Brewing Master

Question:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I never top up all the way when the wine is still actively fermenting for just this reason.  You still have lost of CO2 coming out.  There’s plenty of CO2 to blanket your must in the headspace.  I usually do my first racking into a larger carboy (1/2 to 1 gallon bigger) so I don’t have this foaming out the top problem.  Only when the wine stops fermenting do I transfer it to another carboy and top up. —-Greg http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/grcook/wine/ http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/grcook/garden/ I just racked my first batch from Primary to Secondary. Based on all of the advice I read here, I topped up the carboy with a bottle (and then some) of similar wine until it was about 3 inches from the bung. Within minutes, foam started to push it’s way up into the neck and up through my air-lock, which filled with foam, wine, and oak chips instantly and then the foam started coming right out the top of the air-lock. I new right away that I had gone wrong somewhere, so I siphoned a bit of wine back out (which I drank, why waste it?) and still the foam is coming. I have placed it outside momentarily to see if I can bring the temperature down and get it under control. What a drag. When I removed the bung to suck some of the wine out, at least half of my oak chips spilled over the edge. I know what you are going to say. I racked to early. I took a SG reading and it was at 1.012. Well under the instruction’s recommendation of 1.02 and under. Also, oday as I watched the airlock (while it was in the Primary) it was not incredibly vigourous, just bubbling away happily (and cleanly). So I went for it (what do I know?) I am assuming that the added oxygen from the racking process, combined with the temperature of 24C just made the yeast go crazy again. The question is; what the hell do I do now? The bung won’t even stay in the carboy properly due to the pressure. Should I leave it outside at 8C all night and make it slow down some? Or just put it in the bathtub and let it go? Let this be a warning to all newbies out there. When racking from Primary to Secondary, let it settle for a few days before topping up. I wish I did. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

excellent remarks but if yor get a real oak barrel filled to the top you’ll get better flavor with less trouble, forget about using chips all together. since I started using barrels my quality improved 300% just trying to help FLguy Get the facts http://abmefaq.net/

Response:

excellent remarks but if yor get a real oak barrel filled to the top you’ll get better flavor with less trouble, forget about using chips all together. since I started using barrels my quality improved 300% just trying to help

On a small scale barrels have some problems, especially with contact times. I really like the oak stave that go into the carboy. I bulk age by wines in 23L carboys on these staves for months.

Response:

Where do you find these staves? — Mike Polo Community Theater Green Room http://www.communitytheater.org

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – excellent remarks but if yor get a real oak barrel filled to the top you’ll get better flavor with less trouble, forget about using chips all together. since I started using barrels my quality improved 300% just trying to help On a small scale barrels have some problems, especially with contact times. I really like the oak stave that go into the carboy. I bulk age by wines in 23L carboys on these staves for months.

Response:

Where do you find these staves?

They were sold generally here in Canada for a while, but vanished. Production is apparently starting again, and they us (Paddock Wood Brewing Supplies) a sample box of light and dark toast staves and chips in tea bags. sell for about $3.50 CAN for a 3 pk, each stave being about 60gms. Or we sell them individually for $1.50 CAN (about 93 cents US) Cheers, Steve

Response:

I do this all the time with clean paper towels and have never had a problem. —-Greg http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/grcook/wine/ http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/grcook/garden/ – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – After I posted last night, I brought the carboy back inside. The foaming had subsided significantly so I cleaned out and sanitized the airlock and bung and then I put it back in the carboy. Well, the bung still did not want to stay in the carboy, so I took a paper towel (fresh off the roll) and softly dried the bung and the inside of the neck of the carboy. This time the bung secured quite nicely (note to self). I was even able to add slightly more wine a little later and now it is going just fine, with about 4.5 inches between the wine and the bung. My question now is; did I mess up by using a paper towel to dry the bung and the inside neck of the carboy? I am being quite intense about sanitizing everything. Do you think it’ll be OK. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono) I just racked my first batch from Primary to Secondary. Based on all of the advice I read here, I topped up the carboy with a bottle (and then some) of similar wine until it was about 3 inches from the bung. Within minutes, foam started to push it’s way up into the neck and up through my air-lock, which filled with foam, wine, and oak chips instantly and then the foam started coming right out the top of the air-lock. I new right away that I had gone wrong somewhere, so I siphoned a bit of wine back out (which I drank, why waste it?) and still the foam is coming. I have placed it outside momentarily to see if I can bring the temperature down and get it under control. What a drag. When I removed the bung to suck some of the wine out, at least half of my oak chips spilled over the edge. I know what you are going to say. I racked to early. I took a SG reading and it was at 1.012. Well under the instruction’s recommendation of 1.02 and under. Also, oday as I watched the airlock (while it was in the Primary) it was not incredibly vigourous, just bubbling away happily (and cleanly). So I went for it (what do I know?) I am assuming that the added oxygen from the racking process, combined with the temperature of 24C just made the yeast go crazy again. The question is; what the hell do I do now? The bung won’t even stay in the carboy properly due to the pressure. Should I leave it outside at 8C all night and make it slow down some? Or just put it in the bathtub and let it go? Let this be a warning to all newbies out there. When racking from Primary to Secondary, let it settle for a few days before topping up. I wish I did. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

Response:

Cool. Thanks. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I do this all the time with clean paper towels and have never had a problem. —-Greg http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/grcook/wine/ http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/grcook/garden/ After I posted last night, I brought the carboy back inside. The foaming had subsided significantly so I cleaned out and sanitized the airlock and bung and then I put it back in the carboy. Well, the bung still did not want to stay in the carboy, so I took a paper towel (fresh off the roll) and softly dried the bung and the inside of the neck of the carboy. This time the bung secured quite nicely (note to self). I was even able to add slightly more wine a little later and now it is going just fine, with about 4.5 inches between the wine and the bung. My question now is; did I mess up by using a paper towel to dry the bung and the inside neck of the carboy? I am being quite intense about sanitizing everything. Do you think it’ll be OK. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono) I just racked my first batch from Primary to Secondary. Based on all of the advice I read here, I topped up the carboy with a bottle (and then some) of similar wine until it was about 3 inches from the bung. Within minutes, foam started to push it’s way up into the neck and up through my air-lock, which filled with foam, wine, and oak chips instantly and then the foam started coming right out the top of the air-lock. I new right away that I had gone wrong somewhere, so I siphoned a bit of wine back out (which I drank, why waste it?) and still the foam is coming. I have placed it outside momentarily to see if I can bring the temperature down and get it under control. What a drag. When I removed the bung to suck some of the wine out, at least half of my oak chips spilled over the edge. I know what you are going to say. I racked to early. I took a SG reading and it was at 1.012. Well under the instruction’s recommendation of 1.02 and under. Also, oday as I watched the airlock (while it was in the Primary) it was not incredibly vigourous, just bubbling away happily (and cleanly). So I went for it (what do I know?) I am assuming that the added oxygen from the racking process, combined with the temperature of 24C just made the yeast go crazy again. The question is; what the hell do I do now? The bung won’t even stay in the carboy properly due to the pressure. Should I leave it outside at 8C all night and make it slow down some? Or just put it in the bathtub and let it go? Let this be a warning to all newbies out there. When racking from Primary to Secondary, let it settle for a few days before topping up. I wish I did. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

Response:

After I posted last night, I brought the carboy back inside. The foaming had subsided significantly so I cleaned out and sanitized the airlock and bung and then I put it back in the carboy. Well, the bung still did not want to stay in the carboy, so I took a paper towel (fresh off the roll) and softly dried the bung and the inside of the neck of the carboy. This time the bung secured quite nicely (note to self). I was even able to add slightly more wine a little later and now it is going just fine, with about 4.5 inches between the wine and the bung. My question now is; did I mess up by using a paper towel to dry the bung and the inside neck of the carboy? I am being quite intense about sanitizing everything. Do you think it’ll be OK. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I just racked my first batch from Primary to Secondary. Based on all of the advice I read here, I topped up the carboy with a bottle (and then some) of similar wine until it was about 3 inches from the bung. Within minutes, foam started to push it’s way up into the neck and up through my air-lock, which filled with foam, wine, and oak chips instantly and then the foam started coming right out the top of the air-lock. I new right away that I had gone wrong somewhere, so I siphoned a bit of wine back out (which I drank, why waste it?) and still the foam is coming. I have placed it outside momentarily to see if I can bring the temperature down and get it under control. What a drag. When I removed the bung to suck some of the wine out, at least half of my oak chips spilled over the edge. I know what you are going to say. I racked to early. I took a SG reading and it was at 1.012. Well under the instruction’s recommendation of 1.02 and under. Also, oday as I watched the airlock (while it was in the Primary) it was not incredibly vigourous, just bubbling away happily (and cleanly). So I went for it (what do I know?) I am assuming that the added oxygen from the racking process, combined with the temperature of 24C just made the yeast go crazy again. The question is; what the hell do I do now? The bung won’t even stay in the carboy properly due to the pressure. Should I leave it outside at 8C all night and make it slow down some? Or just put it in the bathtub and let it go? Let this be a warning to all newbies out there. When racking from Primary to Secondary, let it settle for a few days before topping up. I wish I did. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

Response:

Paul, The problem you ran into was not how early you racked, necessarily, but that there was lots of dissolved CO2 in the wine. When the chips went in, they provided lots of rough surface for the gas to form bubbles on. Sort of like "boiling chips" added to a chemistry beaker to help small bubbles form. This can happen even after fermentation is over if there’s enough dissolved CO2. It’s something to watch out for if you use a "Fizz-Ex" to degas a wine. Glad it worked out OK.                     Mike MTM – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I just racked my first batch from Primary to Secondary. Based on all of the advice I read here, I topped up the carboy with a bottle (and then some) of similar wine until it was about 3 inches from the bung. Within minutes, foam started to push it’s way up into the neck and up through my air-lock, which filled with foam, wine, and oak chips instantly and then the foam started coming right out the top of the air-lock. I new right away that I had gone wrong somewhere, so I siphoned a bit of wine back out (which I drank, why waste it?) and still the foam is coming. I have placed it outside momentarily to see if I can bring the temperature down and get it under control. What a drag. When I removed the bung to suck some of the wine out, at least half of my oak chips spilled over the edge. I know what you are going to say. I racked to early. I took a SG reading and it was at 1.012. Well under the instruction’s recommendation of 1.02 and under. Also, oday as I watched the airlock (while it was in the Primary) it was not incredibly vigourous, just bubbling away happily (and cleanly). So I went for it (what do I know?) I am assuming that the added oxygen from the racking process, combined with the temperature of 24C just made the yeast go crazy again. The question is; what the hell do I do now? The bung won’t even stay in the carboy properly due to the pressure. Should I leave it outside at 8C all night and make it slow down some? Or just put it in the bathtub and let it go? Let this be a warning to all newbies out there. When racking from Primary to Secondary, let it settle for a few days before topping up. I wish I did. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

Response:

I never top up all the way when the wine is still actively fermenting for just this reason.  You still have lost of CO2 coming out.  There’s plenty of CO2 to blanket your must in the headspace.  I usually do my first racking into a larger carboy (1/2 to 1 gallon bigger) so I don’t have this foaming out the top problem.  Only when the wine stops fermenting do I transfer it to another carboy and top up. —-Greg http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/grcook/wine/ http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/grcook/garden/ – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I just racked my first batch from Primary to Secondary. Based on all of the advice I read here, I topped up the carboy with a bottle (and then some) of similar wine until it was about 3 inches from the bung. Within minutes, foam started to push it’s way up into the neck and up through my air-lock, which filled with foam, wine, and oak chips instantly and then the foam started coming right out the top of the air-lock. I new right away that I had gone wrong somewhere, so I siphoned a bit of wine back out (which I drank, why waste it?) and still the foam is coming. I have placed it outside momentarily to see if I can bring the temperature down and get it under control. What a drag. When I removed the bung to suck some of the wine out, at least half of my oak chips spilled over the edge. I know what you are going to say. I racked to early. I took a SG reading and it was at 1.012. Well under the instruction’s recommendation of 1.02 and under. Also, oday as I watched the airlock (while it was in the Primary) it was not incredibly vigourous, just bubbling away happily (and cleanly). So I went for it (what do I know?) I am assuming that the added oxygen from the racking process, combined with the temperature of 24C just made the yeast go crazy again. The question is; what the hell do I do now? The bung won’t even stay in the carboy properly due to the pressure. Should I leave it outside at 8C all night and make it slow down some? Or just put it in the bathtub and let it go? Let this be a warning to all newbies out there. When racking from Primary to Secondary, let it settle for a few days before topping up. I wish I did. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

Response:

I just racked my first batch from Primary to Secondary. Based on all of the advice I read here, I topped up the carboy with a bottle (and then some) of similar wine until it was about 3 inches from the bung. Within minutes, foam started to push it’s way up into the neck and up through my air-lock, which filled with foam, wine, and oak chips instantly and then the foam started coming right out the top of the air-lock. I new right away that I had gone wrong somewhere, so I siphoned a bit of wine back out (which I drank, why waste it?) and still the foam is coming. I have placed it outside momentarily to see if I can bring the temperature down and get it under control. What a drag. When I removed the bung to suck some of the wine out, at least half of my oak chips spilled over the edge. I know what you are going to say. I racked to early. I took a SG reading and it was at 1.012. Well under the instruction’s recommendation of 1.02 and under. Also, oday as I watched the airlock (while it was in the Primary) it was not incredibly vigourous, just bubbling away happily (and cleanly). So I went for it (what do I know?) I am assuming that the added oxygen from the racking process, combined with the temperature of 24C just made the yeast go crazy again. The question is; what the hell do I do now? The bung won’t even stay in the carboy properly due to the pressure. Should I leave it outside at 8C all night and make it slow down some? Or just put it in the bathtub and let it go? Let this be a warning to all newbies out there. When racking from Primary to Secondary, let it settle for a few days before topping up. I wish I did. — "I’m not afraid to die, I’m not afraid to live, And when I’m flat on my back I hope to feel like I did." -U2 (Bono)

Response: