I only added one Camden by mistake…am i finished?

[Calhce49]

Somehow I misread the recipe and only added one camden to five gallons of blueberry wine. It’s fermented just fine. The taste isn’t great at the first racking, but it’s still drinkable. Did I ruin it?

 

[sour_grapes]

Welcome to WMT!

There is no problem with what you did. Your wine is fine.

The purpose of the Campden tablet is to suppress native yeasts and other microorganisms that could compete with the wine yeast, and potentially spoil it. But wine yeast are pretty competitive, and they managed to take over the fermentation. You will be fine.

 

[winemaker81]

The short answer: No, your wine is fine.

Do you mean adding Campden prior to fermentation? That is not absolutely necessary, but it's helpful as it kills or stunts wild yeasts and bacteria, making it easier for cultured yeast to dominate.

If you mean post-fermentation, it's still not a problem. You can add more now.

I suggest you purchase powdered potassium metabisulfite -- the dosage is 1/4 tsp per 5 or 6 gallons at each racking (post-fermentation), and at bottling time. It's cheaper than Campden tablets and easier to use. Campden is most useful for small batches, e.g., 1 or 2 US gallons.

Your wine doesn't taste like wine? That's totally normal. Wine goes through a lot of chemical changes in the first 4 to 12 months, and during that first month wine doesn't often taste like wine.

 

[Calhce49]

Grateful for

Welcome to WMT!

There is no problem with what you did. Your wine is fine.

The purpose of the Campden tablet is to suppress native yeasts and other microorganisms that could compete with the wine yeast, and potentially spoil it. But wine yeast are pretty competitive, and they managed to take over the fermentation. You will be fine.

Thanks so much for the reply . I would have spent the next couple months worrying.

 

[Calhce49]

The short answer: No, your wine is fine.

Do you mean adding Campden prior to fermentation? That is not absolutely necessary, but it's helpful as it kills or stunts wild yeasts and bacteria, making it easier for cultured yeast to dominate.

If you mean post-fermentation, it's still not a problem. You can add more now.

I suggest you purchase powdered potassium metabisulfite -- the dosage is 1/4 tsp per 5 or 6 gallons at each racking (post-fermentation), and at bottling time. It's cheaper than Campden tablets and easier to use. Campden is most useful for small batches, e.g., 1 or 2 US gallons.

Your wine doesn't taste like wine? That's totally normal. Wine goes through a lot of chemical changes in the first 4 to 12 months, and during that first month wine doesn't often taste like wine.

Thanks so much for the reply . I would have spent the next couple months worrying...it was post fermentation...I use tap water. I then let it sit for 48 hours ( some people say 24-48 ). I read that camden helps with non chlorinated water and also prevents oxidation. The must fermented out pretty fast ( one week ) as the temperature is warm here ( 78 being the average )...and we use an open ferment with cheese cloth in a corner of our diningroom ( not in the sun ). So I guess I was worried that my error might leave me high on oxidation...or yeasts. I really appreciate the reassurance...Ill let it sit and keep enjoying the idea of a glass of blueberry wine in the middle of winter.

 

[winemaker81]

Oxidation is a minor issue during fermentation, as the must is constantly emitting CO2, which pushes air away from the must. After fermentation, and especially after degassing is when oxidation is a primary problem.

 

[BernardSmith]

Thanks so much for the reply . I would have spent the next couple months worrying...it was post fermentation...I use tap water. I then let it sit for 48 hours ( some people say 24-48 ). I read that camden helps with non chlorinated water and also prevents oxidation. The must fermented out pretty fast ( one week ) as the temperature is warm here ( 78 being the average )...and we use an open ferment with cheese cloth in a corner of our diningroom ( not in the sun ). So I guess I was worried that my error might leave me high on oxidation...or yeasts. I really appreciate the reassurance...Ill let it sit and keep enjoying the idea of a glass of blueberry wine in the middle of winter.

I think that Campden tabs (K-meta) helps neutralize chlorinated water. What you really don't want , in my opinion, is chlorinated water in wine making. You are adding chlorine and the phenols that the yeast produce can bind with the chlorine to produce chlorophenols and we know chlorophenols as the key flavors in cough syrup. If you know that your municipal water has chlorine (literally) then pour the water into food grade bucket and allow the chlorine to evaporate off. Many cities now use chloromines precisely because chlorine evaporates off, and chloromines are (I think) next to impossible to filter or remove.

As to your question about using only 1 campden tab. Certainly, wine makers have been working to always only use the yeast they wish to add, but allowing country wines to grow a small colony of indigenous yeast for a day or two until the lab cultured yeast swamps them out AND creates an environment that suits them and disfavors other environments that indigenous yeast may prefer simply adds fascinating complexities to your wines. It makes your wines far more unique from batch to batch and quite different from a similar batch made by your neighbors using the same year's harvest. The thing is that commercial wineries may want to kill indigenous yeast so that they have more control over the flavors and aromas of their final products if they think /know their customers are disinterested in subtle differences in flavors and aromas associated with each vintage. If you are buying Coke or Mountain Dew you want every batch to taste the same.

 

[winemaker81]

I think that Campden tabs (K-meta) helps neutralize chlorinated water.

I hadn't considered this, but a quick search turned up several references for de-chlorinating water with Campden tabs. Good tip!

That said, letting the water rest in a bucket overnight to evaporate chlorine is still a good idea. I assume the Campden neutralizes the chlorine by binding to it, which uses up free SO2. By letting the chlorine evaporate, it saves free SO2 to neutralize other things.

 

[Rice_Guy]

I have several of great grandpa’s 1935 recipes which do not add Campden or metabisulphite, the start was boil water > dump it on the berries > cool till you can put your hand in > mush the berries by hand.
What I have seen is my shelf life improved when I assumed there was zero free SO2 and just add 0.2 gram meta per gallon. As Bryan pointed out in a primary CO2 is pushing air out and it is later that it matters.

chemistry lesson: ethyl alcohol combines with oxygen making acetaldehyde, at low levels it is pleasing like green apple, as the level increases a sharp taste develops kinda like apricot and higher yet it produces a burn sensation in the back of the throat when one swallows. A little adds complexity. ,,, This is a shelf life issue, ,,,, A lot makes it unpleasant.

 

[Calhce49]

I think that Campden tabs (K-meta) helps neutralize chlorinated water. What you really don't want , in my opinion, is chlorinated water in wine making. You are adding chlorine and the phenols that the yeast produce can bind with the chlorine to produce chlorophenols and we know chlorophenols as the key flavors in cough syrup. If you know that your municipal water has chlorine (literally) then pour the water into food grade bucket and allow the chlorine to evaporate off. Many cities now use chloromines precisely because chlorine evaporates off, and chloromines are (I think) next to impossible to filter or remove.

As to your question about using only 1 campden tab. Certainly, wine makers have been working to always only use the yeast they wish to add, but allowing country wines to grow a small colony of indigenous yeast for a day or two until the lab cultured yeast swamps them out AND creates an environment that suits them and disfavors other environments that indigenous yeast may prefer simply adds fascinating complexities to your wines. It makes your wines far more unique from batch to batch and quite different from a similar batch made by your neighbors using the same year's harvest. The thing is that commercial wineries may want to kill indigenous yeast so that they have more control over the flavors and aromas of their final products if they think /know their customers are disinterested in subtle differences in flavors and aromas associated with each vintage. If you are buying Coke or Mountain Dew you want every batch to taste the same.

Thanks so much for that information. For ridding my must of chlorine, 1/2 tablet per gallon is what is recommended, so hopefully my one tablet at least did a little good. I’m not sure what my area provides in terms of tap water, but now I think I’ll see if I can look into it.