Other Racking off Raisins/Currants after EM

[jsbeckton]

I have a RJS Amarone Classico that has been in EM for about 7 weeks. I plan to rack it in another week or so but am worried I am going to lose a lot of volume unless I squeeze out the skins bag and raisins/Currants that seemed to puff back out after absorbing wine.

I usually squeeze the bag or let it drain a bit but this is my first EM when I don’t have the CO2 protection anymore so I am a bit nervous about exposure to O2 now.

Any thoughts?

 

[Johnd]

I have a RJS Amarone Classico that has been in EM for about 7 weeks. I plan to rack it in another week or so but am worried I am going to lose a lot of volume unless I squeeze out the skins bag and raisins/Currants that seemed to puff back out after absorbing wine.

I usually squeeze the bag or let it drain a bit but this is my first EM when I don’t have the CO2 protection anymore so I am a bit nervous about exposure to O2 now.

Any thoughts?

Sulfite protects against oxidation, so if you’ve sulfited already, or will be at the racking / squeezing, you’ll be OK. With red wines, exposure to air for a short period of time like you will be subjecting it to, is pretty safe. If you’re still concerned, you could do a little sulfite boost for insurance.

 

[Bplewniak]

I’m not sure if my method is correct, but I always add a bit over 6 gallons for the exact reason. I always used to lose a bottle or so worth of slush if I did per the instructions after EM.

 

[Trick]

I usually don't throw out the sludge part immediately. Instead, I put the sludge in a small glass bottle and added a couple of drops of Chitosan, shake vigorously and then let it sit for a couple of weeks. Then I can recover at least 3/4 of the volume from the sludge. Of course, sulfite is added already before racking happens.
I tend not to dilute the wine by adding extra water.

 

[jsbeckton]

Thanks for the suggestions. I’d rather have less than dilute with water so I’m going to squeeze the bag and smash the raisins to recover as much as possible relying on the kmeta to protect the wine.