Stopping fermentation
- Thread starter mwhitnell
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GreenEnvy22
Senior Member
It's pretty hard to stop an active fermentation.
Potassium sorbate only prevents yeast from multiplying, doesn't stop a fermentation already in progress.
Potassium metabisulfite might stop fermentation in a high enough dose, but it's not reliable and can make your sulfite way too high.
Most reliable way I think is to get the wine very cold and running it through a 0.45 micron filter. Then you add sorbate and metabisulfite incase there were any stragglers.
Potassium sorbate only prevents yeast from multiplying, doesn't stop a fermentation already in progress.
Potassium metabisulfite might stop fermentation in a high enough dose, but it's not reliable and can make your sulfite way too high.
Most reliable way I think is to get the wine very cold and running it through a 0.45 micron filter. Then you add sorbate and metabisulfite incase there were any stragglers.
Like stopping a locomotive. That is why the standard practice is to ferment dry, sorbate or filter and backsweeten.
Relatively common. Easiest process is what you’ve already done, just got the timing off a bit. AFTER alcoholic fermentation is complete, and preferably after your wine has cleared, the addition of sorbate prior to adding sugar will prevent the yeast from being able to multiply into a colony capable of metabolizing the sugar. So give it a while to clear before diving in again.
I have a chest freezer designated for my wine making. When I want to stop fermentation I rack then place the carboy in it for 2 weeks at 35* then rack and add 1/2 the recommended sorbate. Seems to work fine.
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Us home winemakers can play by a different set of rules than the commercial people. If I find a practical approach that works for me, I use it. It may be different than conventional, since I can control the environment and the length of time the product is stored and how it is used. A commercial winemaker would not use this method due to risk having to recall the product due to sediment, CO2 or worse case bottle burst.
You're right about different rules for home winemakers. But I probably wasn't totally clear. Once it's out of the freezer and sorbated I let it age in the carboy.
meadmaker1
Member
Juice is ok as a sweetener. It may add time to clearing.
