WineXpert My WE Estate Zin

[kat50496]

Last night I clarified and stabilized my Estate Zin per instructions (I think). The instructions said to do this when the SG was 0.996 or less. I measured on 8/1 and read 0.995 and again last night at 0.996 (I chalk up the difference to some inexperience in reading the hydrometer). Was I right to assume fermentation was complete and I was OK to proceed?

Also, degassed for about 25 min. with the mix-stir at temp. of 70 degrees. I got a lot of gas curtains, would wait for the fine foam to rise, and mix it again. Did this about 12 times. Each time it seemed that the foam dissipated back into the wine, and then bubbled up again. Seemed like I could have done this for hours. How do you know when you've degassed, and when you are just stirring the foam back into the wine? does this make sense? Sorry for the long post.

BTW, tasted some and it was really pretty good, fruity and a bit harsh, but pretty tasty.

 

[robie]

Last night I clarified and stabilized my Estate Zin per instructions (I think). The instructions said to do this when the SG was 0.996 or less. I measured on 8/1 and read 0.995 and again last night at 0.996 (I chalk up the difference to some inexperience in reading the hydrometer). Was I right to assume fermentation was complete and I was OK to proceed?

Also, degassed for about 25 min. with the mix-stir at temp. of 70 degrees. I got a lot of gas curtains, would wait for the fine foam to rise, and mix it again. Did this about 12 times. Each time it seemed that the foam dissipated back into the wine, and then bubbled up again. Seemed like I could have done this for hours. How do you know when you've degassed, and when you are just stirring the foam back into the wine? does this make sense? Sorry for the long post.

BTW, tasted some and it was really pretty good, fruity and a bit harsh, but pretty tasty.

It is finished fermenting.

75F is better than 70F, but degassing wineXpert kits seems to go easier than some others because WE instructions have you degas without first racking off secondary. This leaves a lot of little particles that help nucleate off the CO2. At least that is my own theory. I read an article where Tim V. put a sanitized bottle brush down inside a carboy before degassing with a vacuum pump. It was a white wine, so you could easily see how effective the brush was at assisting degassing.

Are you stirring with a spoon or with a drill stirrer? The drill version works much better.

You will always see some bubbles coming up. Oxygen bubbles are much bigger than CO2 bubbles. If you are not still getting the sheets (waves or curtains) of very tiny CO2 bubbles coming up the sides of the carboy, you are probably OK for CO2. You can always degas again before you bottle, it doesn't hurt.

The wine should taste a little sharp (tart) at this point. That is just the taste of young, green wine. It will get better in time and smooth right out.