Oxidizing Wine While Degassing?? Anything I can do now?

[Winee]

So i'm making my first kit. It's the Spanish Tempranillo Winexpert World Vineyard kit. The instructions told me to stir "vigorously" so...I went for it... However, when reading about degassing afterwards I believe I put my wine at risk of oxidization because some of the time while stirring vigorously I may have been a bit too vigorous causing splashing and a vortex.

I know it turns brown if oxidized, but I am actually color blind so I don't really trust myself to know by the look. I just degassed about 3 hours ago. Is there anything I can do now to prevent or counteract any potential oxidization effects?

Thanks!!

 

[acorn]

Welcome and congratulations on your first attempt.

With kits it is unlikely that you would substantially oxidize your wine while degassing, as it was not only full of CO2 that blankets the wine as you whip it, but, more likely than not, also contained a hefty dose of sulfites that you added in the wine making process to protect it, as per instructions. Anyway, at this stage it is unlikely that you damaged your wine in any significant way. Vigorous stirring resulting in vortexes and splashing during degassing is pretty normal, which ensures that you get rid of much of the CO2 that's dissolved in wine.

Also, any time you don't trust your eye, delegate the task of evaluation to your nose. In your case, if the wine doesn't smell like vinegar, then you are safe.

To answer your last question, typically before you reach the bottling stage you should keep consitent additions of Potassium Metabisulfite powder (or Campden tablets). This produced free SO2 (some of which gets bound at addition), that gradually scavenges oxygen when wine gets exposed to it for whatever reason, thus protecting it from oxidation. While this mostly applies to wines that are aged for 6+ months before bottling because post-fermentation additions are usually 2-3 months in between, wine made from kits is generally bottled much earlier than wine made from raw fruit. Your kit instructions, however, will ensure that you keep up with the sulfiting regimen for whatever duration of time your wine is produced.

 

[Rocky]

I think you will be fine.

Did you add Potassium Metabisulfite at any point and, if so, when? Wine is a lot tougher than people think and can take more abuse than one would expect. Make sure you have it under airlock and the wine is topped up to the smallest diameter of the neck of the carboy.

Welcome to the forum. Glad to have you aboard.

 

[Winee]

Thank you both for the advice! Rocky, in regards to topping up the carboy I have attached a photo of mine showing where mine sits in the carboy. I lost a bit when siphoning from the primary to secondary because I couldn't maintain the siphon once the level in the primary was low.

It has been in secondary at this level for a week now and I added metabisulphite, sorbate, and chitosan clarifier to it last night. Is it too late to top it off. And if I do, should I top it off using a store bought tempranillo or water?

Thanks so much for your help!

 

[DoctorCAD]

That level of wine is doing much more harm that a stirring degassing session. You need to top that baby up! Use wine to top up, the variety doesn't really matter. I buy the Bota Box brand in either Merlot or Malbec. Those flavors seem to blend in with just about any strong red and you get to finish off the rest of the box. I know...box wine, yuck, but Bota Box is pretty good!