kit wine done and bottled at least 2 weeks before the event.
That being said, I just bottled 2 different dessert wine kits yesterday, just a couple weeks past the kit schedule for bottling day, and both of them are soooo good already! So bottle shock doesn't always occur.
That being said, I just bottled 2 different dessert wine kits yesterday, just a couple weeks past the kit schedule for bottling day, and both of them are soooo good already! So bottle shock doesn't always occur.
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And you are bottling at the 4 week mark. Age it at least a month.
I noticed this with an apple last year. Tasted pretty good when I back sweetened it but a few days later I was thinking I messed up because it tasted off. A month later it was good again, and got better until gone about 9 months later.
Bottle shock? being the new guy I am can you go a little more into this? does this occur when the bottle has been aged to long or short? is it something that just naturally occurs?
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It's just a thing wine sometimes goes through for a couple of weeks after bottling. As @ChuckD describes, the wine tastes fine and has good mouthfeel at just before bottling, but then if you open a bottle within the first couple of weeks, it can seem off or flabby. Better to wait 2 to 3 weeks for the bottle shock to work itself out.
If you bottle a few 375 ml bottles, you can test this by opening a bottle after one week, then another after 2 weeks, then maybe one more after 3 weeks. Take notes of the flavor and mouthfeel for each, to learn how they change after bottling.
winemanden
Senior Member
My main trouble with bottle shock is when it's empty. 
Bottle shock, when it happens, usually clears up within a few weeks, but it can take a month or 2.
I agree with Craig, bottle 4 weeks ahead.
Bottle shock is the effect of adding a lot of oxygen (over 5ppm per liter) to the wine in the process of bottling. Factory wine will nitrogen flush the staging tank/ filling equipment, and or vacuum the ullage, or drop liquid nitrogen into the bottle before filling to displace air. Practically speaking home wine is small batches and the percentage contamination is high. example an inch of air ullage has enough oxygen to contribute over 5ppm oxygen to a 750 ml bottle.
Recovery from bottle shock is a series of compounds transferring from a freshly oxidized state into less flavored (often larger) complexes.
Tools; inert gas, vacuum, metabisulphite, polyphenols (dark pigments), tannins. ,,,
In the thread “Industrial Webinars” i posted a few you tube seminars that describe oxygen management and risk (redox potential) control.
Recovery from bottle shock is a series of compounds transferring from a freshly oxidized state into less flavored (often larger) complexes.
Tools; inert gas, vacuum, metabisulphite, polyphenols (dark pigments), tannins. ,,,
In the thread “Industrial Webinars” i posted a few you tube seminars that describe oxygen management and risk (redox potential) control.
If you're going to age it in the carboy for 3 months and then bottle it, I'd give it at least another 3 months after bottling. All reds normally take a while before they're truly "drinkable". I usually wait for a year after bottling before I try even the cheapest red kit.
FYI: I made a Winexpert Luna Rossa (6 week red kit) back in September. I fermented, and then cleared for the total of six weeks recommended, and then bottled. Trying the wine a month later wasn't great, it was 'yeasty', unbalanced, and had a bitter taste with little fruit to pick up on. December was the same, but in mid-January the flavor started to show, and the 'new' wine bitterness had started to mellow, and it was drinkable (I think? I will confess it was after a few beers and a few Malbec glasses, but 3 others said it was pretty good). It's now March and I will have to open a bottle soon to see what progress it has made. I expect it to be coming into its own. Like everyone else, the more you age it, the better it will be.
I have made a couple of 'quick' drinkers from kits Raspberry Zinfandel/Tropical Lime and they are drinkable in 6 weeks, but better to wait 8-10 weeks min.
That said, let the reds age in a carboy for several months (5, 6, up to a year) and then bottle and let it sit for a month or 2, then drink them. The taste will be oh so much better.
The whites are different, they can age less (in a carboy) and bottle sooner, and drink sooner. I may be a little late, but I just did a WE Moscato kit for a wedding in mid-September.
Alas, now that FWK has announced they are going to release the 'whites' again, I may have to drive over to LPs and pick up a kit and compare at the wedding!....but Carboys! I need more Carboys for aging!
I have made a couple of 'quick' drinkers from kits Raspberry Zinfandel/Tropical Lime and they are drinkable in 6 weeks, but better to wait 8-10 weeks min.
That said, let the reds age in a carboy for several months (5, 6, up to a year) and then bottle and let it sit for a month or 2, then drink them. The taste will be oh so much better.
The whites are different, they can age less (in a carboy) and bottle sooner, and drink sooner. I may be a little late, but I just did a WE Moscato kit for a wedding in mid-September.
Alas, now that FWK has announced they are going to release the 'whites' again, I may have to drive over to LPs and pick up a kit and compare at the wedding!....but Carboys! I need more Carboys for aging!
Labelpeelers sells carboys, too!
Now that is the comment of the day @Jovimaple . Thanks for the laugh. I may have to cave…I mean I do have spare room in the trunk!Labelpeelers sells carboys, too!
Ohio Bob
Senior Member
As you probably know, there’s a Label Peelers in Ravenna. Make several trips!
5 miles away Bob. I believe they recognize me at pick-up. You’re not too far away, right?
Ohio Bob
Senior Member
Southwest of Cleveland, Grape & Granary is my go to shop, a 1 hour drive.
I love the Grape and Granary, Bob. John and Kathy have built a nice business there. My wife and I enjoy sitting down and drinking the wines they’ve made from the kits they sell. Matter of fact, we just visited and my wife wouldn’t let me leave without the WE Raspberry Zinfandel kit. That’ll be a nice summer sipper.
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