Wine storage solutions?

[IanLUFC]

Hey guys,

I'm new to this and have been browsing through, looking up advice throughout the starting period. I have a brewed Muntons Smugglers Ale that got stuck in fermentation. Again a bit of browsing this site pointed out I wasn't alone with that, and it seems it's the kit and not the noob!

I have just finished my first wine bottling. I managed 23 clear ones and 5 cloudy ones. Using a Little Bottler the first batch went well until I disturbed the bottom siphoning (below tap height). Lesson learnt though, transfer to another container first! Seems to taste ok.

The process was very long though. Using standard steriliser, a bottle tree and plenty of rinsing. I have a CC kit now in the FV but I was looking for storage solutions for the finished product! The fact is we can probably do 3-4 bottles of wine between us on a weekend. So I was wondering what solution would hold around 2+ litres of wine? Less to fill, open and sterilise etc.

Are DJ's a good long term storage method? I guess 2l wine bottles with a standard cork opening would be good!? Bit lost :-?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

If you have enough bottles bottle the lot, if you are going to use a larger container you need to avid a lot of head-space, a little is OK but putting 2 litres in a 4.5 litre DJ for long term storage is not.

You could also have a look at Bag in a Box -

This set of 5 bags (with taps) and boxes are the perfect solution to the problem of juice and cider storage and serving: as the cider or pasteurised juice is drawn off via the tap, the bag collapses without letting in any air.

 

[IanLUFC]

Thanks Chippy,

I have enough bottles to bottle the lot. It just seems a waste of time at the moment when I could crack open say a 2l bottle on Friday and it could be gone by the end of play Sunday.

Is say a 2l DJ with the usual amount of head space and a solid rubber bung ok for a few month storage, then just fridge and use within a weekend?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I haven't seen a two litre DJ, i assumed they were all 4.5 litre.

Whatever you use is fine as long as you keep the headspace to a minimum.

 

[engineer]

These days i rack into 5 litre water bottles and age in those, saves a lot of time bottling and once one is opened we haven't had any go off yet :lol:

 

[IanLUFC]

Hopefully there are smaller ones too, seems a market is missing if not. Engineer do you mean like the inners of a box wine bags? And how long have you had one in before you destroyed it? lol

I am happy to keep on bottling for sure, a fair few anyway. But as a casual drinking wine I may as well have a weekend vessel that can be pulled out at weekends with a reasonable £30 kit or so. It's just looking for that solution, that can happily sit for a few months as they rotate. With the cost to taste I have thus far experienced I will be in it for the long run :)

 

[Chippy_Tea]

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEgcDrozQtU[/ame]

 

[cheapbrew]

I've stored half, even third full dj's of wine for many months even years in some cases and they only seemed to get better.

What actually got me back into brewing again after a few years off was finding a half full dj of wheat n rice n banana wine in a cupboard a couple of years ago, it was from around 2005/6 and was full but half got drunk around 2010 ish and the rest ended up in a cupboard and sat there til I found it whilst looking for a microphone stand!

 

[chewie]

You could reuse a plastic 2 or 3 litre water bottle or similar for some of the wine that you want to consume sooner and glass bottle the rest for longer term storage and building up some variety.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I've stored half, even third full dj's of wine for many months even years in some cases and they only seemed to get better.

What actually got me back into brewing again after a few years off was finding a half full dj of wheat n rice n banana wine in a cupboard a couple of years ago, it was from around 2005/6 and was full but half got drunk around 2010 ish and the rest ended up in a cupboard and sat there til I found it whilst looking for a microphone stand!

Most advice given in the forum is that the more head space you have the more risk of oxidisation, that is why you can buy wine saver vacum pumps for bottles, you may have got lucky but I wouldn't recommend all members ignore the general rule.

 

[cheapbrew]

Not wishing to argue or cause offence but I'm not usually a lucky type person, I think storage conditions have more effect on wine than how full the container is, if wine is kept at cool constant temp and humidity in the dark as close to the conditions of an underground cellar as possible it will keep better than if stored in fluctuating light and heat, but it is probably better if the containers are stored full.

 

[tonyhibbett]

The real risk of over oxidation is from an excessive continuous airflow, which will also cause acetification. The amount of oxygen trapped in a sealed glass container is very small. Slow oxidation, which occurs in a wooden barrel because wood is porous, actually improves wine. For a long time I relied on 20 litre polypins but I have found that wine definitely improves if stored in bottles for a few weeks, after a couple of months in a barrel.

 

[IanLUFC]

Thanks all for the pointers. I'll keep my eyes peeled for DJ's preferably smaller ones if available. I can look into the bags and plastic bottles as well. I will probably still bottle as usual a third or so and then look for additional ones. I did do it all on my own this time and I could have the other half help. And look at getting some form of no drain steriliser.

I'll wash the bottles as they empty as well. They were all submerged in the bath the first time.

 

[engineer]

Engineer do you mean like the inners of a box wine bags? And how long have you had one in before you destroyed it? lol

No i mean the 5 litre plastic water bottles you can get at sainsbury and the like.
I use the water for the brew then store the brew in the bottles. i re use the bottles a few times then put them in the recycling.

I have used bag in a box type storage in the past but the above is easier and works well for me.

 

[IanLUFC]

I suppose another question is, if you store in a traditional sized DJ. How long after opening is it good for lol? I already drink too much and don't want to be sinking another couple of litres midweek for the sake of not wasting it :lol:

 

[engineer]

Had a red stored more than a month in the summer in the 5 litre plastic bottles (the volume reducing weekly) so a standard DJ should be good for a month and more.

 

[tonyhibbett]

I have re-used 3 litre wine boxes a few times, but the card box deteriorates.

 

[Mikey]

If you do decide to store wine in djs you could buy yourself a vacuvin that will for obvious reasons decrease chances of oxidation, also you can use it for vacuum degassing, so win win

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00005U2FA/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1448098639&sr=8-1&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=vacuvin&dpPl=1&dpID=41NX8C59AeL&ref=plSrch

They fit nicely onto standard two part airlocks

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Once you have degassed and cleared etc why not leave the airlock on or use a solid rubber bung

 

[Frogbrew]

Here's my 2ltr demijohn, bought from asda full of westons cider about 8 months ago but may still be available, was 4-5 pound IIRC. Refilled with cherry tc shortly after.