Looking for tips on extended maceration. Never done one before; seeking advise. I ferment in 32G Rubbermaid Brutes lined with plastic fermentation bags. I do have lids for them. I do have access to CO2. Are the lids enough to hold in the CO2? Just looking for fellow winemaker input. Thank You.AJD.
Those lids are nowhere near airtight, but gathering the liner and securing it with a plastic spot tie should work pretty well once the wine stops gassing. You still should untie the bag once a day or so, stir the bottom and sniff for incipient H2S problems.
Tom S
Tom,
I'd thought about doing that, and wondered if it would help to initiate a MLF when you tie the liner. I'm assuming by tieing up the liner you can't really produce an air tight seal, so having a small level of CO2 being produced by the MLF would help protect the wine. Would that work?
Ed
fermentation
Yeah, that's the idea. You want to minimize the surface exposed to air, so gathering the bag and tying it off just enough that the gas can escape ought to work quite well. Opening the bag and stirring up the bottom is important to prevent reduction in the lees, but be careful not to poke a hole in the bag.
Tom S
Tom S
DrinksForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.