Question about SG.

[NorthernWolfman]

Hi everyone, great site and awesome help i see here from everyone.
I've been reading alot of stuff here over the last 12hrs and i'm seeing that most everyone says to rack just before the SG gets to 1.000 so as to have a little fermentation going on in the secondary. So my question is this, after the wine has been racked and the SG is still showing signs of fermenting, would you still wait until the fermentation is completed in the secondary before adding the next batch of chemicals to the wine?

Hope the question makes any sense.

 

[Luc]

Well this is not easy to answer.

First: what chemicals are you referring to ???

Next what kind of wine are we talking about.
A kit is different from a wine made from store bought juice and then
again different from a wine made from scratch with fresh fruit.

With fresh fruit you sieve after a few days to leave the pulp behind. Generally the pulp is pressed and the juice from that is also added to the secondary. Fermentation will go on in the secondary from that point.

With (store bought) juice you rack to a secondary as soon as vigorous fermentation is over. You first ferment in a large primary so foam will not blow out of the airlock. Later you will ferment in a secondary.

With kits, follow the rules the manufacturer has set out for you.

If you are talking about sorbate. That is used for keeping yeast cells from multiplying. This should be used in the last fase of the winemaking when the wine has finished fermenting and is totally clear.

Luc

 

[Green Mountains]

Hi everyone, great site and awesome help i see here from everyone.
I've been reading alot of stuff here over the last 12hrs and i'm seeing that most everyone says to rack just before the SG gets to 1.000 so as to have a little fermentation going on in the secondary. So my question is this, after the wine has been racked and the SG is still showing signs of fermenting, would you still wait until the fermentation is completed in the secondary before adding the next batch of chemicals to the wine?

Hope the question makes any sense.

Luc is very wise on this.

To simplify, the biggest reason to rack over when there's a bit of fermentation left to go is because once it's done fermenting then the wine will be at risk of oxidation if it were still in the primary bucket. There's a LOT of area on the surface when it's in the bucket. By moving it to a carboy you greatly reduce the surface area. That's why they say to top up to near the neck of the carboy.

Hope this helps.

 

[Tom]

Yes let it go dry. The wine may take another week to get dry.
Listen to luc.
Lets have some more info on what you are making and what you have done so far.

 

[NorthernWolfman]

hey gang, okay when i bought the equipment the guy at the store told me not to get a very expensive kit for the first batch so as not to get discouraged if it didn't turn out right so i thought that was kewl of him. So he gave me a kit called Wine Time Vineyards Elite, its a Cabernet Sauvignon. So i started the kit last night and checked the SG which looks like its going to be a very weak wine, the reading was 1.068 and today i bought those stick on thermometors and the outside says its like 68degrees. So now i think i need a belt which i can't get until Tuesday now.

So getting back to the question, would we wait until the wine got dry and then added the Potassium Sorbate and Potassium Metabisulphite

 

[Tom]

That must be a Canadian kit as I have not heard of it. What size kit is it? (ltrs). I'm also guessing that when you added water that you did not have it mixed all the way.
I'm sure it came with directions read and try to understand them. Write everything down as well (log)

 

[NorthernWolfman]

it a 23L kit, and i think i mixed it properly. Would distilled water cause a bad reading? can i go back and stir it everyday or should i just let it go and see what happens?

 

[cpfan]

That must be a Canadian kit as I have not heard of it.

Gee Tom, I was thinking it must be an American or British kit because I've never heard of it. But since he lives in Mississauga, I guess I'm wrong. Possibly a kit made specifically for that store (or a small chain).

NorthernWolfman:

Tom was asking "how big was the kit"? 7 litres of concentrate made up to 23 litres?

As Tom said, most kits come with pretty good instructions, so follow them as much as possible.

Since none of us know this brand, and I can't find the kits in Yahoo or Google search, we don't know what the instructions say, so have trouble advising you.

Steve

 

[Green Mountains]

To answer your real question, yes WAIT to add any of the remaining chemicals. The sorbate is the next step and that HALTS fermentation, you don't want to do that too soon.

 

[NorthernWolfman]

cpfan- ya i think it was 7litres of concentrate, the instructions aren't that bad, but it says to rack on the 7th day then on day 17th to take an SG reading and if its where it should be then to add the sorbate and metabisulphate

 

[cpfan]

the instructions aren't that bad, but it says to rack on the 7th day then on day 17th to take an SG reading and if its where it should be then to add the sorbate and metabisulphate

That's quite reasonable. I'd check the sg on day 7 and make sure that it is 1.005 or lower (other people will suggest other numbers). It might even be below 1.000 at that point, and that is good. I would then wait till day 17 (or in my case likely later) and proceed with the instructions.

Steve

 

[Wade E]

Dont add anything unti its done fermenting and that is checked by taking an sg reading 3 days in a row with no change in sg. Was there a range that your starting sg was supposed to be within cause that is very low for that type even for a smaller kit like you have. Either it wasnt mixed enough or you possibly added too much water. Dont go by what your bucket says unless you have dble checked that volume with a known volume like by using 6 gallons of bottled water or the such, carboys and buckets (especially carboys) are notorious for being inaccurate and are usually bigger then stated making you add more water to your primary or not having enough wine in your carboy therefore needing to top up with a wine of similar type.

 

[NorthernWolfman]

Wade- the instructions that came with this kit didn't even say anything about a starting SG, it only mentions to take an SG reading at day 17, and now that you mention about carboys not being accurate, the instructions that came with the kit said to fill the carboy and then empty the carboy into the primary and mark the 6gallon level, so as a total newbie i complied. so what does this mean for the wine?

 

[Wade E]

Well hopefully you have a 6 gallon carbo and not a 6 1/2 gallon carboy as those are usaully around 6 3/3 gallons. each carboy is different so cant tell you how much you have but most 6 gallon carboys are usually around 6 1/4 to a lottle under 6 1/2. making yor sg low and your wine thinner thinner then wanted.

 

[NorthernWolfman]

thanks for info Wade, theres another lesson learned and another in the logbook

 

[robie]

Let it go dry.

It has to be stirred ALOT to get the layers combined.
If not stirred enough, it can set there for days in its individual layers.
1.068 is what low alcohol mist kits come in at.

Really, you should just follow the instructions on the first kit.