Tea Wine Help Needed!

[Desianima]

My tea wine has this weird scum that rose to the top. Is it tea? Mold? Something else harmless? I bottled 3 gallons of it a few weeks ago and left the last two gallons to sit a bit longer (lack of bottles). Is it all bad? Any help is appreciated. https://imgur.com/gallery/kPuEKAh

 

[NinjaBear]

That looks really strange.

Following

 

[Yooper]

It looks like an infection, with the crusty pellicle on top. It's not mold, but definitely not good. You have too much headspace in the other vessel on the left, and that one might be next to get infected.

Protect the wine from oxygen, and I'd get a crushed campden tablet, dissolved in a little water, in there ASAP. You might not be able to save it anyway, but it's worth a try.

 

[Desianima]

Thanks! I’ll give it a shot and hope for the best.

The one with too much headspace should be bottled tomorrow, when it gets so low because you’ve racked you wine several times, what is the best way to minimize headspace without prolonging fermentation?

 

[Mallerstang]

The one with too much headspace should be bottled tomorrow, when it gets so low because you’ve racked you wine several times, what is the best way to minimize headspace without prolonging fermentation?

Try collecting carboys and jugs in all sizes - recycling depots, online used sites, or winemaking supply stores. If you're making smaller batches, see if you can find an imperial gallon jug to start, which is 4.6 litres. One gallon is 3.8 litres, and 3-litre (wine) and 2.85 litre (juice) containers are common. You can get bungs to fit all of them.

Each time you rack, go to the next size down.

This works even better if you make 3-gallon batches. Start with the carboy plus a friend, maybe a one-gallon. Use smaller ones for the extra at each racking, and end up with 14 or 15 bottles from the carboy.