Does sorbate lose effectiveness over time?
I have a batch of muscadine that will be ready to stabilize and bottle soon, and I'm wondering whether to use sorbate that I've had for about six months, or order some more (which may have sat on the shelf at the vendors for six months...).
Thanks,
Bart
Bart Where are you? Muscadine is a NC grape too - one of the oldest.
Ron
It does, I have heard the same rule of thumb, pitch it after 8 months. And I have always wondered how long it sat at the supply house too...
I did have one batch start fermenting in the bottles; no explosions, just a nice bit of fizz. It was an unhappy accident that turned out ok. I know it was not too old because I date mine now, but something happened.
I guess you could look at it this way, you know yours is old, take it from there...
Joe
Southeast Louisiana -- muscadines grow wild around here, plus it's a commonly planted fruit in backyards. I've got a couple of vines out back, but the wine I referred to was made with fruit from a neighbor's vineyard of a dozen or so vines.
Bart
Jack Keller's site has a good section describing the shelf life of common chemicals use in wine making You may have to search for it but it is quite good.
Ray
Hey cher! Laissez les bon temps roulez! Bob from Metairie
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