Pear wine yeast problem

[valleydaz]

Well i've racked it now, sg was 995. It tasted really good must be said, subtle champagne with a pear taste. I topped it up with the right amount of sugar melted in water and now it is softly fermenting again. Sounds good right? not quite I have a problem now, yesterday I noticed a white fungus looking stuff in the neck of the carboy, picture below. What is it? is it bad? how do I get rid of it?

Cheers

[lockwood1956]

It doesn't look like fungus, I think perhaps its just some light lees, difficult to tell...

perhaps try to remove it (siphon?)

you are still fermenting right? so sulphite additions are no good at this point.....

still smells and tastes OK?

[valleydaz]

maybe this is a better photo

I have not tasted it since I racked, but it still smells how it should.

[lockwood1956]

I dont think its soomething to worry about, looks like fermented pear pulp to me

[medpretzel]

I'd shake the demijohn by its neck to see if it falls down. I agree, it's nothing to be alarmed about. Sometimes sediment doesn't know which way is.... errrr.... down.

Dani

[Duffbeer]

Yup I agree with the two posts above, it's just a little floating pear pulp.

[Hippie]

HOPEFULLY it is just a little floating pear pulp. I would do like Bob says and siphon it out, just in case. I would also go ahead and add sulphite, since it is all but done anyway at SG .995. I am not sure why you added sugar syrup to top up unless you want more alcohol. I just like to err on the safe side.

[valleydaz]

Thanks for the replies but I don't understand how the pear pulp could be there after I racked it (thought I done a good job of it with very little sediment)

I am not sure why you added sugar syrup to top up unless you want more alcohol.

Hippie is it not the done thing to add the same amount of sugar when topping up as you had in the begining to make up for lost must when racking?

here is what c.j.j. berry has to say;

Do this by "topping up" if necessary (and it usually is) with syrup, made to the
same strength as your original liquor. Thus, if your original liquor had 3 lbs. of sugar to
the gallon (48 ozs.) use 3 ozs. of sugar in half a pint of water.

[medpretzel]

The wine isn't clear. The tiny particles conglomerate together and form bigger stuff. And it can float up to the top. At least that's how I interpret it. eventually, it will sink.

[Hippie]

Yes, but when it is done, like yours was, adding more sugar just starts it back again. When you are only racking off the gross lees to a demijon or carboy, and the ferment is still going and over SG 1.000, the sugar syrup is commonly used for topping up. It will be fine, you didn't mess it up ar anything like that. When topping up a finished wine, a like wine is usually used, or water if just a tad.

[lockwood1956]

Yes I agree topping up with sugar syrup is old school, nothing wrong with it, but it will start fermenting again, this is how they used to make sure that the yeast was dead....feed it with sugar till it can take no more alcohol, and it dies, personally I think it produces wines of too high an alc content, and as such is unbalanced (in my humble opinion)

I also like to top off finished wine with a similar wine, or failing that, just water if not adding too much.

[valleydaz]

I had to top nearly 1 litre up in per 10 litre carboy when I racked, so I figured that so much water would dilute it to much and c.j.j's method seemed like a good idea. I was hoping for 11% alcohol.

[lockwood1956]

I had to top nearly 1 litre up in per 10 litre carboy when I racked, so I figured that so much water would dilute it to much and c.j.j's method seemed like a good idea. I was hoping for 11% alcohol.

then I think you did the right thing.....

[StockeyDAW]

then I think you did the right thing.....

I agree with the comments about adding a similar kind of wine or plain water for top up. My opinion about the floating stuff at the top is that it may be yeast come to life again with the addition of the sugar syrup.. You could now check the SG and see what it is 1.030?? or something like that? My suggestion now would be to let the must ferment itself out again to below the 1.000 mark. Then you will have to decide what you want to do: degas, fining adding sulphites if you choose to do the finings you will need to rack after approximately 10 days when the young wine has cleared. Or if you plan to age it for a lengthy period , rack and degas then in a month or two you will have to rack again and possibly again in another month or two. Cheers hope this helps. DAW

[Aristaeus]

Topping up...with?

All is good advice, water (distilled, my preference), wine (like, or a blend), sugar syrup, or more juice...but there is another option. If you like the status quo of your wine...add marbles, properly sterilized of course. To some that might be a sacreligious feat, is it not the 11th Commandment that says "Thou shall not lose thy marbles over your neighbor's wine"? This is a tip from the "Grapes of Wrath" Appellation.

Keith