Making sweet red wine

[colariu]

Hello this is my first time making wine from grapes and i would like to make some red wine that is not dry. I understand i need to ferment to dry and add potassium sorbate to stabilise and then add sugar. I also plan to perform MLF prior and i did not find a way to backsweet (without using non fermentable sugars) the wine and perform MLF. I understand there a high risk to have a rotten egg smell if potassium sorbate is added after MLF.How can i do this? Thanks

 

[cmason1957]

Hello this is my first time making wine from grapes and i would like to make some red wine that is not dry. I understand i need to ferment to dry and add potassium sorbate to stabilise and then add sugar. I also plan to perform MLF prior and i did not find a way to backsweet (without using non fermentable sugars) the wine and perform MLF. I understand there a high risk to have a rotten egg smell if potassium sorbate is added after MLF.How can i do this? Thanks

Don't perform MLF and then add potassium sorbate to your wine. It will create the wonderful aroma of geraniums, not rotten eggs. The solution is to ferment dry, add sorbate, backsweeten.

 

[colariu]

So i cant do MLF and add potassium sorbate without a rotten egg smell.

 

[cmason1957]

As I said above, MLF and Sorbate leads to Geraniums smell, not rotten eggs.

 

[tradowsk]

Are you making the wine from a kit or from grapes? What varietal are you using?

 

[colariu]

Grapes..blend of merlot and cab

 

[tradowsk]

There's a few options:
You can filter the wine to remove the yeast cells.
You can fortify the wine to exceed the yeast tolerance so it won't referment.
You can pasteurize the wine to kill the yeast.

 

[colariu]

How do i accomplish the last two options?

 

[colariu]

As I said above, MLF and Sorbate leads to Geraniums smell, not rotten eggs.

As I said above, MLF and Sorbate leads to Geraniums smell, not rotten eggs.

Do i have to inhibit MLF in order to avoid bad smells?

 

[colariu]

Given the option to perform MLF or backsweet which is the preferred option to make the wine more approachable to the general non heavy wine drinkers?

 

[sour_grapes]

I urge you to just let the wine ferment to dry. Add sulfite at the proper time (and forget about MLF). Then add sorbate and sugar to your level of sweetness. Don't make this more complicated than it needs to be.