is it ready ? How to tell?

[dstelley]

I've made several batches of wine, almost all (one turned into vinegar...)were really good.
Now though I have a dilemma. I have 2 carboy's of white wine. Muscato and Pinot Grigio, that came from a local wine juice seller close to me.(http://www.walkersfruitbasket.com/)

Normally I do their red wines but this is my first crack at white wines.

It been sitting since my last racking ( late December ) and both are crystal clear. Nothing on the bottom of the carboy's.

So...

How can I know when its ready to bottle? Red wines usually take longer to clear but these seem ready... How can I tell?

Should I cold crash them like I do red wines?

Help!

 

[Yooper]

I do tend to cold stabilize my whites, but I suppose it's not strictly necessary.

How's the flavor? Have you used campden/sulfite to prevent MLF?

 

[bernardsmith]

How long have they been in their carboys? How long were you planning on letting them age in the bottle?

 

[dstelley]

I put in sodium metabisulfate, if that's the same as campden then yes.
The juice comes available as early as late September. I started these mid October. Racked twice.

As far as aging, I honestly don't know how long they should go? I've always heard whites don't age as long or as well as reds.

Like I mentioned I've never done it just using juice. I have done white kits but that doesn't really count.

I will cold stabilize for a couple weeks in the garage (damn cold outside here near Buffalo NY..) and see how it tastes.

 

[pumpkinman2012]

I age my whites 6-7 months depending on the ABV%, I make approx. 10-20 gallons of Moscato and 12 Gallons of Pinot Grigio every year, normally, they come in at around 11%-12% ABV, so after fermentation is complete, I stabilize with meta and allow them to age 6 months, I add sparkolloid to fine them and I filter them. My wife prefers them semi sweet, so I'll add Sorbate and back sweeten with a simple syrup, just enough to balance any acidity, then I bottle.
Last spring the white juice buckets that I got from Chile came in at 14% ABV, I aged for 8 months before bottling, my suggestion is to taste the wine, if it tastes "hot", then let it continue to age.

 

[dstelley]

May I ask what your "recipe" is to back sweeten? This is my first time with muscato and I'd like to get it as close as possible to California muscato's. How much of what?

 

[pumpkinman2012]

I make a simple syrup -
2 parts sugar to one part water
Heat on the stove stirring frequently, when it comes to a boil remove it from the heat, let it cool a bit before adding it, I usually make a large batch, 5 cups of water and 10 cups of sugar, I use it for Moscato and Hard cider, it stores well on a kitchen counter.
Now the hard part, how much do I add - this is totally up to your taste buds, I'll usually rack the wine or cider to a fermenting bucket and add 2 cups at a time, I mix well but gentle enough to avoid stirring in a lot of oxygen.
Use a hydrometer to get an idea of how sweet you prefer your wine, or just follow your taste buds.
I usually stop adding the syrup a little bit before I reach my desired level, once it sits in a bottle of a few weeks and incorporates, it tastes perfect!
I would start by sweetening to 1.005 first and taste, then to 1.010, when in doubt, let it sit covered over night and taste the following day.

I hope that this helps!