Clearing Grapefruit wine question

Hello all,
First post here and very new to wine making, but very addicted to it as well, especially the fruit wines.
Our second batch we tried the grapefruit wine, but it is not clearing like our apple cider wine did. It tasted bad when it was starting out, but after the last racking I really liked it. I am looking for some advice on helping it clear as it is still a cloudy pink- if we should have added pectic enzyme at the start, or if we should/can still can add it to help clear, or if we should be patient and keep racking every so often, or add sparkloid or bentonite and when.

I am a fan of the keep it simple method and have limited knowledge of winemaking so if you will bear with me this is our recipe and I look forward to your advice.

(per gallon- we made 6 gallons)


6 grapefruits
6 pints of warm water
2 1/4 lbs. sugar
1/4 teaspoon tannin
1 campden tablet
1 pkg. champaign yeast


starting SG: 1.085 12/19/09
added yeast 12/20/09
SG 1.085 12/21/09
SG 1.08 12/22/09
SG 1.065 12/23/09
SG 1.055 12/25/09
SG 1.04 12/26/09
Transfered to carboy 12/26/09
Racked 1/18/10
Racked 2/14/10

we forgot to write the last gravities down during the rackings but will be checking again next racking. It has been room temperature (70) the whole time.

In general, using gelatin and a cold crash a few days pre-bottling clears most things considerably. Boil a pint of water and set it aside to cool slightly. Let the water drop to around 180 and add a tablespoon of clear, unscented, unflavored Knox gelatin (if you add while the water is still boiling, the binding effects of the gelatin are lost). Mix it well and then pour into your wine. Let it sit a week and you should notice a difference. The effects will be magnified if you can leave it in a cold environment (fridge or outside if you're up north).

Good luck!

I was hoping not to have to do the cold crash, it has only been 3 months since making the recipe, should i just bulk age it longer and see what happens?

too late to add pectic enzyme? bentonite or sparkaloid?

also we didn't top up with water (no similiar wine) and gave away the original extra gallon so it is a few (four inches) from the neck of 6 gallon carboy, this should be solved when we re rack into the 5 gallon carboy.

any more suggestions?

I'd keep it at room temperature, and go ahead and add the pectic enzyme. You can dissolve 1.5 teaspoons per gallon into some of the wine, and then add it back to the carboy. If that doesn't work, you can then go to finings. I like Sparkelloid.

What is it about the cold crash that you were hoping to avoid? Especially since you're up north, it shouldn't be a problem to place it in a garage. The pectic should definitely help. And the gelatin should help out on top of that.

about the cold crash- I have limited knowledge about the process however, We do have a fridge available. I would like to add the pectic enzyme as we have this available and wont require another trip to the store, for roughly 5 gallons how much would you add? and would you add it during the next racking or take the airlock off and try it now?. It has been two and a half months since we started

I am a bit nervous about how much head space we have in the six gallon carboy - probably four - 5 inches from mouth of carboy- but we haven't stablized it yet so I may be ok?..

bump.. any more thoughts? We are going to rack it in a week and a half into a smaller carboy to eliminate the headspace... what do you think we should do, leave it and rack it a few more times like keller calls for? add gelatin and cold crash then stablize and bottle? try the pectic enzyme this late in the game? looking for any and all suggestions

I still say 1.5 teaspoons of pectic enzyme per gallon, added in the same way I mentioned.

I think you have WAY too much headspace. For a 5 gallon batch, you really need a 5 gallon carboy. You'll probably have an oxidation issue if you don't rack to a smaller carboy. I would do that right away, and not wait any longer.

If the batch is only a couple months old, I'd do the pectic enzyme and then wait about 4-6 months before worrying about it.

ok, I ended up campden tablet per gallon, pectic enzyme, racked to a five gallon a month ago. Still wasn't clearing and its been four months. So i got the urge to put it in a spare fridge to 'cold crash'. If it clears I am thinking reracking, then sorbate and campden again to finally be done with it. If it doesn't clear after a week or two in the fridge.. not sure

well its been almost a week in the fridge, and no clearing... dun dun dun... any suggestions? chitosan? bentonite? HELP.... I am on about my 6th batch now so i am understanding more of the lingo..

Sorbate and campden aren't clearing agents.

I like sparkelloid, but any commercial clearing agent may work well.

I may be in the minority here, but what's so wrong with just having a semi-cloudy batch? I could understand if dignitaries were coming over that you might have to put this batch back in the cabinet, but just for the enjoyment of a homemade batch of something scrumptious and wonderfully imperfect I would say bottle it and forget it.

Growing up, we made grape wine every fall from our home harvested concordes. We crushed 'em, poured in a ton of table sugar, bread yeast, and fermented (on the husks) until we thought it was done and ready. I still have some that I sample each year (some is 10+ years now). Some clear, some cloudy, some full of tannin, some great, some sweet, some dry, but all undeniably organic and homemade and wonderful. Now, I will argue that I make a more refined product now than I used to. But there is a lot to be said for just enjoying the process and enjoying the product.

Even if it does not come out the way one would expect.

Where's Papazian when you need him..."Relax. Don't worry. Have a homebrew."

Cheers.

A week in the refrigerator may not be sufficient if the temperature is not low enough. Have you de-gassed the wine at all? Trapped CO2 can hold things in suspension and keep a wine from clearing properly. If you intend on using a fining agent, there are several you can use. Check out your LHBS or an online Wine and Beer store for a good product.

To aid in clearing by cold crashing, you need to get your wine down around 32 - 35 degrees and maintain that for several days to a few months for some wines.

Try this site for more detailed assistance on your problem: http://winepress.us/forums/index.php

Good Luck!

Salute!

patience my friend.

nope, I haven't degassed it yet, it was only my second batch ever, now up to 6. But the grapefruit after 3 weeks in the fridge does apear to be dropping its darkest pink colors to the bottom. now that it starting to settle a bit I think will leave it in there a bit longer before I degass and stir up what is settling now. Then could I just add a clearing agent to a new carboy along with sorbate and K meta to finish it while degassing it as well?

cold crashing is definatley helping the darkest pinks sink to the bottom. Its almost an orange color on the bottom inch or two, and a very light pink all the way above that. Give it another week and possibly re-rack, then the question is more time, stablize, or toss in thing of super klear I bought, and backsweeten. Hmmmnnn? whats your ideas?

doody said:

cold crashing is definatley helping the darkest pinks sink to the bottom. Its almost an orange color on the bottom inch or two, and a very light pink all the way above that. Give it another week and possibly re-rack, then the question is more time, stablize, or toss in thing of super klear I bought, and backsweeten. Hmmmnnn? whats your ideas?

Click to expand...

Well, it's too late now, but next time, either degas or wait until the wine is degassed before attempting to clear it. The reason is pretty simple- the co2 bubbles "hold" stuff in suspension. Often degassing will release it. Of course, I'm a big believer in time. So, I'd wait at least 6 months before being concerned about wine not clearing.

Ok, after 6 months and the wine is degassed, if it's not clearing I'd try what you did with cold stabilization. Wait until clear, rack and bottle.

Here's the kicker, though- you want to sweeten your wine. That's fine, but you'll need to stabilize it with sorbate and campden. That may create haze, so the wine will need to be cleared with finings, or you may have to wait it out.

The first thing I'd do now is absolutely nothing. Nada. Let it sit. Let it clear. Let it degas naturally.

The wine is barely 5 months old, and it's been racked, cold stabilized, etc, and you don't even know for 100% certainty that it was done fermenting first! If you have an SG of .990 or so, then it was done. If it's higher than that, that would explain the cloudiness. The wine has to be finished before it'll clear. Patience is tough sometimes, but some things just can't be rushed.

Wines are typically hazy due to pectin or protein, or depending on the base...starch (root wines). If you add Campden tables (SO2) at the same time as an enzyme it is likely your enzyme will not work, beacause sulphur kills enzymes. Headspace can be remedied by adding marbles until your carboy is filled. And finally, you need to add bentonite .5 g/l should do, in order to clear any proteins from your yeast's activity during ferment. Fruit wnes do not need to be cold stabilized unless you have added tartaric acid. Headspace will get you a scummy film in no time, as well as oxidize it, and allow VA (vinegar) bacteria (acetobacter) to flourish and ruin your wine. f you are unsure of your fermentation's completion, clinitest tablets are available at your local pharmacy to check for residual sugar...5 drops wine, 10 drops distilled water and 15 seconds (5-10-15) and refer to the colour chart for an approximate sugar measurment.