Primary fermentation question

[Paul Gardner]

Thank you, I'll follow your advice.

 

[winemaker81]

In general, fermentation slows down as it gets closer to the end. For whites and fruits I typically rack between 1.010 and 1.000, moving the wine to a carboy. When there is active fermentation, I leave at 6" to 12" head space in the carboy. I agree with @Rice_Guy, don't fill the carboy as you'll make your very own volcano! Once fermentation is fully complete, then top the carboy.

Once the wine goes in the carboy, fermentation will slow down more. I typically move the wine into the carboy + gallon jugs (also leaving head space) and ignore the wine for a week. If you see a lot of sediment dropping, that is an indication that fermentation may be done. The CO2 holds the sediment in suspension, and once the CO2 is not being replenished by fermentation, sediment drops as the CO2 level diminishes.

I may try @Rice_Guy's suggestion to rack earlier. With whites, a slower fermentation is supposed to preserve aroma. I've done cold ferments (58 F in my cellar in January) which appear to prove this.

 

[Paul Gardner]

My wine is at 1.056, it's Niagara. It's not foaming anymore and I was beginning to get concerned about it being exposed to the air. Since it's not foaming and there appears to be little danger of blowing the top off my air locks, should I rack it into gallon jugs and keep it in a cooler room? I just don't want 4 gallons of Niagara vinegar.

 

[winemaker81]

@Paul Gardner, Not all wines foam a lot. I've had quite a few that barely registered activity, especially whites.

How long has the wine been at 1.056? Unless it's been 3 or 4 days, it's nothing to worry about.

What is the temperature in your wine making area? How stable is the temperature, e.g., does it vary much in the course of the day? Variable temperatures can stick a fermentation. Also, if you're fermenting in a cold area (<70F) moving to a warmer area often stimulates the yeast. I have fermented whites at 58 F -- the fermentation took ~3 weeks.

A fermenting wine is full of CO2, so it's good for days in an open bucket. Give it a gentle stir and you'll likely see some foaming. That will also introduce a bit of O2, which stimulates yeast reproduction.

 

[Rice_Guy]

? question temperature, , , as @winemaker81 said
have run 40 for two months
45 for six weeks
85 for three days etc etc
the easy test with temp is to add a little heat as an incandescent bulb under the pail on four blocks, the store will have something as a brew belt or seed starting mats.

If I was concerned about an open container I would look for a rubber membrane to cover the bucket, the local big box is selling bowl covers that are twelve inches plus some stretch. Normal is at 1.056 you should still be fermenting and producing CO2 which flushes oxygen out.

 

[VinesnBines]

Keep watch on that SG but I also stick my head close to the must and take a deep inhale to see if CO2 is still being produced. If you have active fermentation, you can get a whiff (or head full) of CO2 and no worry about spoilage. You can also check for off smells (rotten egg - H2S).
I think the winemakers best tools are nose and tongue.

 

[Rice_Guy]

If you are smelling for CO2 it forms carbonic acid therefore high levels produce a burn sensation.

I doubt you will get to a high level BUT if you did we have food plant examples of it killing team members every once and a while,,, and it is the current standard gas for putting hogs to sleep before they are processed.

 

[VinesnBines]

Fortunately 3 to 5 gallons in a normal sized room doesn't produce enough CO2 to put down a hog or human. I did get a little lightheaded after my husband closed the office door with 10 gallons churning away.

Large amounts of fermentation do produce toxic levels of CO2 and keeling over (or worse) is certainly possible.

Nevertheless the odor is a good indication of active fermentation in small batches.

 

[Paul Gardner]

I really appreciate all the comments here and have helped my foray into wine making be very exciting. Now I have another question. I racked the Niagara wine into my gallon jugs on the 6th of the month. It seems like it's not time to rack again, but I have about an inch of sediment in each jug. Should I rack to prevent the sediment from flavoring the wine or let it go for now. If I'm to let it go, what would be a good timeline to follow regarding racking again? Please see photo.

 

[VinesnBines]

Leave it a minimum of 3 weeks. Your wine is still pretty cloudy; it will clear more. Make sure you have a smaller jug because you will have less than 3 gallons and will need to keep it topped up further in the jugs. You have a little more headspace than I like. Do keep it in the dark. White will oxidize in a hurry.

 

[Old Corker]

Um... Maybe I'm missing something but that shelf support seems to be installed upside down. That could be a bigger problem than headspace if you keep loading it with bottles.

 

[Paul Gardner]

Leave it a minimum of 3 weeks. Your wine is still pretty cloudy; it will clear more. Make sure you have a smaller jug because you will have less than 3 gallons and will need to keep it topped up further in the jugs. You have a little more headspace than I like. Do keep it in the dark. White will oxidize in a hurry.

Should I top them off with Niagara juice?

 

[Rice_Guy]

Should I top them off with Niagara juice?

Adding fresh juice (sugar source) will delay clarification and reactivate yeast, you might get away by adding K sorbate wait over two days then add juice, but I try to have a smaller container every time I rack.

 

[VinesnBines]

I’d say go smaller but you prefer, you can get a very light white wine and use that to top up with.

 

[winemaker81]

@Paul Gardner, collect a variety of bottle sizes. I keep a collection of 1.5 liter clear wine bottles, plus 750 ml and 375 ml wine bottles. I prefer tall & thin clear bottles, as it makes it easier to see sediment and rack off it. I also have a drawer full of airlocks and numerous stoppers of many sizes to fit carboys, gallon/4 liter jugs, and wine bottles. [I had 2 and 3 liter wine bottles as well, but recycled them and can't find more.]

When you rack, fill the first 2 jugs to within 1" to 1.5" of the stopper. For the remainder, put in smaller bottles. #3 stoppers fit standard wine bottles, and of course you'll need more airlocks.

If you don't have the bottles, stoppers, and/or airlocks, topping up with a light white works great.

When topping up, I top with a wine that is as good or better than the one I'm topping up. Don't spend $50 USD on a bottle ... but don't use Two Buck Chuck (or the equivalent) either. There are a lot of wines in the $8 to $12 range that work fine.

I have enough back stock that I'll use other wines I've made for top up. I pop the cork, top up the container, then top up me.

Side note -- I buy Carlo Rossi Paisano and Chablis, and decant them into 5x 750 ml and 1x 375 ml screw cap bottles for cooking. When I don't need more 4 liter jugs, I buy Winking Owl at Aldi's for cooking, and I get more 750's that way.

 

[Paul Gardner]

I really appreciate all the comments here and have helped my foray into wine making be very exciting. Now I have another question. I racked the Niagara wine into my gallon jugs on the 6th of the month. It seems like it's not time to rack again, but I have about an inch of sediment in each jug. Should I rack to prevent the sediment from flavoring the wine or let it go for now. If I'm to let it go, what would be a good timeline to follow regarding racking again? Please see photo.View attachment 70592

 

[Paul Gardner]

@Paul Gardner, collect a variety of bottle sizes. I keep a collection of 1.5 liter clear wine bottles, plus 750 ml and 375 ml wine bottles. I prefer tall & thin clear bottles, as it makes it easier to see sediment and rack off it. I also have a drawer full of airlocks and numerous stoppers of many sizes to fit carboys, gallon/4 liter jugs, and wine bottles. [I had 2 and 3 liter wine bottles as well, but recycled them and can't find more.]

When you rack, fill the first 2 jugs to within 1" to 1.5" of the stopper. For the remainder, put in smaller bottles. #3 stoppers fit standard wine bottles, and of course you'll need more airlocks.

If you don't have the bottles, stoppers, and/or airlocks, topping up with a light white works great.

When topping up, I top with a wine that is as good or better than the one I'm topping up. Don't spend $50 USD on a bottle ... but don't use Two Buck Chuck (or the equivalent) either. There are a lot of wines in the $8 to $12 range that work fine.

I have enough back stock that I'll use other wines I've made for top up. I pop the cork, top up the container, then top up me.

Side note -- I buy Carlo Rossi Paisano and Chablis, and decant them into 5x 750 ml and 1x 375 ml screw cap bottles for cooking. When I don't need more 4 liter jugs, I buy Winking Owl at Aldi's for cooking, and I get more 750's that way.

Thank you, this was a very helpful comment. I think I'll get sta

 

[Scooter68]

For me the first two rackings are done based on the condition of the wine.

1st Rackling is done from bucket to carboy when the fermentation is essentially over/wrapping up - when two conditions are met SG is at or below 1.010 and the second condition is the foaming is pretty much over. Many times there really isn't much more that some scattered islands of foam on the surface of the bucket. Waiting for those two conditions helps to avoid a foam fountain. I've had a couple of close calls both were while I was standing there waiting for the racking to finish.
2nd Racking is done when you can see the wine is clearing a bit and the sediment has settled out. Normally for me that means somewhere between 10 - 4 weeks tops. IF I have planned properly I can top off easily with my "Extra Wine" from the first racking and some from the lightest of the gross lees settled out in a container in the fridge.

The key is that there is not of a lot of hard fast rule here so the best we can really offer are some guidelines that you can follow and adapt based on your experieces that come out well. (As my tennis coach told us "Never change a winning game, Always change a losing game.")

 

[Paul Gardner]

Thank you. I looked closely at the wine and very tiny bubbles of CO2 are still rising. I think it's just my eagerness to get my first taste. I'll wait another couple weeks then reconsider racking.

 

[Paul Gardner]

Ok, I think I'm ready to rack to get rid of the sediment. No CO2 activities and the wine is pretty clear, however I am still cloudy on how to proceed. If I understand the process, I would open one jug and take out enough wine to take my hydrometer reading. Record the reading then finish racking into temporary jugs, clean out the current jugs, sterilize and put the wine back in with the air locks. Is this correct so far?

If so, then do I simply play another waiting game? Or do I do something else based on my hydrometer reading?