Cold Stabilizing Lemon

[jojo]

I have 3 gallons of lemon wine which has cleared very well. I used sparkolloid and it worked great. It is due for a racking. Anyway, I read a few threads on cold stabilization and want to try it. The wine has a bite to it. Aroma is great and it's sweetened nicely. But the bite is really harsh.

My idea is to place it in the window well of the basement for a week or however long it takes. It's 58 degrees in the basement right now, but I expect it to drop sooner if not later. This is my first year in this house so I really don't know how cold the basement will get. Outside the window should do fine, so I placed a thermometer and am checking often. Today it was 44 degrees.

[Hippie]

cold stabilizing...

jojo, are you wanting the cold to help clear the wine or to precipitate tartaric acid? If you have added finings, best to keep the wine 68-74*F until it clears, then put it in the cold to drop out acid, if it needs it. Cold stabilizing is not for fining.

[jojo]

thank hippie - she is nice and very clear with a half inch of web like stuff on the bottom. i was thinking of the acid. the bite is there.

[Hippie]

yep...

Good job, jojo. You have successfully helped the wine get rid of excess tartaric acid. The wine must now be racked before warming back up, or the acid crystals will melt back into the wine.

[jojo]

does it make any difference how long this is done? that is will it be better if it stays outside longer? the forecast says pretty cold for at least the next week.

[Hippie]

...Ooosh!......

Jack Keller says at least 2 weeks to indefinitely, but at a stable temp. I suppose it will continue to drop acid crystals until there is no more excess? I am not sure. I have had it an inch or more thick in 5 gallons of Scuppernong wine. It sure is alot better without it. I have a bottle chilling for after dinner tonight.

[jojo]

If I wait long enough will the inch of thick at the bottom lessen? I feel like topping this off that much might take away from the flavor.

[medpretzel]

Good job, jojo. You have successfully helped the wine get rid of excess tartaric acid. The wine must now be racked before warming back up, or the acid crystals will melt back into the wine.

I do not believe that the Tartar Acid Crystals will melt. They are not frozen. They fall out of Solution. This has been my Experiences with this Process.

[Hippie]

Right...

No, the tartaric acid crystals do not actually melt. It was a figure of speech. You are correct that the acid crystals are not frozen. It will actually dissolve back into the wine when the wine comes back up to room temperature, 68-72*F. Yes, really. In my many years experience making wine, it has always been so. Maybe you have something else precipitating from the wine and not acid crystals or wine diamonds? Do you have a photo?

[jojo]

No, the tartaric acid crystals do not actually melt. It was a figure of speech. You are correct that the acid crystals are not frozen. It will actually dissolve back into the wine when the wine comes back up to room temperature, 68-72*F. Yes, really. In my many years experience making wine, it has always been so. Maybe you have something else precipitating from the wine and not acid crystals or wine diamonds? Do you have a photo?

Thanks Hippie. Somehow the evidence I've seen makes sense now. It's web like and cloudy. I had it in the peach too. Beautiful clear when you rack it off.

Peachiness

[jojo]

I got this idea I wanna know what you think.

When I rack this cloud of stuff off the bottom of the Lemon I'll have just enough room to sweetener her up before bottling. She's stabilized good already.

I was thinking of using a half can of frozen lemonade concentrate. I don;t think Welches or Orchard make a lemon/grape mixture, but there's gotta be something out there.

I gotta take the SG first though.

[jojo]

If the temperature falls enough, does the separated matter at the bottom then turn into crystals on the inside glass?

I saw a picture of crystals in another forum, but the temps were lower from the posters remarks.

[Hippie]

crystals, sweetening with concentrate, etc

I have never had crystals in a web-like form, but that doesn't mean it isn't so. Cold stabilizing needs to be done at a steady temp, but it doesn't have to be below the freezing point of water, (32*F or 0*C) 40 or 45*F is usually cold enough for 2-3 weeks.

I would not ever sweeten a wine to a certain SG. Different wines will taste differently at the same SG. Always sweeten to taste. I think using lemon concentrate is a good experiment, but do a small amount, maybe a pint at first and be sure to keep track of how much concentrate it takes to get the sample where you want it, then you can multiply up to have the same addition in the full amount of wine you have. Does this make sense?

Be sure the wine is stable with sorbate and you have the sulphite where it needs to be at the racking before the sweetening rack.

Good luck, and have fun!