Malolactic fermentation in Wine kits?

I have had white wines look clear, then I add the finings and they drop sediment. All I can suggest is that some of it may be dissolved, and thus would not affect the clarity much. Now why it decided to precipitate out in the bottle... I don't know.

You may be finished with your wine but apparently your wine is not finished with you. I don't know what is happening, but I do know that it's very improbably a MLF. Kits are balanced in such a way that MLF is not necessary. Moreover, if an MLF is attempted, or in the unlike event that it occurs spontaneously, it would leave the wine tasting flabby and inferior - your taste buds seem to tell you otherwise.

Ahh, this brings back memories of my first kit. I made a Blackberry Cabernet from a kit and did everything according to the insert. I was positive that fermentation had stopped. The fermentation started immediately AFTER I bottled. For the first week it was OK, giving exactly the tingle in the mouth that you describe. However, since it had sweeteners, it went out of acceptable very soon...

I traced the problem to the CORKS. I had taken them from the mfrs sack of 1000 and splashed with tap water. From then on I used metabisulfite solution to moisten the corks (no soaking, just shook corks in ziplock bag with solution) and I have not had a repetition of the problem. I discard any corks that are not used in the session..I suppose that it is possible for them to get wild yeasts if they are not stored clean and dry...

If you want to rescue this wine, dump it into a carboy, add more bisulfite, let it set 2 weeks and rack. Then re-bottle with rinsed corks. I also avoid the sorbate and finings if the wine looks good without. I have also seen the packets of bisulfite run short, so I keep the bulk handy... Irene

I bottled it on 7 September to make room for new wine.. It was crystal

Interesting thought! I stopped "treating" my corks in any way after a long discussion with a cork manufacturer about 2 years ago. Before that time I had used every conceivable method of sulphiting /scalding/boiling/ etc etc over many years and was always concerned with this stage of the process of wine making after lots of TLC during the fermenting and aging processes. I must say that I have had no adverse effects since I started using corks direct from their packaging in a floor corker but whether the packaging is sanitised or not I cant tell --- probably not. I have just used my first synthetic corks and found them a little more difficult in the floor corker -- excessive dimpling and a tendency to bulge at the top of the cork which needed a deeper insertion action to overcome. I haven't made up my mind about them yet! I shalln't re hash the wine by bulking it up again but retain it for in house use. As I said, it is extremely drinkable and I wouldn't want to risk spoiling it at this stage Tks for the thought anyway!

The way I treat corks is this: I place a wine bottle half-full of sulfite solution in the center of a 6 gallon juice pail. When I either get corks or have extras, I dump them in and put the lid on. This works both as a sanitizer and a humididor. I never wet or treat corks in any manner. Everything is fine. And I have kept corks for over a year. Warning - never get your nose too close when you first remove the lid. Tim

I had read about this humidor thing. I also considered that the mfr said no soaking or boiling. I'm a lazy slug, so I just clean the necessary number.

Irene

It isn't Malolactic, not with a kit and with your taste report. My best guess is it still had some fine material in the wine that precipitated in the bottle... happens sometimes, especially if you don't filter. I don't and I see it every once in awhile.

Trevor, it isn't ML. It's just more sediments. I've had a white wine do this, too. It happens, especially when you don't use a filter on your wines. The next time you are prepared to bottle a white (after fining, presumably), the night before (in darkness), shine a flashlight beam throught the carboy. You may see a fine particulate still in suspension, even though it 'looks' crystal clear. I've also heard of others who will shine a laser-pointerbeam through wine, but have never done that myself, so I can't vouch for results. Enjoy your wine if it's still good and don't worry about it. Will attempt a blackberry of my own with a 5-gallon pail of frozen fruit soon, once I pass a state exam........ Cheers, Joanne

Thanks Joanne. The general opinion, and I am ( and have to be) in agreement, is that there were some elements in suspension. It is the only logical answer to the fact that every bottle of that batch was effected in the same way. I still think it is unusual since the wine had been sitting undisturbed at all from the beginning of May until 7 September and had been previously sitting undisturbed from the end of January. After that racking in May there was virtually no further "precipitation" and I actually bottled it without moving the carboy ( they're a bit heavy to move anyway ) other than tilting it a few degrees from the vertical. Anyway no problem -- it just hasn't happened like that before.

Trevor A Panther In South Yorkshire, England Remove "SPAMLESS" from my address line to reply. All outgoing mail is scanned by Norton Anti Virus for your protection too!

I always use commerical wines to top up my kits and have never had a problem with MLF starting. I do use levels of SO2 at .8 molecular, which would prevent it, and this doesn't require a lot of SO2 since the kits I've done all have fairly low pH.

Ed

Ed, which wines do you make? With kit wines that have a sorbate additive, you need to be careful. With some whites, such as Sauv. Blanc, Riesling and Gewurztraminer you may not have a problem. But with Chardonnay you would. Likewise all reds, although I dislike using blanket statements. Joanne

I actually don't ever use the type of kits that have the "F" packs because I have always been suspicious of what they actually contain -- vis your comment about sorbates in them. I also never use Potassium Sorbate during the finishing of my wines. Since I ferment all my wine as "dry" as possible and I don't sweeten them, there is no need. AH there is one exception -- my fortified elderberry is sweetened with sugars but refermetation is prohibited by the high level of alcohol which I adjust to 20% abv -- but that is a totally different sort of approach! When I know I have a guest with a liking for sweet wine I cheat by using an artificial sweetener in the bottle when I open it. Thus on the very rare occasion that I make say a Riesling ( and it is Riesling not reisling ) I make it drier than normal commercial types and sweeten it for those few who want it sweeter! I personally prefer to taste the wine and its inherent flavours rather than the sugar in it!

Trevor, you are a man after my own heart.......Amen, amen to tasting the wine and its inherent flavors. And you are correct about the benefit of fortifying allowing you to not require the use of sorbate. Yes, to the rIEsling, too. My last name is Reiter (silent 'e', long 'i'). If I had a dollar for every time it has been mis-pronounced....... Joanne

Joanne,

I've only made one kit where I used the sorbate that came with it, a Riesling Ice Wine, and I didn't use any wine to top up (I used marbles to fill the headspace). The others I've made are chardonnay, a chardonnay/semillon blend, zinfandel, and cab/sangiovese- all made dry so no need for the sorbate. I've topped them all with commercial wines and (I'll count me blessings here) no problems with MLF.

Ed

Good for you Ed, I have a bit of a 'beef' with kit manufacturers who give you a bunch of additives/fining 'ingredients' and then, when the person tries to switch to making wine from grapes (whole fruit), they run into trouble. See, you didn't need to top up and you made your other wines dry so you avoided the necessity of the addition of sorbate. Just be aware that if you DO make a kit wine and you DO use sorbate, do not top off with a commercial wine. Geraniums belong in the garden, not a wine bottle....... Joanne