Sediment in Dark DJs

[deebee1901]

Probably a typical newbie query but how the hell do you see if there's sediment in the bottom of a dark DJ? I've made 1gallon of Redcurrant and 1gallon of Raspberry/Apple/Cranberry WoW and can't for the life of me see if they're ready for racking. I could just rack anyway but get the impression that I shouldn't rack unless necessary.

Clear DJs are great but with the darker ones ... :hmm: I can't see if there's sediment or if it's clearing. Or is it just me being ... 'new' (you can replace that with senior or blonde).

Thanks. x

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Probably a typical newbie query but how the hell do you see if there's sediment in the bottom of a dark DJ?I've made 1gallon of Redcurrant and 1gallon of Raspberry/Apple/Cranberry WoW and can't for the life of me see if they're ready for racking

I may be reading this wrong but you don't use the level of sediment as a guide to whether its ready to rack, if you don't have a hydrometer wait until you only see a single bubble every couple of minutes then rack.

 

[deebee1901]

Perhaps I'm using the wrong terminology or perhaps I've just misunderstood completely? The redcurrant has been racked from the primary fermenter into a DJ. I thought that during secondary fermentation I shouldn't allow it to sit on the sediment so that it doesn't pick up the taste of decaying yeast? Fermentation has slowed right down to a bubble every 20-30 seconds. I'd planned on leaving it in the DJ for some time due to time and space constraints at the moment.

Thanks Chippy_Tea x

 

[BeerCat]

As Chippy said wait until it stops bubbling before you rack it.I have some brown DJ's and you can still tell when the wine has cleared. Shining a torch at it helps. I use clear DJ's for primary as its easier to see whats going on. I would not worry about sitting on the yeast though, never had a wine go bad unlike beer.

 

[deebee1901]

Thanks both! x

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Perhaps I'm using the wrong terminology or perhaps I've just misunderstood completely? The redcurrant has been racked from the primary fermenter into a DJ. I thought that during secondary fermentation I shouldn't allow it to sit on the sediment so that it doesn't pick up the taste of decaying yeast? Fermentation has slowed right down to a bubble every 20-30 seconds. I'd planned on leaving it in the DJ for some time due to time and space constraints at the moment.

Thanks Chippy_Tea x

When making supermarket juice type wines leave it in the first DJ until you only see a single bubble every couple of minute or it reads .995 or below on your hydrometer then rack it onto a crushed campden tablet, degas, add stabiliser and finings and give it a good stir, it will be clear and ready to drink in 48 hours.

If you are not planning on drinking it soon you can let it clear naturally but don't bother ageing these types of wine as they really do not get much better than when new.

 

[deebee1901]

lol ... if I'm not planning on drinking soon ...? I'm off to check the gravity ... :thumb::

Many thanks! x

 

[deebee1901]

Happy days ... it's bubbling every 30 seconds or so but reads 0.994. Doesn't taste bad either for a first attempt. I'll give it the finishing touches and rack it later. Emulsioning a ceiling and wine tasting in the same afternoon should probably be avoided.

Many thanks! x :party::nono:

 

[deebee1901]

Followed your instructions to the letter and alls good except I don't seem to be able to get rid of the CO2. I don't have a wand so used a long handled spoon on and off for about half an hour. I then tried the 'shaking vigourously' method (but had to leave the bung on as my hands aren't big enough to cover the hole on the DJ effectively).After each shaking session, removed the bung to let the CO2 out. Not much of a 'pop' but after each 'shake' there's about an inch of bubbles on top of the wine and I can see millions of little ones swirling about in the wine, rising to the top.

I left it last night and have had another go today ... same result. Do I just keep going? Happy(ish) to carry on but just want to ensure I'm doing it right. The WOW video doesn't really cover degassing in detail and the majority of articles discuss the process using a wand.

Thanks. x

 

[chewie]

Wine will clear and degas itself over time, if you aren't in a hurry to drink it by using finings then let it settle out and keep the airlock on it so no positive pressure builds up inside the DJ.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

You will always get a certain amount of bubbles when you shake it's not an exact science just do it until you are happy if you dont do it enough all that happens is it takes a little longer to clear so it's not a big deal. :wink:

 

[deebee1901]

I actually wanted to drink it ASAP (got excited when you mentioned it would be ready in 48hrs). I have finings ready but thought I had to get all of the CO2 out before adding?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Different finings take different times i have found the two part ones Kwik Clear and youngs Clear It to be the fastest.