I made some peach wine and I did have a problem with too much fermentation but I finally got that to stop. I bottled after racking three bottles. I opened up to the bottles and it tasted pretty good but the third bottle strong acetone smell of course I ditched it down the drain. I understand there's many ways that this can happen but I'm wondering: the third bottle was not filled up anywhere as much as the other two because I had no more wine left. I'm wondering if leaving too much air in a bottle could have made this happen. Also I drink apple cider vinegar everyday and sometimes I leave the glass with some minute lying around which isn't too far away where I keep the wine as I have a small apartment. Is it possible that apple cider vinegar could have contaminated what am I bottles of wine
some of my wine smelled like acetone
- Thread starter davidj77
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The air space is the main culprit. If you leave too much head space, the wine will go bad. Next time, top up the last bottle with a compatible wine. For peach, use any light flavored white wine.
If the vinegar has a live culture, it's very possible to contaminate the wine. If there is no live culture, probably not, but I'd keep anything vinegar related as far from the wine as possible, and clean up well after drinking the vinegar, e.g., immediately rinse the glass. Better safe than sorry!
If the vinegar has a live culture, it's very possible to contaminate the wine. If there is no live culture, probably not, but I'd keep anything vinegar related as far from the wine as possible, and clean up well after drinking the vinegar, e.g., immediately rinse the glass. Better safe than sorry!
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acetone has a fairly clean chemical odor, like @winemaker81 i would guess volatile acidity, a salad dressing like smell/ burn in the noise. Acetobacter (organism) are common in the environment if there are fruit flys around. Our other flavor is acetaldehyde (oxidized ethyl alcohol) which I describe as a burn in the back of the throat.
A second solution for the partial bottle would be to pick up some VacUVin stoppers and use them on any partial bottles. I am a bit unusual since I like CO2 in the wine / try to keep it till the week when I cork the bottles. The CO2 will be a neutral / preservative headspace with a VacuVin vacuum cork and prevent Acetobacter. A third solution is keep some 375ml bottles for the tail end. ,,,, Refrigeration will keep down Acetobacter growth but not simple chemical reactions as acetaldehyde. The VacuVin will delay both chemistries.
A second solution for the partial bottle would be to pick up some VacUVin stoppers and use them on any partial bottles. I am a bit unusual since I like CO2 in the wine / try to keep it till the week when I cork the bottles. The CO2 will be a neutral / preservative headspace with a VacuVin vacuum cork and prevent Acetobacter. A third solution is keep some 375ml bottles for the tail end. ,,,, Refrigeration will keep down Acetobacter growth but not simple chemical reactions as acetaldehyde. The VacuVin will delay both chemistries.
winemanden
Senior Member
I saw a snippet of news on weinplus.com. It said they are experimenting in Spain using CO2 as a preservative.
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Thanks
Thanks. There is a long learning curve making wine but I will be patient. I may have found a hobby I enjoy. I think on my secondary fermentation I'm going to give it a couple of weeks filter it again let it sit for a month siphon it off leave a few inches at the bottom and hopefully all the settlement will be left behind. But I have found out sentiment can stay suspended for quite a while and it takes quite a while or gravity to pull it down. I also have to work on the carbonation to make sure it's gone but I do enjoy some sparkling wine once in awhile. I was wondering what is a good way to control how sparkling your wine is or is it hit or miss?
@davidj77, a few points of advice:
For the fermentation process, the 1-3-3 rule may help. 1 week for fermentation, 3 weeks to clear, and 3 months of bulk aging before bottling.
This schedule varies, as fermentation time is variable. If you don't have a hydrometer, get one, as it's the one guaranteed way to know that fermentation is complete.
Once fermentation is done, I started the habit of stirring the wine to degas. Stir for 30 seconds, then change direction for 30 seconds. Repeat this twice for a total of 3 minutes. This does not drive off all CO2, but it accelerates the natural degassing process.
Why degas? CO2 holds sediment in suspension, and the wine clears much faster with the CO2 gone, or at least greatly reduced.
The gross lees (mostly fruit solids) will drop relatively quickly. The rule says "3 weeks" but you'll see sediment build up, then the level reduces as the lees compacts. At that point, you can rack, add K-meta, and bulk age for at least 3 months.
Backsweetening? You'll need to stabilize with potassium sorbate and K-meta. Sorbate does not stop a fermentation, but prevents a renewed fermentation. If you stabilize, you can backsweeten to taste. If you don't stabilize, the yeast will start eating the sugar and you get more fermentation.
You want sparkling? Use the method home brewers use. First, do NOT stabilize the wine. The wine must be dry.
Add 1/2 to 3/4 cup per 5 gallons and stir well. For smaller batches, do the math to figure out how much sugar to add. 1/2 cup is 24 tsp, and 3/4 cup is 36 tsp. If making a 1 gallon batch, divide by 5, so you're using 5 tsp to 7 tsp.
Put the wine in beer or champagne bottles, and crown cap. Place the bottles in a warm place (70 F minimum) for at least 2 week. The yeast will eat the little bit of new sugar and produce CO2, which dissolves into the wine.
DO NOT use screw cap bottles or regular wine bottles. These bottles are not built to handle pressure and can explode. If using a cork, the bottle won't explode, but the cork will blow and you will have mini-volcanos and a mess to clean up.
For the fermentation process, the 1-3-3 rule may help. 1 week for fermentation, 3 weeks to clear, and 3 months of bulk aging before bottling.
This schedule varies, as fermentation time is variable. If you don't have a hydrometer, get one, as it's the one guaranteed way to know that fermentation is complete.
Once fermentation is done, I started the habit of stirring the wine to degas. Stir for 30 seconds, then change direction for 30 seconds. Repeat this twice for a total of 3 minutes. This does not drive off all CO2, but it accelerates the natural degassing process.
Why degas? CO2 holds sediment in suspension, and the wine clears much faster with the CO2 gone, or at least greatly reduced.
The gross lees (mostly fruit solids) will drop relatively quickly. The rule says "3 weeks" but you'll see sediment build up, then the level reduces as the lees compacts. At that point, you can rack, add K-meta, and bulk age for at least 3 months.
Backsweetening? You'll need to stabilize with potassium sorbate and K-meta. Sorbate does not stop a fermentation, but prevents a renewed fermentation. If you stabilize, you can backsweeten to taste. If you don't stabilize, the yeast will start eating the sugar and you get more fermentation.
You want sparkling? Use the method home brewers use. First, do NOT stabilize the wine. The wine must be dry.
Add 1/2 to 3/4 cup per 5 gallons and stir well. For smaller batches, do the math to figure out how much sugar to add. 1/2 cup is 24 tsp, and 3/4 cup is 36 tsp. If making a 1 gallon batch, divide by 5, so you're using 5 tsp to 7 tsp.
Put the wine in beer or champagne bottles, and crown cap. Place the bottles in a warm place (70 F minimum) for at least 2 week. The yeast will eat the little bit of new sugar and produce CO2, which dissolves into the wine.
DO NOT use screw cap bottles or regular wine bottles. These bottles are not built to handle pressure and can explode. If using a cork, the bottle won't explode, but the cork will blow and you will have mini-volcanos and a mess to clean up.
folks who make cider have sparkling/ carbonation down to a science, they will dose a measured sugar syrup into the bottle and fill. Practically speaking a third of the wines I judge in contest have some residual gas. If it is light as a few bubbles on the side of a glass/ graduated cylinder, I ignore it. This is easy to do if you bottle as a young wine, a year old shouldn’t be an issue. ,,, If it tastes bitter/ carbonic and isn’t labeled as sparkling I will dock a point. Your risk for carbonation seems to go along with back sweetening. is to
I am doing vacuum corking so I remove gas, ,,,,just before bottling. It is fairly easy to do this by pulling a vacuum on the wine twice an hour. (I use a cheap 12 volt pump, also many of us have a VacuVin which will do 15 inches Hg)
Carbonation is not hit or miss. The dissolved CO2 is a linear function of the pressure of the gas in the head space above the liquid/ soda/ beer, lower the pressure (even a little) and it comes out! Factory operations simply control the pressure on a continuous fill line. Beer/ cider home fill systems are good at this too, ,,, cold holds CO2 and warm releases it.
I am doing vacuum corking so I remove gas, ,,,,just before bottling. It is fairly easy to do this by pulling a vacuum on the wine twice an hour. (I use a cheap 12 volt pump, also many of us have a VacuVin which will do 15 inches Hg)
