when should the fermentation stop?

[Mr and Mrs luvpie]

Hi,

I currentley have a gallon of tea wine bubbling away nicely in its demijohn, the only thing is, it has been doing this for just over two weeks. Should'nt the fermentation have stoped by now?

Should I just leave it be or syphon it into another demijohn for a secondary fermentation?

Any ideas please.

Rob

[MKG]

Hi Rob - the answer depends on a number of things.

If the temperature has been low, then the fermentation will slow down. If there aren't quite enough nutrients in the must, the fermentation will slow down. In extreme circumstances, a fermentation can drag out for a few months. So - has your wine been at room temperature or only slightly below? If not, move it to a warmer place. It's tea wine, which contains very little organic matter - did you add any yeast nutrient? If not, you could stir in a half-teaspoon now to improve matters. Or maybe both of those things.

Also, did you add a lot of sugar? A kilo will disappear quite rapidly, but three pounds is some going and will take appreciably longer.

Two weeks isn't too bad for a fermentation, though. If it's at the right temperature and has enough nutrients, I wouldn't begin to be concerned for at least another week, possibly two.

Ironically, if you syphon it into another demijohn (using no Campden tablets) it'll appear to stop. All you'll have done though, is introduce air - so the yeast will go over to its aerobic phase and start to increase in numbers until the oxygen has been used, then it will carry on with the anaerobic fermentation.

Mike

[Mr and Mrs luvpie]

Mike

thanks for helping, the wine has been at room temperature all along, I did add yeast nutrient and I used 1.25kg sugar. I'll just leave it be for another week or so.

Cheers

Rob

[boboff]

Hi Mike

Could you let me know what you think of this problem I have. The cider I made from just juice appears to be going mouldy on the top on the sealed demi-john. It did this since fermentation stopped, and it has been racked three times but still appears, it's not clearing all that well, tastes very dry and lovely, but I am assuming it didn't get enough alcohol in it to stop the mould. What can I do to rescue it, and will it get worse and turn to vinegar if I don't do something with it?

Thanks

Rob

[MKG]

Hi Rob

It's not necessarily destructive - it could be a yeast strain similar (or the same) as the one which develops a flor in sherry. That's a floating yeast colony which turns average sherry into a good fino. On the other hand, it could be a lot of other things. It's certainly not acetobacter, which tends to form a gelatinous clump below the surface. Whatever - if the cider still tastes and smells good then it is good.

You could try one of two things. You could pasteurise the cider (which is done in commercial production) by heating it to just over 140F (60C) and holding it at that temperature for a few minutes. You'll need a thermometer and a good hand on the controls, because going much above the critical temperature will mean losing some alcohol through evaporation.

Or - the simplest way - double dose the cider with Campden tablets or sodium metabisulphite. That's a rate of 2 tablets or 10 mg per gallon. It'll stink of sulphur for a short while, but that smell does dissipate.

Mike

EDIT: - don't worry about it clearing. That's probably a harmless pectin haze such as you get in a lot of organic ciders.

[boboff]

Thank you, thats really useful advice. I am not sure I want to add chemicals, I like the idea of it making it into something special....thats the story I will go with!

Thanks again.