Winexpert Aging

[thunderwagn]

Question on the directions for a WE kit. The Washington Riesling kit directions say that if you're aging wine for longer than 3 months, add ¼ tsp potassium metabisulphite. Is this for bulk aging in carboy or aging in bottles, or either one?

 

[Brian55]

Add 1/4 tsp every three months during bulk aging, up until you're ready to bottle. If your time frame is close to the instructions, you don't need to add anything that's not included with the kit.

 

[thunderwagn]

Add 1/4 tsp every three months during bulk aging, up until you're ready to bottle. If your time frame is close to the instructions, you don't need to add anything that's not included with the kit.

Thanks! Answers my question perfectly.

 

[Handy Turnip]

Really interesting - the instructions just say 'aging' and don't mention whether that is bulk aging or bottle aging. So I've always added 1/4 tsp at bottling.

 

[thunderwagn]

Really interesting - the instructions just say 'aging' and don't mention whether that is bulk aging or bottle aging. So I've always added 1/4 tsp at bottling.

I found it a little confusing, but this is my 1st wine so I'm probably over analysing everything lol.

 

[winemaker81]

I found it a little confusing, but this is my 1st wine so I'm probably over analysing everything lol.

This is a totally normal response from beginning winemakers.

I add K-meta at bottling unless I racked a week or so earlier. As @Handy Turnip said, the general rule is 1/4 tsp K-meta per for 5/6 gallons at each racking.

How long to bulk age? Ask 10 winemakers, you'll get 11 opinions ...

Keep in mind that a lot of us on WMT will disagree with each other, yet each has a valid opinion. There is rarely a single, correct answer to most questions -- answers typically fall in a range. Listen to everyone and make your own choices.

Kits can be bottled according to the manufacturer's directions. If you follow the instructions, the wine will be clear and ready to bottle. I rarely bottle kits on schedule, and will go a month or 2 longer, while some folks bulk age kits for a year. These are all valid choices. My advice -- treat the time frames post-fermentation as minimum values, e.g., "14 days" means "at least 14 days". [during fermentation, ignore the calendar and trust your hydrometer.]

Non-kit wines? These can be bottled when the wine is clear and not dropping sediment. If you degas and use a fining agent such as kieselsol/chitosan? You can bottle in a couple of months if you want.

That said, I bottle whites at the 4 to 6 month mark. Whites generally have shorter lifespans, so I get 'em in the bottle. Same for fruit wines, although some of the heavier fruits (e.g., elderberry) strongly resemble red wines. We have a few members who make only fruit (e.g., non-grape) wines and they bulk age a year or more.

Red wine? If in the carboy with no added oak products? 6 months. With oak products? 9 to 12 months. Barrel aged? 12 months or whenever the next wine is ready to go into the barrel.

I recommend you open a bottle a couple of months after bottling. Take notes on your impressions. Do this every few months, keeping the notes. This will teach you about how wine ages, and give you reasons to let the wines age a bit longer.

Except your first batch. That one will disappear far quicker than you believe. As I said above, this is normal!

 

[wineh]

For the first 5 years that I made kit wines, I never added the 1/4 tsp of k-meta, mainly because my wines did not last that long! However, my bottle tree has a bottle washer on top and I have always rinsed my bottles with a k-meta solution at bottling time. Still do even though I also add the k-meta at second last racking. Even in the early years, I had a few bottles make it to 2 years and never had a problem.

 

[winemaker81]

@wineh, makes sense. If you know the wines are not going to survive more than 2 years in the rack, the K-meta is probably unnecessary.

I add K-meta at all bottlings as it's a habit. I'm also never certain how long a wine will survive in the rack. I had one fun wine (Apple Riesling) survive 7 years. I liked the wine, but it's not something I drink on any regular basis, so it simply did not get consumed. I chaptalized the wine to 11% ABV so it would last a bit longer, but never dreamed it would last 7. And yes, it was delicious at the 7 year mark, it was not in decline.

I figure that if I add K-meta at bottling, it doesn't matter how long the wine lasts in the rack.

BTW, if your wines are only lasting 2 years in the rack, you need to make more wine!

 

[thunderwagn]

For the first 5 years that I made kit wines, I never added the 1/4 tsp of k-meta, mainly because my wines did not last that long! However, my bottle tree has a bottle washer on top and I have always rinsed my bottles with a k-meta solution at bottling time. Still do even though I also add the k-meta at second last racking. Even in the early years, I had a few bottles make it to 2 years and never had a problem.
View attachment 72732

I do have the same bottle washer and rinsed all bottles with k-meta solution, so i guess I didn't do to bad.
I've been a beer brewer since about 92. Putting some of the equipment I no longer use for brewing (since I keg) to good use again! I haven't used my bottle washer in ages.