Newbie here with question on aging

[Tony7781]

Hi ladies and gents. I am new to the forum and I have always wanted to get into wine making and finally took the plunge! I am starting with a winexpert eclipse Pinot noir. I have done a lot of research and it seems this should be aged at least a year (18 months preferred) to reach its full potential. In the instructions it says if I want to age more than 6 months I should add an additional 1/4 teaspoon of metabisulphite powder before the last 28 days of clarifying in the carboy. I have 3 questions, will the additional 1/4 teaspoon be sufficient to age for up to approximately 18 months? After that 18 months, how long can the wine stay good in the bottles? I am also planning to age the wine in bottles in a wine fridge ( I don't have s basement in my house) after that last 28 day period, will that be ok?

I am from New Jersey, anyone else? If so do you have any wine stores you recommend in the Matawan area? Thank you all in advance and I'm so looking forward to this new hobby!! Any other tips provided by the gurus is gladly welcomed!

- Anthony

 

[sour_grapes]

Hi, Anthony! Welcome to WMT. It sounds like you are well on your way for this obsessio.... errr, hobby.

I was not sure from your message: When do you intend to bottle your batch? After 28 days or after 18 mos.?

Standard advice here is to add 1/4 tsp of K-meta every three months that the wine is aging, before bottling. Add the normal 1/4 tsp just before bottling. That should take care of you for up to 5 years or so in the bottle.

(Others, feel free to correct me if you disagree!)

 

[ceeaton]

Anthony,

I am also very new to the obsession. Learning that if you can get some 375 ml bottles, it's nice to have a few of those around to sample from as it ages. That way you aren't opening a larger bottle prior to it being aged to your expectations. Figuring I'd do 2 cases of 750's then the rest in 375's. Should give me 10-12 samplers for a 23 L batch, which at one a month should be sufficient to properly age most wines before I dig into the larger bottles.

I have also heard that 1/4 tsp Kmeta just before bottling is good for at least 5 years if good corks are used. In a perfect world we would have a nifty SO2 tester and add the correct amount depending on pH. But I don't live in a perfect world, and expect most of my wine won't make it past it's 2 year birthday. At least for a while.

 

[Tony7781]

Thanks for the responses! The kit states the following, this is the last step before bottling. I would plan on bottling after this last 28 day step and then aging in the bottles for 18 months. Sour grapes, are you saying I should add 1/4 teaspoon for every 3 months over the initial 6 months I'm planning to age during this 28 day step, so basically 1.5 teaspoons and then another 1/4 teaspoon right before bottling? When you say k-meta are you referring to potassium metabisulphite? I couldnt tell from the instructions if they just want me to add 1/4 teaspoon for aging, but they dont reference a time period:

After 8 days your wine will be quite clear. This next
racking will help to brilliantly polish it. Clean and
sanitise carboy, siphon rod and hose.
1. Rack the wine into a clean, sanitised carboy.
Take all of the clear wine, and leave the
sediment and oak cubes (if present) behind.
NOTE: Winexpert kits contain very low
levels of sulphite compared to commercial
wine. If you want to age your wine
more than 6 months, you must add
extra metabisulphite powder to prevent
oxidation. To do this, dissolve 1.5 grams (¼ teaspoon) of metabisulphite
powder in 125 ml (½ cup) cool water and gently stir into wine in the clean
carboy. This extra sulphite will not affect flavour or early drinkability.
2. Do not add any additional water (`top up’) to your carboy at this time. Topping up
will change the character of your wine. Your wine will not oxidise or spoil during
the time remaining to bottling.
3. Fill airlock halfway with water and reattach bung and airlock to carboy. Leave the
wine 28 days to finish clarifying.
4. After 28 days, check your wine for clarity by drawing a small sample into a
wineglass and examining it in good light. If it is not completely clear, leave for
another 7 days. Do not bottle cloudy wine: it will not clear in the bottle.

 

[Tony7781]

ceeaton, thanks, I like the idea of using the smaller bottles to taste throughout the aging process to check the status.

 

[sour_grapes]

My comments were assuming you were bulk aging, in a carboy under airlock. If you plan to bottle according to the kit instructions, that is a different matter. In that case, I would follow the manufacturer's directions. I apologize for the confusion!

 

[Kraffty]

just to be clear, it's NOT 1-1/2 teaspoons of K-meta. That's grams listed in the instructions.
Welcome aboard!

Mike

 

[heatherd]

Welcome to the forum!
Heather

 

[Tony7781]

Gotcha, I think Im just going to add 1/2 teaspoon for the process. The place I bought the kit from said you really dont even need to add it unless your keeping it for like 4-5 years. Im still going to add it though. I am so stoked, I have all my equipment now and will start the first batch on Saturday morning! I really cant wait, looking forward to this whole process.

 

[sour_grapes]

Gotcha, I think Im just going to add 1/2 teaspoon for the process.

Okay, but why are you deciding to double the dose that is recommended? (Recommended by your instructions and by conventional wisdom here?)

 

[Tony7781]

Okay, but why are you deciding to double the dose that is recommended? (Recommended by your instructions and by conventional wisdom here?)

My apologies, that was a typo. I'm planning on following the instructions with 1/4 teaspoon.