Topping with water when racking
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saramc
Well-Known Member
If you top up with water you dilute the wine and decrease the ACV. Moving forward, since only do one gallon batches, try to always make an extra three cups of wine...this is the topping up wine. Fits well in a 750ml bottle with bung and airlock.
Peppers16
Well-Known Member
Topping up with water post-secondary is fine: the amount of water is insignificant.
It's the first topup after primary that's a bit of an issue as you probably had to leave some headspace. If you're following a recipe you just start concentrated then dilute to the proper gravity when fermentation calms down.
Otherwise topping up with wine is the ideal option.
It's the first topup after primary that's a bit of an issue as you probably had to leave some headspace. If you're following a recipe you just start concentrated then dilute to the proper gravity when fermentation calms down.
Otherwise topping up with wine is the ideal option.
Then there would be too much headspace, and a great risk of infection and/or oxidation.
Peppers16
Well-Known Member
castti said:
You get a bit more surface area through which oxygenation can supposedly occur. I'm not sure how much of an issue this actually is, especially if a little CO2 is still bubbling out, but most homebrewers feel more comfortable topping up to the neck of a carboy.
sloanfamilydsm
Well-Known Member
I have designed my wine making procedure around not using water for topping up. I believe it thins down the profile of my wines even if it is just a little bit.
Instead I shoot for 6 gallon batches and use 5 gallon carboys post fermentation. I will keep it under a cO2 head in the 6 gallon secondary carboy then rack into a 5 gallon "aging" carboy leaving no head space at this racking, bottling the remaining 2-3 750-ml bottles for topping up at a later rackings.
As the old adage goes you can never have to many carboys.
I have no idea. I've never done it.
I always top up, and build that into the recipe. Once it's totally clear, and no longer dropping lees, it's bulked aged until bottling time.
Peppers16
Well-Known Member
castti said:
Just to provide an alternative stance to Yooper, I also don't know but expect you will be absolutely fine. Mead's meant to be slow to oxidise and 3 weeks is nothing to mead. The absolute worst that could happen is it'll taste a bit more like sherry than it would have done otherwise. A bit of k meta will deoxygenate it if you have any.
I've been aging a mead with headspace for 3 months now, and am curious to see how it'll turn out. If I lose a gallon of mead for the sake of science then its a worthy sacrifice
Just to provide an alternative stance to Yooper, I also don't know but expect you will be absolutely fine. Mead's meant to be slow to oxidise and 3 weeks is nothing to mead. The absolute worst that could happen is it'll taste a bit more like sherry than it would have done otherwise. A bit of k meta will deoxygenate it if you have any.
I've been aging a mead with headspace for 3 months now, and am curious to see how it'll turn out. If I lose a gallon of mead for the sake of science then its a worthy sacrifice
Yes, mead is slower to oxidize than some. But since we're in the wine forum, I don't think we're discussing mead.
Peppers16
Well-Known Member
Yooper said:
I literally just realised that, oops: I flip between the two forums and get mixed sometimes.
In that case yes wine is a bit more of a concern.
saramc
Well-Known Member
You can also use WinePreserve gas, or use clear leadfree glass marbles.
Peppers16
Well-Known Member
As I understand it nothing harmful can actually survive in alcohol, so the worst you could get is an upset stomach. And to answer your question yes, if its bad to drink you'll know about it!castti said:
WilliamSlayer
Well-Known Member
I prefer to use WinePreserver (nitro/argon gas) rather than top off. I feel you can thin the wine out too much over the course of aging.
as long as the airlock is bubbling you do not have to top up because there is enough c02 pressure to keep oxygen from getting in. when the airlock stops bubbling it is very important that you top up the airspace with liquid. I do not do a secondary fermentation. I use an 8 gallon fermenter and fill it up too about 6.5 gallons, add yeast and when it gets to about 1.040-1.020 I put the sealed lid on and add the airlock to the rubber grommet in the lid. I let it go like that until it is barely bubbling then I take a reading and rack into a 6 gallon carboy and top up.
Well, that's sort of true in the early stages. But airlocks bubble when temperatures change and all sort of reasons, even if c02 is no longer being produced, so that's not really a gauge of the concentration of the gasses in the fermenter.
thats not really a big issue in my house, the temperature stays at 68 degrees and probably doesnt move enough to actually make a difference, I guess when i mean bubbling I mean consistently bubbling, temp changes wont make your airlock bubble once ever 30 seconds or whatever it may be. I haven't had any problems with contamination doing it this way, I rack it to secondary while it is still fermenting and offgasing a bit so it not like im taking a dry wine out of the bucket and adding it to a carboy... Yeast produce co2 gas not oxygen, if there is enough gas pressure in the fermenter to make the airlock bubble it is highy unlikely that oxygen would be able to make its way threw the airlock, threw the layer of pressure, and into the wine....
