quick question for anyone with a Vinmetrica unit?

[TimTheWiner]

I really want to start using my Vinmetrica SC-300 that I got for Christmas tonight but I did bot realize that I need deionized wine for rinsing off the electrodes. Cheapest I can find is online for $35 shipped for a gallon. This seems nuts to me for something with such a basic purpose. Can I just use distilled water without causing any issues?

 

[GreginND]

Yes you can. Distilled water is deionized through the distillation process.

 

[TimTheWiner]

Great, and I should be using Clinitest strips for residual sugar correct? I have been a diabetic for 13 year so one would think I should have them, but really not a necessity. I wonder if the urine glucose strips would work as well or if they are less accurate.

 

[Runningwolf]

The Clinitest is only good to a certain%. Right off I don't remember but I think it's around 5% rs. Yes the Clinitest is the most accurate way to go. I just use a 0-8 brix hydrometer.

 

[TimTheWiner]

Is there a certain conversion to converting Brit to % RS? I do have a triple reading hydrometer, and what if you need to find higher % RS like a sweet wine or dessert wine that is easily over 5%?

 

[Runningwolf]

Brix = RS after fermentation. You can use your triple hydrometer. I just find a straight Brix Hydrometer with close readings are easier to read.

 

[TimTheWiner]

Do I need to take temperature into account as I would with SG?

 

[TimTheWiner]

According to my hydrometer my RS is 3% which is about right since it is semi-sweet to sweet (I back sweetened with an invert sugar syrup). My ph is 3.28 and free so2 is 40ppm. According to a link I read, reds should shoot for about .5 ppm molecular so2, whites about .8 and dessert wines up to 1.5. Since I consider my this white zin to be a bit sweeter than the average white, and more like a dessert wine (not quite that sweet though), I use 1.2 molecular as a ballpark figure at which 3.28 ph I shoudl be looking for about 36ppm free so2, so my 40ppm isn't that far off. My biggest worry is that when I sanitize my bottles with a strong meta-bi solution on my avinator/bottle tree then isn't that going to shoot up my ppm? Can I rinse them with water after sanitizing??

 

[Runningwolf]

Sounds like you're doing everything right. Do not rinse with water. The rinse with the avinator and hanging bottles on tree will not effect your ppm. Incidently, the link below is a great tool for figuring the S02 needed to add.

http://www.winemakermag.com/guide/sulfite

 

[TimTheWiner]

Sounds good. I did read somewhere however that running a sanitizing solution through the whole house filter and lines can add up to 10ppm to the final product, so since this will be primarily for our own consumption I skipped filtering and bottled last night

 

[Runningwolf]

Sounds good. I did read somewhere however that running a sanitizing solution through the whole house filter and lines can add up to 10ppm to the final product, so since this will be primarily for our own consumption I skipped filtering and bottled last night

I don't believe that for a minute! First off dump your first 2-3 bottles back into the carboy when bottling so they don't get a concentrate of it. Second; filtering and bottling beats the wine up and uses about 20% of the meta up.

 

[TimTheWiner]

Well it does seem to me that a round cartridge filter saturated with a sulfite solution would have to add some so2, unless I were to completely remove it and drain/air dry the filter and housing? I mean that stuff smells STRONG and I tend to wonder if that's how much Riesling got too much so2, was due to the filter? BTW, I don't filter directly into the bottles. I filter/rack into and empty carboy, wait a few data, then bottle.