Degassing Kit Wine

[emptybee]

Hi all, a colleague of mine has been brewing Wilkos wine kits for a while and I decided to ask him how he degasses his wine. He asked what I meant and when I told him he said he has never had to degas his wine and never had fizzy wine.

So is it not a requirement? His kits take 20 or so days whereas I tend to do the 5 day cantina kits. Is it just a matter of the CO2 coming out of his wine during the primary fermentation but mine not having time to?

Thanks,

Max

 

[Chippy_Tea]

If you do not degas you wont end up with something like a sparkling wine but it will be fizzy, when you see how much CO2 is released when degassing its obvious it would make a difference to the finished wine, clearing is also likely to take a lot longer as the sediment gets trapped in the tiny bubbles.

Using a degassing wand makes the job much quicker - http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=48971

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMwq3TpkqCE[/ame]

Here is my effort -

 

[Scaff]

I pour it from FV to fv 30 or so times.



Scaff

 

[emptybee]

I made something similar to what you've got Chippy (although without the extra bends) and have used it on the last few wine kits (before that just stirred with a spoon) which is why I was confused as to how he is getting away with not degassing. At what stage do you start running the risk of oxidising the wine though?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

As long as the lid is left on there is no risk, the only difference i can see between degassing and not is the time it takes to clear and a slightly fizzy wine.

 

[engineer]

This is a new one on me, I have never ever knowingly degassed wine or heard of it before. Never had a problem with clearing or fizzy wine either.

Just checked my Boots beginners book of home wine making i bought back in 1982. The only reference i can find in it states;

"When fermentation appears to have finished naturally and the wine is still and beginning to clear from the neck of the jar downwards give it a good but gentle shake to get rid of any gas that has remained in solution"

I mostly ignored that so i guess i must be either just lucky or managed to get rid of most gas by racking. Sometimes ignorance is bliss :hmm:

 

[Chippy_Tea]

All kit instructions I have read have said to shake the DJ several times a day for a couple of days.
I found clearing took longer when i used the shake method than the wand method i do now, wine will clear naturally if left long enough.

 

[jamesw]

All kit instructions I have read have said to shake the DJ several times a day for a couple of days.
I found clearing took longer when i used the shake method than the wand method i do now, wine will clear naturally if left long enough.

I had a Youngs Elderflower wine kit, and its currently clearing.
All it said was to add stabilizer and finings then "during the next 24hrs agitate container at least 6 times. The more often the container is agitated the quicker the wine will clear".
I assumed this was because of the finings being in contact with the in-solution sediment, but perhaps it is their way of telling you to degass without needing a want/drill.

Would stiring quite well in hour intervals do the same (maybe nto as easily) as the degassing wand?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

If you are using a DJ covering it with your hand then shaking it and releasing the CO2 every few shakes does the job eventually, stirring a FV with a long spoon also does the job but a wand makes it a two minute job.

There is a guide on how to make a wand from a coat hanger in the how to forum.

 

[jamesw]

If you are using a DJ covering it with your hand then shaking it and releasing the CO2 every few shakes does the job eventually, stirring a FV with a long spoon also does the job but a wand makes it a two minute job.

There is a guide on how to make a wand from a coat hanger in the how to forum.

Cool, I did shake a lot, and quite a bit of gas came out. Hopefully it's enough, if not, Elderflower Wine is quite nice light sparkling, its the cab sav I don't want bubbly!
And I'd rather avoid buying a drill just for degassing

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I'd rather avoid buying a drill just for degassing

Good point. :wink: