WineXpert WE Selection Luna (avec battonage)

[cmsben61]

red competition

Sorry, I should have been more clear. The red competition

 

[joeswine]

Coming in the near future

 

[jgmann67]

My second Luna is aging nicely. Consistent profile... Mrs Mann will be very happy.

 

[jgmann67]

My third Luna made its way into the bottle (28 - 750’s and 8 - 375’s). This kit was started in Jan/Feb. as with other Luna’s, I split the fpac between primary and finish.

Good thing - there are only 4-5 bottles from the second batch left.

 

[sour_grapes]

My third Luna made its way into the bottle (28 - 750’s and 8 - 375’s). This kit was started in Jan/Feb. as with other Luna’s, I split the fpac between primary and finish.

Good thing - there are only 4-5 bottles from the second batch left.

I was about to chime in to say that, although I do not have any current inventory, I really like the Luna Bianca. Then I realized that I am the OP of this thread!

Glad to hear your 3rd batch is under cork, Jim.

 

[jgmann67]

I was about to chime in to say that, although I do not have any current inventory, I really like the Luna Bianca. Then I realized that I am the OP of this thread!

Glad to hear your 3rd batch is under cork, Jim.

Lol.

It’s Mrs Mann’s favorite. So, it stays in my rotation.

 

[motherofgallons]

@sour_grapes when you added part of the fpack to primary, did you replace an equal volume of water, or did the fpack create additional volume on top of the recommended amount of water?

 

[sour_grapes]

I just checked my notes. I brought the batch to 23 liters with water, and then added ~3/4 of the f-pack to that. Here is a synopsis of my procedure:

"Start 8/30/2015. Used D47 yeast. Added ~3/4 of f-pack to primary. SG before adding was 1.102, and after adding was 1.104. Kit came with 120 g (!) of oak powder. I skipped bentonite in primary. Performed battonage at ~6 weeks intervals through winter. Finally racked off fine lees on 2/21/16; added chitosan at that time. On 3/5/2016 (after clearing), added k-sorbate and 1/4 tsp k-meta, and added ~8 oz of f-pack. This raised SG from 0.992 to 0.995. Racked off sediment and added 1/4 tsp k-meta on 5/10/2016 in prep for bottling. Bottled 5/11/2016. Very nice at bottling!"

 

[motherofgallons]

I just checked my notes. I brought the batch to 23 liters with water, and then added ~3/4 of the f-pack to that. Here is a synopsis of my procedure:

"Start 8/30/2015. Used D47 yeast. Added ~3/4 of f-pack to primary. SG before adding was 1.102, and after adding was 1.104. Kit came with 120 g (!) of oak powder. I skipped bentonite in primary. Performed battonage at ~6 weeks intervals through winter. Finally racked off fine lees on 2/21/16; added chitosan at that time. On 3/5/2016 (after clearing), added k-sorbate and 1/4 tsp k-meta, and added ~8 oz of f-pack. This raised SG from 0.992 to 0.995. Racked off sediment and added 1/4 tsp k-meta on 5/10/2016 in prep for bottling. Bottled 5/11/2016. Very nice at bottling!"

Very helpful, thank you!

 

[motherofgallons]

I made a slight mistake and added the ~3/4 fpack first without thinking. So when rehydrating I added about 400ml water above 23L and got a temp-adjusted sg of 1.103, so quite close to yours. Rehydrating CY3079 right now with Go-Ferm. The must after adding oak smells wonderful, lovely vanilla notes already. Skipped bentonite as well, will also add a tosna-inspired sna of fermaid k and dap since this yeast has high needs. Open ferment with towel on top till it gets below 1.02, then on with the lid and airlock. I also thought ahead and froze the rest of the fpack for future use.

 

[sour_grapes]

Sounds perfect! I see nothing wrong with this plan.

 

[motherofgallons]

The smell is divine but wow is CY3079 a foamer! At least 4-5 cm of foam when I opened the bucket to stir and add nutrients. Bits of oak dust actually made deep indentations in the foam like if you press your fingers into risen bread dough. I'm using a 30L bucket but I hope it doesn't get any higher. Impossible to take a hydrometer reading, temperature is about 23C. This is probably the best smelling wine must I've met so far! Really looking forward to the final product.

 

[motherofgallons]

CY3079 ripped through the must and fermented to 1.000 in 4 days! The temperature was between 22-24C, so within tolerance (15-27C). It was so foamy I was unable to take a hydrometer reading until day 4 after pitch. This was definitely faster than expected. I added Fermaid K and DAP the first 3 days which I'm now a bit worried about - not a good idea to add these after the 1/3 break and I certainly overshot that. I should have used only Fermaid O... Fermaid O-well. I'm really hoping no spoilage bacteria get a foothold, but time will tell. I put the lid and airlock on that day, still seeing the occasional bubble, I will rack to a carboy next weekend.

 

[motherofgallons]

@sour_grapes so I'm at the point where fermentation is pretty much done. Do I rack into the secondary carboy off the gross lees, or do I want everything from primary in there? It's in a 30L bucket at the moment and the plan was to put it in a 23L carboy with a waterless silicone airlock to minimize oxygen.

 

[sour_grapes]

Jeez, tough question, hoping someone more knowledgeable will chime in. I wanted to age only on the fine lees (i.e., from the yeast). To do that, you should have racked before alcoholic fermentation completed, leaving behind the gross lees. But now that that ship has sailed, I believe you have your choice of carefully aging on the gross lees, watching (smelling) it like a hawk; or leaving behind the gross lees, and settling for only a small amount of sur lie action.

Take a gander here, and see what you think: http://winemakersacademy.com/sur-lie-aging-explained/

 

[motherofgallons]

I tasted this morning before and after stirring. Tasted better after stirring actually, more complex. The lees were already quite compact, felt like clay, though the wine was not clear by any means. There's still lots of co2 and airlock activity. I think I'll rack off the gross lees on Saturday once they've settled back down a bit and proceed as planned, and try to keep a tighter eye on it irt off-smells.

 

[ZebraB]

I'm new to wine making and I read the article on sur lie action. I concerned about getting a rotten egg smell. Not sure I am ready for battonage. How viligent do I need to be about racking off the less? I have my first two batches aging in carboys and there is a fine sediment to the bottom. This seemed to occur right after initial racking from secondary via vacuum pump? So will a small amount of fine lees ok? I was planning on racking at 3 month mark to add more meta but now wonder if I need to do sooner. Any advise would be welcomed.

 

[sour_grapes]

I have left wine on the fine lees for ~8 mos. with no ill effects.

 

[pillswoj]

If you are making a white wine kit there are no gross lees, I do slow ferments on whites, start the ferment in a bucket and transfer to carboy as soon as activity is seen, keep at 50F stirring daily. These can take 3-4 months to complete fermentation, I then add kmeta and let settle another month or so before racking.

 

[motherofgallons]

I was wondering about that, it is the WE kit and the only real chunky bits is the oak dust. I haven't been stirring daily and it's still in an airtight bucket, not a carboy yet.