fermenting problem after potassium sorbate

[Countryboy73]

I have a problem of wine refermenting after adding potassium sorbate. The bottle says to add 1/4 tsp per gallon. I had a 6 gallon batch of hard tea. It stopped fermenting at .990 gravity. I let it sit about another week after no activity in the air lock, added 1 1/2 tsp of the sorbate. Waited another week then backsweetened it and bottled it in 2 ltr coke bottles. I opened my 7th bottle, out of 12, last night and it has carbed a little. I checked the other bottles and they have carbed some. I read on here that you can heat water to 145° add the dottles and let sit for about 20 minutes to kill the yeast, but I'm not sure if I want to do that with the plastic bottles. Is there something else I can do to make it not carb after bottling or did I not add enough sorbate to it.

 

[Honda88]

you need to use K meta and K sorbate together.. Also you need to add them when the wine is clear, if there is a significant yeast cake do not try and back sweeten.

 

[Countryboy73]

I'll try that. Thanks. When it was almost done I transferred it to a second fermenter. Then to another container a week after it stopped fermenting. Then I added the sorbate so when I added the sorbate there wouldn't be a lot of yeast in it. About 2 or so weeks after I first started the brew it fizzled out so I added a second packet of yeast then added nutrient and energizer. That's why I changed containers a few times. Do I use the potassium sorbate with the k meta and k sorbate?

 

[Honda88]

K is the element table name for potassium so when I say K sorbate and K meta I mean potassium sorbate and potassium metabisulfite and yes you use them at the same time. And also it is suppose to fizzle out after 2 weeks or so. That is normal. It means that the yeast is done fermenting...you should have taken a hydrometer reading at this point instead of adding more yeast..

 

[Yooper]

Keep in mind that sorbate only "works" to inhibit yeast reproduction- so if the wine is still dropping lees (spent yeast), then it won't work at all. You have to wait until the wine is perfectly clear, and that there are no lees at all in the carboy after at least 60 days. THEN you can use the campden (k-meta) and sorbate. The "dosage" I have on my sorbate is 1/2 teaspoon per gallon, so double check the sorbate you have.

 

[Countryboy73]

Ok, on my next batch of wine I'll use both.the second packette of yeast I used, I added it 2 weeks after I first started the batch. It fizzled out so I added a second packet to get it going again. During the week that I hadput in the sorbate, you could see the cloudyness start to disappear. It started at the top and went down to the bottom of the carboy. The sorbate that I have says 1/4 tsp per gallon. When I do my second batch I'll see what it does with both, I'm hoping I'll be able to do a watermelon wine. This is what the wine looks like now and it looked the same when I bottled it a few weeks ago.

 

[Honda88]

You need to use something other then a pop bottle, how are you air locking???? balloons will not work long enough for your wine to clear properly...if you bottled it when it looked like that you probably are going to have a lot of yeast in your bottles....good luck...If you are wanting to get serious about making wine you need the proper equipment...

 

[Countryboy73]

I use a 6 gallon carboy, 6 gallon fermenting bucket, and a airlock. As far as the bottled, I'm not going for look, we do a lot of fishing camping and 4 wheeling. The places we go to you can't have glass containers. That's why I use plastic. All of my alcohol will be in plastic, wine beer and shine, cause of the rules and regulations of the places we go to. Getting serious about making the wine?, I make it to drink not to sit there for 6 months or more to just look at it.

Please don't take what I said the wrong way. But that's why I use plastic and I'm a little impatient on waiting to drink it. As soon as I start to bottle the wine I start drinking it. And the beer that I make, it only takes 3 weeks to make. I use mrbeer for my beer and for the others that reads this yeah I like mrbeer. Lol. Again thanks for the info on using the Camden tablets and the sorbate together. I'll try that on my next batch of wine and I'll post the results of how it comes out.

 

[Honda88]

sorry, I was under the impression that you were using a plastic bottle as your fermentation vessel....I wasn't trying to be a smart A$$ just suggesting the proper equipment but as you already stated you do have it....

 

[Countryboy73]

sorry, I was under the impression that you were using a plastic bottle as your fermentation vessel....I wasn't trying to be a smart A$$ just suggesting the proper equipment but as you already stated you do have it....

Lol not a prob, I am new to this stuff so you might see a lot more ?s on here from me. As time goes on and we get a bigger place I am hoping to have more stuff brewing. But in till then I'll be brewing bottling and drinking right away. Lol. Again thanks for the help, I might be needing a lot of it. [Bottomsup]

 

[Countryboy73]

Should I use more potassium sorbate, say 1/2 tsp, or just use the 1/4 tsp as it says on the bottle. I use Crosby & baker.

 

[Honda88]

you use what the bottle says to use. With that said some people do use less K meta in their wine because they don't want the sulfite taste, I know my bottle says to use 100 part per million which is 1/8 teaspoon k meta per gallon. Some people cut that in half to say 1/16 teaspoon per gallon which would should be roughly 50 ppm. It comes down to individual choice on this one. Some people don't even use sulfites in their wine but It is a gamble to not use them.

 

[Countryboy73]

Ok. Good to know. Thanks.