Soaking corks and cleaning bottles before filling question

So how many of you soak the corks in sanizer for awhile, and then soak them in water before you cork the bottle? Or do you do it in the reverse. Also when I fill beer bottles, I usually use my bottle cleaner by spraying sanitizer in them, and then shaking the sanitizer out, and then fill it. Do you do the same with the wine bottles, or do you sanitize them, and the rinse out with water before you fill?

jflongo said:

So how many of you soak the corks in sanizer for awhile, and then soak them in water before you cork the bottle? Or do you do it in the reverse. Also when I fill beer bottles, I usually use my bottle cleaner by spraying sanitizer in them, and then shaking the sanitizer out, and then fill it. Do you do the same with the wine bottles, or do you sanitize them, and the rinse out with water before you fill?

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My personal bottling routine is:

Make a sanitizing batch of kmeta and water.

Pour some into my bottle rinser (I use the Ferrari Aavinator) which recirculates the sanitizer solution.

Use the rest of the kmeta solution to soak my corks in for at least 15 min. Dunking them a few times to get the solution all over the cork. I take a cork out of the solution just as I go to put it in the bottle.

Rinse all my bottles with the bottle rinser, then hang them upsidedown to drip dry.

Sanitize all my equipment with Star San (bottling bucket, hoses, etc.)


Bottle!

Ok I use IODOPHOR BTF Sanitizer, about 1/2 tsp, into my pitcher with 2 quarts of luke warm water. Then dump some of that into my bottle rinser, the type you push the bottle down on and it shoots sanizer into it. I could then soak the corks in the pitcher.

I currently don't have a bottle tree, so I usually just push the bottles down 4 or 5 times, then shake the beer bottles upside down a few times, to get as much out as possible. I figured a few drops left in the bottle shouldn't hurt anything.

Don't soak your corks! You'll ruin them.

I have been making a mini-cork "humidor" to sanitize mine.

I take one campden tablet per gallon of wine and boil up 1/2 cup of water and add the crushed campden tablets and stir well. I put that in a larger container (the liquid still in the cup) and then put the corks around it and put on the lid. The corks sit in that steamy sulfite environment while I sanitize the bottles.

Then, I dump the sulfite solution into my bottling bucket, and rack the wine into it. I let the corks sit where they are, until I use them.

It's worked great for me, just like that, for about 20 years.

Yooper said:

Don't soak your corks! You'll ruin them.

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Could you elaborate on what you mean? So if you soak them for 15 minutes, what is the issue?

Bottles,

- Spray starsan on my tree.
- Use a bottle sanitizer filled with starsan on every bottle, dipping the necks, place on tree.
- Let drain 10 min.

Corks,

Depends on the style, if it's a wine I don't plan on storing past a year I use cheap agglomerated corks and I don't do anything to them, I just fire them in the bottles.

If I'm planning on ageing the wine I use #9 solid corks which don't go into bottles dry nearly as easy as an agglomerated cork. I take a cup of hot tap water, stir in some soduim metabisulfite and dip each cork before corking.

I currently don't have a bottling tree, that's on my future list. That's why I meantioned just shaking them upside a few times. I don't imaging this wine lasting a year The corks I have are #9(9 x 1 1/2) Micro-Agglomerated Wine Corks.

jflongo said:

I currently don't have a bottling tree, that's on my future list. That's why I meantioned just shaking them upside a few times. I don't imaging this wine lasting a year The corks I have are #9(9 x 1 1/2) Micro-Agglomerated Wine Corks.

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Buy a tree, you won't regret it...and grab a vinator that fits on top to sanitize your bottles. Makes bottling less of a chore.

sorry had to post it! ha ha ha!
soak the cork!

I was told to soak my corks to get them to ~5% moisture, which is just barely compressible by hand. Why do you say not to soak them Yooper?

bk0 said:

I was told to soak my corks to get them to ~5% moisture, which is just barely compressible by hand. Why do you say not to soak them Yooper?

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Because the corks will absorb the moisture, and/or break them down and ruin them. http://www.winemakermag.com/stories...uld-i-boil-or-soak-my-corks-prior-to-bottling

You don't have to sanitize corks that are brand new and still packaged do you? Also? Do you guys re use corks?

No, you can't reuse them. The have a hole in them when you remove them with a corkscrew.

Ridenour64 said:

You don't have to sanitize corks that are brand new and still packaged do you? Also? Do you guys re use corks?

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Depends on how they are handled...if you are buying them in a sealed pack I wouldn't be too worried.

My understanding was to soak them, they go in the bottle easier, then you stand your bottles upright for 3 - 4 days, they start to dry and expand, and seal the bottle. Then lay them on their side for storage.

jflongo said:

My understanding was to soak them, they go in the bottle easier, then you stand your bottles upright for 3 - 4 days, they start to dry and expand, and seal the bottle. Then lay them on their side for storage.

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If you're using a hand corker, it's far easier to use #8 corks. With a floor corker, use #9 corks. Either way, don't soak them unless you don't mind maybe ruining some of the corks (and hence some of the wine).

Ok, so I must say that what I do (just as I described it in my first post) is exactly what is reccomended in the Wizards article.

It makes perfect sense to me not to soak corks in plain water, the thought of that makes me cringe.

Nor do I soak them for 'hours'. Who has time for that?

Just enough to give me piece of mind that the cork is as sterile as the bottle.

I feel my methods are sound, and stand by them as a reccomendation to others.

This is what I read from that Wine Wizard. If you find you need to soften them, or to use a little water for lubrication, make a strong (60 ppm free) sulfite solution and soak them for 15–20 minutes.

The 30 count bag I have of Wine Corks are in a bag from More Beer site, and tied with a bag tie, not vacuum sealed. So that's why i'm thinking of just rolling them in sanitizer for a minute. Not sure I trust that these are germ free.

Well, what is done, is done.

I went ahead today, and corked the bottles, ended up 28 750ml, and 1 1.5L bottles. I have put one in the fridge already, and we'll try it out this weekend.

I threw the corks in a pitcher of sanitizer, then filled a bowl with sanitizer, and would transfer over about 10 corks at a time into the bowl while i was filling. None of them really were fully soaked, more just the outsides top and bottom, so I doubt it absorbed very much. It all went smoothly. All the bottles are sitting upright in my basement closet right now. On Monday, i'll lay them on their sides for longer storage.

Next month I need to start a Red batch, and if my wife really likes this White, then maybe start another White soon.