I have a blueberry wine on and I am getting a white chaulk like ring on the top of the bottle on the side. When I give the wine a little shake it dissolves but it comes back again.The wine is about two weeks old and I am in the second stage after getting rid of all the pulp. I have made this several times and I have not run into this problem.Any advice?
Keith, can't say what it might be without knowing more about how you made the wine so far. Did you use Campden? What kind of sugar did you add, when, and by what method?
Jack Keller, The Winemaking Home Page
Keith, the problem may have been the inert binding material in the Campden. It doesn't dissolve well in bulk. I don't know how you add Campden, but years and years of doing this has taught me a few things. First, use a wine thief or siphon and draw out a cup of juice from the must. Strain it through a double layer of muslin if you have to. Then crush the Campden really good. It needs to be in a very fine powder, like powdered sugar. I use a glass mortar and pestle -- takes about 45 seconds once you get the technique down. If you just crush them with a spoon, bottle or something else, you're going to do a lot more work than with a mortar and pestle. Put the powdered Campden in a sanitized glass or jar and dump the juice in with it (add the liquid to the powder). Use a small whisk or a long-tined fork to whip the juice. In 30 seconds or so the Campden should be dissolved. Set it aside for a few minutes and then look at it. If any powder is evident as small bead-like clumps, whip it again. When all Campden is dissolved, stir this back into the must.
Jack Keller, The Winemaking Home Page
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