VA in a barrel

What is VA? Virginia? Veterans Administration? Viagra? Vinegar Aroma?

Volatile Acid.

To the OP.

It could be from bacterial contamination of the barrel but could also be from other sources too. Even normal wine yeasts can create acetic acid although it's usually pretty low. Wild yeasts "tend" to create more. Then there is a whole range of bacteria that can produce it.

If you think the barrel is pasts its useful life anyway, better to be safe than sorry.

Andy

I had no idea what he meant by "VA" either!

Volatile Acidity

Pp

p> I had no idea what he meant by "VA" either!

moment

ss,

I think you deserve a decent reply. I assume that you are keeping your barrel topped up well, otherwise the VA could be caused by an acetobacter infection (inwhich case you've most certainly lost the barrel). In the case that it's not acetobacter, it is quite likely that it is caused by a resident rogue (wild) MLB or even a rogue yeast, especially given that your SO2 levels are low as you noted yourself. I would ensure rigourous maintenance of topping up, and sulphite if the problem's getting worrying. If it's considerably bad you might consider moving the wine out of the barrel to another inert vessel aswell as hitting it with SO2.

HTH,

Ben

That's good advice, you don't have a lot of time to fool around here. If you are detecting VA by smell you may be too late though.

There are some tricks to reduce VA but the only one I remember off top of my head is reducing it by adding more wine to reduce the overall level if the issue is minimal. I can look it up later though.

You might consider sulfiting and reducing the acid chemically rather than with MLF, topping is critical no matter what.

Joe

Ben

I agree with your comments, and your citation of possible sources of VA. Additionally, VA can be formed if fermentation temperatures are high (15 degrees C to 25 degrees C.). High sugar musts also may be a source or VA. Residual sugar can also be a problem, especially during MLF, as the LAB bacteria can convert some of the sugar to acetic and other volatile acids acid. This promotes generally VA. Interestingly, aging wines in French oak (vs. American oak) barrels can result in extraction of VA from the wood.

For modest VA problems a chemical called "Proxyclean" does a good job reducing VA in barrels. It is not perfect, but has been recommended. Here is a link:

I cannot say one way or another if this works. we have tried it on a single barrel in the winery, but have not had to use that barrel since then. Another winemaker recommended it to me based upon his use of the cleaning agent.

Regards

Jerry

OK, so I'm not alone! :-)

Is there no remedy? Soaking the barrel with boiling water or chemical cleaners, charring it, burning sulfur sticks etc. Forgive my ignorance, I don't have a wooden barrel yet. Bob

-- Please excuse any errors in my post, as I have dain bramage.

ignorance, I

If it's from bacterial contamination of the barrel, it can be very difficult to eliminate. Ozone has shown some promise, but that's not something a home winemaker is probably going to consider.

I think it comes down to the risk your willing to take. You may knock down the bacteria enough, but if the barrel is at the end of its life anyway, why take a chance of infecting another batch of wine.

Andy

Thanks Andy; I was under the impression that a barrel has a much longer life than that, decades or more. Learn something new every day! Bob

-- The voice inside my head claims to be a psychiatrist.

That last is close: Volatile Acidity - which means vinegar and/or acetaldehyde.

Tom S

Thanks Tom. I learn a new abbreviation every day. When I first got on Usenet I kept seeing posts called OT, but they were all just jokes and had nothing to do with the Old Testament!!! LOL!!!! Bob<