Gas in bottled wine - A problem?

Yes. One question first though, Did you still the yeast before bottling? A number of products can be used to do this (Potassium Sorbate, Potassium Metabisulphite, others), because if you didn't, guess what? Your yeast is still alive and turning what sugar it can find into alcohol, thus making CO2, which would cause the pressure build up you describe and create the famous bottle bombs for your fun and amussement (alright enough of me being weird, bottle bombs can be very dangerous, think glass grenade and you get a rough idea of the damage potential). Ken

Yes, I add Potass Metabisulfite to kill fermentation. The funny thing is that it only happens when I plug the top and insert in the fridge. You would think that the cold would kill any yeast activity. I will only keep a bottle in the fridge for a couple days and it gets opened fairly regular :D so it hasn't built up to a COKE level yet. I do understand about the glass grenade though....

Geo

Sorry, potassium metabisulfite will not kill fermentation and neither will potassium sorbate. These two, TOGETHER, will stop yeast from multiplying, but if you have an active colony of yeast, it will continue on it's merry way until it lives out its natural life cycle. Sulfite by itself will not stop most wine yeasts unless at concentrations that would destroy your wine.

Are you "plugging the top and putting it into the fridge" while it is still actively fermenting? This would account for some buildup of CO2 as it does take a little bit of time to stop the fermentation with cold. It seems to me you are consuming your wine much too early. Let it ferment out completely, then settle, clear and age for at least 2-3 months.

I had one batch which restarted fermenting in the bottles - they popped, but there was no damage, just a mess to clean up. I thought that putting the remaining bottle in the fridge would slow it down too - NOT. It was like opening a Champaign bottle. Since then, I make sure to really swish my wine in the DJ to release any trapped gases before I bottle. I also went to making sure to keep my sulfite levels up, and using a wine stabilizer (to prevent fermentation) such as Potassium sorbate or Sodium Benzoate. You don't want bottle bombs - I've heard some stories about things really getting dangerous. Stay safe. Darlene

Ok, it's dry wine, you are getting a little pressure when you use this closure and the wine was degassed.

What does it do when you first open a bottle? Does it foam at all, either when you open it or pour it into the glass? I do not see a description of bubbles when poured and you say the wine tastes fine, so do not think you have an issue with fermentation (especially at 40 F, the temperature of your fridge).

If you do have bubbles when you initially open it, the size matters. If they are very tiny you could have malolactic going on. In a sorbated wine that is an issue, you could get an odd smell like germaniums.

If you sulfited and sorbated properly you should have no gas created, I would think the wine was either not degassed effectively or the closure itself is creating a piston effect. Regards, Joe

You do not mention any indication of pressure in the bottle when you first open it. Just after you reseal it and then within a very short time of a few days in the fridge. This does not sound like fermentation or MLF. It really sounds more mechanical.

You mention that you used some kind of a rubber stopper type pressure clamp at this time. Is there any chance that this is causing a build up of pressure? Does it happen as soon as you remove it from the fridge or after it has set on the counter and warmed up to closer to room temp?

Ray