Does wine have to be bottled?

[robbie1710]

Hi everyone,

Ive got a 30 bottle wine kit and wondered if once this has fermented and ready to bottle, could this just be put into a plastic keg or does it need to be bottled?

The only reason I ask is because I dont have 30 bottles but have a plastic wilko keg free :)

Thank you

 

[Chippy_Tea]

No it doesn't need to be bottled, i store a lot of my wine in 5 litre water bottles (the ones with the handle on the top) the only problem i can see with a keg is the amount of head space you will have, i fill my bottles to just below the cap as the less air gap the better.

 

[robbie1710]

What kind of issue would it cause if the keg has space in the top due to the liquid not filling this to the top?

Thanks

 

[Pearlfisher]

No it doesn't need to be bottled, i store a lot of my wine in 5 litre water bottles

+1

 

[graysalchemy]

9th July 2013 That is the law :lol: :lol:

As long as it is of the lees (the yeast) and filled to the top it will be fine, but it will be best stored somewhere cool and in the dark. Glass is better than plastic containers for long term storage as well.

I had some elderberry wine which was stored in less than ideal conditions in 1 Gallon DJ's and needless to say after five years they were oxidised and had lost most of its colour and what colour there was was brown and not ruby red as it had once been. :evil: :evil:

A few months until you collect enough bottles should be fine. :thumb:

 

[robbie1710]

I was hoping to keep it in the keg so we could just pour straight from the keg but seems this may not be suitable

 

[graysalchemy]

I would say not as you will introduce oxygen into it. :thumb:

 

[BeerEagle]

Bag in box? Or just ask your local for empty wine bottles. Screw tops. They probably throw away a dozen a day.

 

[stevie1556]

Ask a few pubs nicely and I'm sure they will have empty ones. A girl I work with also works in a pub and gets me as many bottles as I need. It's not a particularly busy pub but they go through a lot of bottles.

 

[Tyronnster]

Where u based I've alot of glass wine bottles

 

[tonyhibbett]

The 20 litre polypin is what I use as standard. It's a reusable wine box, so air only gets in towards the end, so I bottle the last few litres. There are plenty of oak chips inside mine, to give the barrel effect. I store them at an angle. 20 litres is only nominal. They hold at least 23 litres.
In the history of wine, the glass bottle is a relative newcomer and could easily have been replaced with the carton and the winebox.

 

[Boatbrewer]

I often put wine in 2 litre fizzy drink bottles. Dont look too pretty but they fit well in the fridge and with two of us glugging it, they dont last long enough for air in the bottle to be a problem.

 

[zalastar]

The 20 litre polypin is what I use as standard.

Just out of interest, what are the rough dimensions of the box? at 20 Litres I'm not expecting it to go in the fridge but I wonder if it's big enough to get a SWMBO complaint if it's located on the breakfast bar!

 

[ohbeary]

The 20 litre polypin is what I use as standard.

Just out of interest, what are the rough dimensions of the box? at 20 Litres I'm not expecting it to go in the fridge but I wonder if it's big enough to get a SWMBO complaint if it's located on the breakfast bar!

Roughly the size of medium microwave oven or one place setting.

 

[zalastar]

The 20 litre polypin is what I use as standard.

Just out of interest, what are the rough dimensions of the box? at 20 Litres I'm not expecting it to go in the fridge but I wonder if it's big enough to get a SWMBO complaint if it's located on the breakfast bar!

Roughly the size of medium microwave oven or one place setting.

Excellent, I'll get rid of the microwave to make room for more important kitchen equipment :mrgreen:
Thank you.