Yeasty taste

[Oneoffcustom]

Can anyone help/explain why my strawberry wine taste horrible. I used a can of vinters harvest and fermented all the way down to dry. This took about 1 month and a half. I then racked and hit it with three campden tablets to start killing off yeast. At just over two months it was getting really clear so I racked again. This stuff still taste very yeasty and got very cloudy again after last racking.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[DoctorCAD]

I'm guessing that you left it sit on the dead yeast for that month and a half, and thats way too long.

Let it sit, it should clear and stop tasting like yeast in a few months.

Oh, and campden does not kill off wine yeast, they have been bred to be campden tolerant. Campden does 2 things, it is an anti-oxident and it can help rid your must or wine of unwanted nasties by being a sanitizer.

 

[Oneoffcustom]

The month and a half was still fermenting. Should u be racking during fermentation?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[DoctorCAD]

Yes, first rack should be when the SG reaches 1.010 or so.

 

[Yooper]

The month and a half was still fermenting. Should u be racking during fermentation?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

Most wines will go dry in 5-7 days or sometimes even less. If it was still fermenting for 6 weeks, there was a problem with the yeast being stressed.

Did you take any hydrometer readings before that time? I bet it was long done fermenting but still off-gassing showing airlock activity.

 

[Oneoffcustom]

I did take several readings during this period.

At 1 week it was around 1.04. I then racked into carboy from bucket. For the next few weeks I keep checking and it stayed around 1.02. 2 weeks after that it was down to .99. This is where it has set for about two weeks. I then racked and Added in campden tabs. This cleared it up in two or three days. I then racked off sediment again after a week and it's currently cloudy.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[MattBoivin]

Did you bottle it yet?

Get it bottled ASAP and throw it in your fridge, let it cold crash the yeast. You'll see it clear up and the yeast will settle to the bottom in no time. For taste? If the cold crash doesn't kill the yeast and let it settle, let it sit and try a bottle each month or two. As wine ages, tastes develop!

A friend of mine doesn't touch his wine until at least half a year to a year after being bottle due to the same problem you're having.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[Oneoffcustom]

Is bulk aging out of question?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[jensmith]

Bulk aging will work. Cold crashing just works faster. It will clear up on its own bulk aging. It just takes time. Just keep racking it off any sedament and it will evenually be fine. Seince you just added campton you could try splash racking it. The campton will help protect the wine from the air.

 

[Oneoffcustom]

I will move it to my garage. We have a bit of cold weather. I assume low 40s and mid 30s overnight will kill yeast. How long should I expect it to be before yeast dies off?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[RegarRenill]

Those temps won't always kill yeast, but it will make them go dormant and drop out of suspension, so that when you rack off the lees after cold crashing, most of the viable yeast should no longer be present.

 

[Yooper]

Is bulk aging out of question?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

No, and bulk aging off of the lees would be the preferred way to proceed. Wine ages faster at room temperature, and you want it off of the lees. I don't cold crash my wines, but I sometimes cold stabilize a very acidic wine to get the excess tartaric acid to precipitate out.

 

[Oneoffcustom]

Cool. You guys and gals are the bomb.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew