Persimmon wine, how long does it take to clear?

[Newbie Mel]

This is my first attempt at making wine. Everything seemed to go well in primary. Racked to secondary a week ago with a SG of 1.01. Began clearing immediately, but at day two there was no further clearing. How long should I wait before declaring this a fail? Should I add more pectic enzyme? Also the airlock does not seem to be bubbling. Does that just mean fermentation is done, or is it a problem?

thanks in advance for any tips!!

 

[winemaker81]

What is the wine? (It would help if I read the title ...) What is the current SG? Use 3 digits to the right of the decimal, e.g., 1.010 -- this avoids confusion.

If the SG is 0.998 or lower and remains constant for 3 days, fermentation is likely done.

Once fermentation completes, winemaking is an exercise in patience. Don't be quick to assume failure.

 

[franc1969]

This is my first attempt at making wine. Everything seemed to go well in primary. Racked to secondary a week ago with a SG of 1.01. Began clearing immediately, but at day two there was no further clearing. How long should I wait before declaring this a fail? Should I add more pectic enzyme? Also the airlock does not seem to be bubbling. Does that just mean fermentation is done, or is it a problem?

thanks in advance for any tips!!

You can pull the clear-er wine to another container, and pectinase/degas/chill the rest. It may take a while for complete clearing (sometimes months), but you can settle out more of the gross lees more quickly.

 

[Newbie Mel]

You can pull the clear-er wine to another container, and pectinase/degas/chill the rest. It may take a while for complete clearing (sometimes months), but you can settle out more of the gross lees more quickly.

Thank you for the tip. When you say chill it do you mean leave it in refrigerator until it settles or just chill it for a certain period of time, like overnight?

 

[franc1969]

Thank you for the tip. When you say chill it do you mean leave it in refrigerator until it settles or just chill it for a certain period of time, like overnight?

I put some of my wines in a fridge, and most of the sludge falls right out. With only a gallon, you could put the whole container in for a few days- just use a screw top. Rack off while still cold. The cold helps lees compact of they are going to.

 

[winemaker81]

Thank you for the tip. When you say chill it do you mean leave it in refrigerator until it settles or just chill it for a certain period of time, like overnight?

I've keep in the fridge for a week.

 

[pproctorga]

I make persimmon wine along with other varieties. The answer is never as best I’ve seen. Ive used super kleer and cold crashing for long periods and it’s still hazy.

 

[Newbie Mel]

On to next step... my wine seems to be clearing nicely now. I ended up filtering it and lost some volume, I have about 3/4 gallon now. I have it in a half gallon jug and a quart jar, with screw tops and aluminum foil with rubber bands for extra protection. I’m getting ready to rack it, add kmeta and potassium sorbate. The recipe says to correct clarity with pectic enzyme. If it looks clear should I still add the pectic enzyme? I also plan on back sweetening with a little honey. Do I need to put airlock back on after back sweetening, in case fermentation starts again? And wait 30 days before bottling?
Any other suggestions greatly appreciated!!

 

[winemaker81]

If the wine is clear, it's probably not needing the pectic enzyme. If you were going to add it, add before filtering (yeah, a bit late at this point ).

If you add sorbate/K-meta in correct doses, the fermentation should not re-ignite. However, I don't use screwcaps on anything that contains any sugar, since if the fermentation re-ignites, it's very possible to make a grenade, especially in a jug not designed to withstand any pressure.

Put an airlock on it, or a vented bung.

Some folks wait on bottling. I typically stabilize, backsweeten, and bottle.

How old is the wine? It doesn't appear to be that old. Bulk age for at least 3 months. If a pectin haze develops, you'll probably see it by then.

 

[Newbie Mel]

Thank you so much for all your advice @winemaker81 This is a great forum, especially for beginners. I have made so many mistakes from the start and hopefully I am learning from them! Despite my mistakes, the wine tastes ok. A little thin, possibly because I filtered it? I made the mistake in the beginning of instead of gently squeezing the pulp bag I squeezed the heck of it and ended up with more sludge than anything else and neglected to get a starting SG. The SG is now .992 I prefer a dry wine but was hoping for more flavor. Will back sweetening help that? I’m going to let it bulk age for awhile longer and taste again before I decide, but I enjoy advice!

 

[winemaker81]

Everyone starts out as a beginner at everything they do.

If the wine is thin, you probably could have used more fruit. For most fruits, the general recommendation is 4 lbs per gallon of water, up to 10 lbs.

IMO squeezing the bag is good, as you're leaving little behind. Don't worry about the gross lees, it settles out eventually.

Most fruit wines benefit from at least a bit of backsweetening -- this brings out the fruit flavors. Sweeten to YOUR taste. My version of sweet is bone-dry by most standards, so you and I may be on the same page in that respect.

You can also add gylcerin (1/2 to 1 oz per gallon) to increase body and mouthfeel. I doubt the filtering affected the body -- it's typically used for polishing wines. I used to filter, but haven't in many moons.

 

[Newbie Mel]

Another question, if I may, when do I test starting SG? Before or after pitching the yeast? I’m starting a new batch today and hoping to learn from one of my prior mistakes

 

[winemaker81]

Before. Your OG and final SG can be used to calculate the ABV

 

[hounddawg]

slowly, with patience,
as a beginner i would make a batch of skitter pee or dragon blood, for something quick to sip on,
that way your other wines you can take months, or years on,
patience is your finest ingredient,,
Dawg

 

[Newbie Mel]

slowly, with patience,
as a beginner i would make a batch of skitter pee or dragon blood, for something quick to sip on,
that way your other wines you can take months, or years on,
patience is your finest ingredient,,
Dawg

Thank you for this advice, because I now have learned how patience is not one of my finer attributes. I have a batch of dragon blood about ready to go into secondary. I’m already anticipating a skeeter pee next, while I explore other fruit wines. Got a pineapple/mango started, but I need some quick results to see if I am accomplishing anything . I do know I need to learn patience, unfortunately that is not my gift. But what better way to increase my patience level than making wine??

 

[winemaker81]

Thank you for this advice, because I now have learned how patience is not one of my finer attributes.

Make more wine.

Nope, for once I'm not being facetious. The only way to age wine is to make more than you drink. It doesn't matter what you make, as long as you're drinking something else while your longer aging wines are reaching their full potential.

 

[hounddawg]

any wine i craft i do a minimum of #3-6 gal carboys plus a few gallon, half gallon and pint all #3 in 38-400 threads which a drilled 6.5 bung will fit for your airlocks,,,
Dawg

 

[Newbie Mel]

Thank you for this advice, because I now have learned how patience is not one of my finer attributes. I have a batch of dragon blood about ready to go into secondary. I’m already anticipating a skeeter pee next, while I explore other fruit wines. Got a pineapple/mango started, but I need some quick results to see if I am accomplishing anything . I do know I need to learn patience, unfortunately that is not my gift. But what better way to increase my patience level than making wine??

This is some of the sediment (DB) saved from primary when I transferred to secondary. Is this a yeast slurry? Can I use it to start skeeter pee? If yes, how do I store it until ready to use? I don’t want to screw the top on in case it explodes.

 

[Newbie Mel]

any wine i craft i do a minimum of #3-6 gal carboys plus a few gallon, half gallon and pint all #3 in 38-400 threads which a drilled 6.5 bung will fit for your airlocks,,,
Dawg

Where do you buy your carboys? I do not have a local brew supply store and amazon seems very expensive. Do you have any suggestions for online suppliers?

thanks!

 

[hounddawg]

i can't remember i think buying in a 4 pack at a time works out cheapest, they where around $35 each, and the thickest carboys I've found
Dawg

www.packingoptionsdirect.com